Dodecad Update
Kasandra compiled the Family finder members in the Dodecad project and created a comparison sheet. There are 54 users on this sheet. I'm FF009 Thanks Kasandra!
Dodecad Ancestry Project
Dienekes' was kind enough to include me in his initial Family Finder run for his Dodecad Ancestry Project. I'm FFD001 the first bar on the sheet. Most of my results are not a surprise, mostly North European and South European.
Thanks Dienekes'!
Thanks Dienekes'!
Eurogenes New World admixture update
Just in time for Thanksgiving, the Eurogenes project has a new admixture run, my results:
Explanation from Davids site:
http://bga101.blogspot.com/2010/11/new-world-admixture-results-23andme-and.html
Explanation from Davids site:
"This analysis assumes that the New World (ie. the Americas) is made up of four ancestral groups - Sub-Saharan African, European, North Amerindian and South Amerindian. It ignores the rest of the world. So if your parents or grandparents are from Europe, and yet you score a couple per cent of Amerindian admixture, then clearly, that's not due to Amerindian ancestry, but some other influence taking its form, like North or East Eurasian"
http://bga101.blogspot.com/2010/11/new-world-admixture-results-23andme-and.html
Letter from Missouri Sarah Bryant
Here is a letter from my maternal great grandmother Missouri Sarah Bryant to her daughter Juanita Tanner. Posted to share with family.
Biogeographical Ancestry
Earlier this year I had my Autosomal DNA scanned by Family Tree DNA. They use this data for various products they offer as well as providing a copy that you can download for yourself. So now that I have a copy of my data that I've been submitting to numerous biogeographical studies. These studies use the 500,000 pairs of locations (SNPs) to look for ancestral markers. Basically we all carry little markers that give hints to what people or tribe we come from. The old tests were pretty lame using 13-100 CODIS markers to identify your origin. The new tests available today utilize 500,000 + markers within our DNA , a substantial difference.
Of course you can have your entire Genome scanned by a few companies, but I don't have the extra $20,000 at the moment to do this. The average person is getting their data from FTDNA or 23andMe with the price ranging from $250-$500 US for these tests.
So we are dealing with 500,000 markers and researchers believe that only 100,000 are necessary to get a good idea "what" you are. My data has been run four times by different researchers. Here are the results:
Test # 1
First I ran my data through Dienekes'
EURO-DNA-CALC
This program gives you a percentage estimate of your Northwest Euro, Southeast Euro, or Ashkenazi Jewish heritage. I came back 100% Northwest Euro.
[1] "NORTHWEST EURO: Maximum Likelihood Estimate=100% Interval=[71, 100]"
[1] "SOUTHEAST EURO: Maximum Likelihood Estimate=0% Interval=[0, 29]"
[1] "ASHKENAZI JEWISH: Maximum Likelihood Estimate=0% Interval=[0, 22]"
Test # 2
Next I submitted my data to the Eurogenes Project. This project is one of the most exciting ones happening right now along with Dr. McDonald's project. David sends out updates almost weekly as new people join the project and he gives you a percentage breakdown along with numerous maps.
I'm listed as F-US9 and sit between the Orcadian and French samples.
Here's an example of what David provides:
My percentage breakdown from Eurogenes:
Western European 39.23%
Anatolian/Caucasian 4.35%
Middle Eastern 0.5485%
Northeast European 35.72%
Mediterranean 20.13%
North African 0.001%
A run with Native American reference populations for comparison. I have no Native American DNA according to this test.
Amerindian 0.001%
Anatolian/Caucasian 23.19%
Northeast European 75.63%
North Eurasian 1.14%
East Asian 0.001%
Test # 3
I sent my data to Professor J.Doug McDonald,
Professor of Chemistry at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His current research interests include studies of the folding of single protein molecules. He is the Assistant Administrator and Data Custodian of the Clan Donald DNA Project.
Dr. McDonald has been accepting data and running reports for DNA hobbyists like myself for the last few years. Dr. McDonald's analyses of my DNA was as follows:
Test # 4
Family Tree DNA Population Finder
FTDNA provided the raw data I used in the tests above. Their Population Finder test is still in beta and they tend to be more conservative than the other tests.
My results were:
Europe (Western European) 93.26% ±6.82%
Europe 6.74% ±6.82%
The Population Finder Program determines your biogeographical ancestry — the story of your personal genetic history — by comparing your autosomal DNA to that of our world DNA population database. Your Population Finder results consist of up to four out of seven continental groups.* For each, the percentage of your genome that matches is shown. You may view your results as either a stacked bar or pie chart.
So around 90% of my DNA matches the Western European reference populations which are:
Basque
French
Orcadian
Spanish
The other 10% or so of my DNA match the other European populations but not close enough to give a subgroup, so it's put into the generic Europe category.
These are listed below:
Northeast European
Finnish
Russian
Caucasus
Adygei
Southeast European
Romanian
Southern European
Italian
Sardinian
Tuscan
Hopefully when the Population Finder product comes out of beta, there will be further refinement.
So what do I think about my ancestry now that I've had my DNA analysed four different ways? I think I'm mostly Irish, English, and French. Traditional genealogy has pointed to these populations and the DNA tests seem to point in this direction as well.
My family has a strong history of Native American ancestry through my mom's side of the family as well. I believe that this does not exist since I've found no proof genealogically or within my Genome.
I'm very grateful for the researchers above that have given their time with these projects. They are filling a needed void in the Biogeographical Ancestry testing field.
Of course you can have your entire Genome scanned by a few companies, but I don't have the extra $20,000 at the moment to do this. The average person is getting their data from FTDNA or 23andMe with the price ranging from $250-$500 US for these tests.
So we are dealing with 500,000 markers and researchers believe that only 100,000 are necessary to get a good idea "what" you are. My data has been run four times by different researchers. Here are the results:
Test # 1
First I ran my data through Dienekes'
EURO-DNA-CALC
This program gives you a percentage estimate of your Northwest Euro, Southeast Euro, or Ashkenazi Jewish heritage. I came back 100% Northwest Euro.
[1] "NORTHWEST EURO: Maximum Likelihood Estimate=100% Interval=[71, 100]"
[1] "SOUTHEAST EURO: Maximum Likelihood Estimate=0% Interval=[0, 29]"
[1] "ASHKENAZI JEWISH: Maximum Likelihood Estimate=0% Interval=[0, 22]"
Test # 2
Next I submitted my data to the Eurogenes Project. This project is one of the most exciting ones happening right now along with Dr. McDonald's project. David sends out updates almost weekly as new people join the project and he gives you a percentage breakdown along with numerous maps.
I'm listed as F-US9 and sit between the Orcadian and French samples.
Here's an example of what David provides:
My percentage breakdown from Eurogenes:
Western European 39.23%
Anatolian/Caucasian 4.35%
Middle Eastern 0.5485%
Northeast European 35.72%
Mediterranean 20.13%
North African 0.001%
A run with Native American reference populations for comparison. I have no Native American DNA according to this test.
Amerindian 0.001%
Anatolian/Caucasian 23.19%
Northeast European 75.63%
North Eurasian 1.14%
East Asian 0.001%
Test # 3
I sent my data to Professor J.Doug McDonald,
Professor of Chemistry at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His current research interests include studies of the folding of single protein molecules. He is the Assistant Administrator and Data Custodian of the Clan Donald DNA Project.
Dr. McDonald has been accepting data and running reports for DNA hobbyists like myself for the last few years. Dr. McDonald's analyses of my DNA was as follows:
I can't tell specific European mixtures, only if you fit a pure comparison panel I have, or else I can just give what the "average" is, unless the Euro is one of the oddball ones like Sardinia.
My "spot on the map" puts you in the English Channel between London and Belgium. This implies, of course, that British/French works, and it does. You should take anything other than the average with a very large grain of salt. The average is usually reliable.
I see no Native American using any of the tests I have, which includes one like 23andMe's "Ancestry Painting" but I have real Native American comparisons. This test can IN SOME CASES reliably detect or exclude Native American on the 0.8% scale, and is very reliable at 3%. Dr. McDonald says "In your case, I'd simply say that while I see teeny bit of it purportedly here and there, they are WELL within the noise and are not real."
No test reliably gets individual country fractions accurately inside Europe, mine, or others (except those special cases ...if somebody is 50% Basque 50% Romanian, for example, it will get the Basque quite correct but may say Russian or Lithuanian, not Romanian, etc.)
Doug
Test # 4
Family Tree DNA Population Finder
FTDNA provided the raw data I used in the tests above. Their Population Finder test is still in beta and they tend to be more conservative than the other tests.
My results were:
Europe (Western European) 93.26% ±6.82%
Europe 6.74% ±6.82%
The Population Finder Program determines your biogeographical ancestry — the story of your personal genetic history — by comparing your autosomal DNA to that of our world DNA population database. Your Population Finder results consist of up to four out of seven continental groups.* For each, the percentage of your genome that matches is shown. You may view your results as either a stacked bar or pie chart.
So around 90% of my DNA matches the Western European reference populations which are:
Basque
French
Orcadian
Spanish
The other 10% or so of my DNA match the other European populations but not close enough to give a subgroup, so it's put into the generic Europe category.
These are listed below:
Northeast European
Finnish
Russian
Caucasus
Adygei
Southeast European
Romanian
Southern European
Italian
Sardinian
Tuscan
Hopefully when the Population Finder product comes out of beta, there will be further refinement.
So what do I think about my ancestry now that I've had my DNA analysed four different ways? I think I'm mostly Irish, English, and French. Traditional genealogy has pointed to these populations and the DNA tests seem to point in this direction as well.
My family has a strong history of Native American ancestry through my mom's side of the family as well. I believe that this does not exist since I've found no proof genealogically or within my Genome.
I'm very grateful for the researchers above that have given their time with these projects. They are filling a needed void in the Biogeographical Ancestry testing field.
Allen Known Descendancy
George Alleyene (Allen), 1460-1540 (Staffordshire, England)
Richard Alleyene (Allen), 1490-1559
John Alleyene (Allen), 1510-1557
Richard Alleyene (Allen) I, 1550-1616 Lincoln Co.England
Richard Alleyene (Allen) II, 1573LincolnCoENG-1651Kent Co England
Richard Allen III, 1613 Canterbury, Kent England - 1690 New Kent Co. Virginia
Richard Allen IV, 1650 Kent Co. England - 1725 New Kent Co.Virginia
Robert Allen 1675VA - 1755VA
Robert Allen 1704VA-1784VA
William Carr Allen 1725 New Kent Co.. VA -1789 VA
William Carr Allen USA Revolutionary War Vet. Listed in DAR Patriot Index
Drury Allen 1745VA-1823NC
Thomas Allen 1775VA-1858
Jeremiah Allen 1806NC-c.1880-85Bastrop Co. TX
James T. Allen 1832 Polk Co TN-1900 Wise CoTX
James T. Allen was a CSA Civil War Vet, 18th Texas Cavalry (Darnell's Regiment)
Henry Clay Allen 1857 Wise Co.TX-1946 AZ
William Louis Allen Birth 29 May 1879 in Decatur, TX Death 16 Oct 1966 in Mercer, Illinois, USA
James Elwood Allen Birth 13 Jan 1927 in Mercer County, Illinois Death 30 May 2008 in Reynolds, Rock Island, Illinois
William Bernard Allen (father)
William Bernard Allen - Me
Richard Alleyene (Allen), 1490-1559
John Alleyene (Allen), 1510-1557
Richard Alleyene (Allen) I, 1550-1616 Lincoln Co.England
Richard Alleyene (Allen) II, 1573LincolnCoENG-1651Kent Co England
Richard Allen III, 1613 Canterbury, Kent England - 1690 New Kent Co. Virginia
Richard Allen IV, 1650 Kent Co. England - 1725 New Kent Co.Virginia
Robert Allen 1675VA - 1755VA
Robert Allen 1704VA-1784VA
William Carr Allen 1725 New Kent Co.. VA -1789 VA
William Carr Allen USA Revolutionary War Vet. Listed in DAR Patriot Index
Drury Allen 1745VA-1823NC
Thomas Allen 1775VA-1858
Jeremiah Allen 1806NC-c.1880-85Bastrop Co. TX
James T. Allen 1832 Polk Co TN-1900 Wise CoTX
James T. Allen was a CSA Civil War Vet, 18th Texas Cavalry (Darnell's Regiment)
Henry Clay Allen 1857 Wise Co.TX-1946 AZ
William Louis Allen Birth 29 May 1879 in Decatur, TX Death 16 Oct 1966 in Mercer, Illinois, USA
James Elwood Allen Birth 13 Jan 1927 in Mercer County, Illinois Death 30 May 2008 in Reynolds, Rock Island, Illinois
William Bernard Allen (father)
William Bernard Allen - Me
Debord family
Another gem from the book "Village of Reynolds" 1876-1976 by Lettie Lloyd Bellinger and Irene Davis Rockhold
Not much, but its interesting to see that the Debords are from France.
"Frederick and Mary Owens DeBord and their family came to Illinois in 1874 from Kentucky.
In 1879 they moved to a farm two and one half miles west and one mile south of Reynolds.
The ancestors of the DeBord family came to America from France."
How I relate:
William Bernard Allen (me)
Living Allen (father)
James Elwood Allen (grandfather)
Maude Swartout (great,grandmother)
Alvira A. Debord (great,great grandmother)
Frederick A. Debord - Mary A. Owens great,great,great grandparents (see above)
Below is Alvira's Obit. She died quite young, age 34. It says she suffered an attack from "La Grippe" which is the flu. Maybe the Russian flu?
Not much, but its interesting to see that the Debords are from France.
"Frederick and Mary Owens DeBord and their family came to Illinois in 1874 from Kentucky.
In 1879 they moved to a farm two and one half miles west and one mile south of Reynolds.
The ancestors of the DeBord family came to America from France."
How I relate:
William Bernard Allen (me)
Living Allen (father)
James Elwood Allen (grandfather)
Maude Swartout (great,grandmother)
Alvira A. Debord (great,great grandmother)
Frederick A. Debord - Mary A. Owens great,great,great grandparents (see above)
Below is Alvira's Obit. She died quite young, age 34. It says she suffered an attack from "La Grippe" which is the flu. Maybe the Russian flu?
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| Death announcement |
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| Thank you Card |
The Will L. Allen Family
I'm lucky to have quite a bit of information about my paternal great grandfather "Will L. Allen". In the family biography section of the book "Village of Reynolds" 1876-1976 by Lettie Lloyd Bellinger and Irene Davis Rockhold the first family profiled is great grandpa Will and family.
Update:
When I originally posted this, I wondered who the cousins Arthur,Daisy and Lily Bell were and how they fit into the family. I asked my Dad and family if they had heard of them. They had not. So I started digging around to see if I could find how they related to my G,Grandfather Will. I'm happy to say I found all three. They are cousins to Will through his aunt Eunice Timmons.
Here is Arthur Timothy Bell
Daisy Bell
Lily Bell
Allen Bros. Trucking
The book "Village of Reynolds" 1876-1976 by Lettie Lloyd Bellinger and Irene Davis Rockhold mentions the Allen family several times. Here is an article about my grandfather Jim and his brothers Harry and Raymond.
continued on next page below
Snow of 1936 Reynolds Illinois
The snows of 1936 are often reminisced among residents of Reynolds who experienced the hardships of that winter. The February storm became remembered as one of the worst blizzards in history because of the two day paralysis brought to most communities. Milk and fuel shortages were feared, people were marooned, snow plows were stalled unable to get through the crusted snows, and sub-zero gales of wind piled snow into sifting drifts for 36 hours.
Reynolds Village Board, February 1936. L.C. Davis paid the following to remove snow:
Notice the fellow in the middle "Will Allen" 3 hours shoveling…………. 90 cents! Sheesh..
It looks like Raymond, Will's son, Grandpa Bill's brother made a pretty good amount that day.
A few pics from the event below
Homemade Ancestry Finder
Researching my heritage has been a hobby of mine for the last few years. Ive always been interested in where my "people" came from. In the past you could make a family tree and trace your history with census records,immigration records, and such. If you did enough research you might have a pretty good estimate of what your heritage was.
Of course we all have family history as well, and many of these stories or opinions about our family's heritage have a good bit of truth in them. So if you are from the South and family lore is that you are part Cherokee then it might be true. However proving this type of story takes a lot of hard work,research, and luck. And some of our ancestors will never be found due to the lack of records or records that have been lost or destroyed over time.
Well we are in a new age of genealogy and some of our questions about our heritage are starting to be answered. 23andme has just released a tool called "Ancestry Finder". When you create an account with 23andme they ask you to complete several surveys. A few of these ask were you are from and where your grandparents are from. 23andme is using the data from these surveys to give you an idea where others that share your chromosomes are from. It's all self reported, but when you get enough people reporting this type of information you can develop trends that are pretty sound. This can give you a pretty good idea were your genes have traveled over the years and what nationality you share the most in common with.
I haven't taken a test with 23andme yet but I have taken a similar test at FamilytreeDNA, the new "Family Finder" test. As they say in their promotional blurb:
So FamilyTreeDNA took my Autosomal DNA and threw it in a database, compared me with people that match me and put us in contact with each other. So far I have 45-50 people that match me on various chromosomes.I haven't broken down any major brick walls in my family tree yet, but I have been communicating with these distant cousins asking for a "Geographic Classification" of their family or how they self identify. I've also been taking notes on what parts of the country they come from in the USA and various other info. Most of these people are DNA nuts like me, so they don't mind sharing this type of information.
I also have my DNA in other databases that compare atDNA like Leon Kull's HIR search : http://hirs.snpology.com/
It does the same thing (find chromosomal matches) but its free.
Now since FamilyTreeDNA's autosomal test is newer than 23andme's they don't have the new features yet like the one I discussed above. FTDNA has a geographic breakdown report that is due out any day now, and it's supposed to be really neat, so hopefully we will get in on the fun soon.
But I'm impatient and decided to make my own homebrewed version of this.I took the self reported origins of 50+ people that carry my (our?) Chromosomes along with my known genealogical research and put this into an EXCEL file. I then created a pie chart just to show off. Its a much smaller data set than used at 23andme, but I see trends already that seem likley.
So now I present my possible ethnic breakdown!
I'm basically Northern European and that's not a big surprise to me. I look Northern European I believe, and my known genealogy has always pointed to England and Ireland.So it seems like a lot of work to prove the obvious, but it is fun to see this in chart form.
Ill update this posting when the official genetic breakdown from FTDNA comes out. It will be interesting to see how it compares.
Of course we all have family history as well, and many of these stories or opinions about our family's heritage have a good bit of truth in them. So if you are from the South and family lore is that you are part Cherokee then it might be true. However proving this type of story takes a lot of hard work,research, and luck. And some of our ancestors will never be found due to the lack of records or records that have been lost or destroyed over time.
Well we are in a new age of genealogy and some of our questions about our heritage are starting to be answered. 23andme has just released a tool called "Ancestry Finder". When you create an account with 23andme they ask you to complete several surveys. A few of these ask were you are from and where your grandparents are from. 23andme is using the data from these surveys to give you an idea where others that share your chromosomes are from. It's all self reported, but when you get enough people reporting this type of information you can develop trends that are pretty sound. This can give you a pretty good idea were your genes have traveled over the years and what nationality you share the most in common with.
I haven't taken a test with 23andme yet but I have taken a similar test at FamilytreeDNA, the new "Family Finder" test. As they say in their promotional blurb:
"The science is simple—linked blocks of DNA across the 22 autosomal chromosomes are matched between two people. The degree of matching yields evidence for the relationship. You have exciting opportunities!"
So FamilyTreeDNA took my Autosomal DNA and threw it in a database, compared me with people that match me and put us in contact with each other. So far I have 45-50 people that match me on various chromosomes.I haven't broken down any major brick walls in my family tree yet, but I have been communicating with these distant cousins asking for a "Geographic Classification" of their family or how they self identify. I've also been taking notes on what parts of the country they come from in the USA and various other info. Most of these people are DNA nuts like me, so they don't mind sharing this type of information.
I also have my DNA in other databases that compare atDNA like Leon Kull's HIR search : http://hirs.snpology.com/
It does the same thing (find chromosomal matches) but its free.
Now since FamilyTreeDNA's autosomal test is newer than 23andme's they don't have the new features yet like the one I discussed above. FTDNA has a geographic breakdown report that is due out any day now, and it's supposed to be really neat, so hopefully we will get in on the fun soon.
But I'm impatient and decided to make my own homebrewed version of this.I took the self reported origins of 50+ people that carry my (our?) Chromosomes along with my known genealogical research and put this into an EXCEL file. I then created a pie chart just to show off. Its a much smaller data set than used at 23andme, but I see trends already that seem likley.
So now I present my possible ethnic breakdown!
I'm basically Northern European and that's not a big surprise to me. I look Northern European I believe, and my known genealogy has always pointed to England and Ireland.So it seems like a lot of work to prove the obvious, but it is fun to see this in chart form.
Ill update this posting when the official genetic breakdown from FTDNA comes out. It will be interesting to see how it compares.
Cowboys and Indians
We tend to think of the Cowboy and Indian age as a fun time, but from the sketch's in the book by David La Vere "Life among the Texas Indians" it was a brutal time for both sides.
My Great Grandfather William Louis Allen was born in Decatur, Tx. in 1879 during these times.
William's father Henry Clay Allen my G,G, Grandfather was a Texas Ranger and Served in Company B of the Frontier Battalion under 1st Sgt. C.H. Hamilton and Commander Ira Long.
Enlisted: April 1, 1876
Discharged: August 31, 1876
Service: 5 months 7 days 
The Frontier Battalion
The Frontier Battalion, composed of six companies of Texas Rangers of seventy-five men each, was organized in 1874 as a result of a recommendation of Governor Richard Coke that Texas organize its own force to protect the frontier. On May 2, 1874, John B. Jones was commissioned major of the force. By July 10, 1874, all six companies were in service. Camps were established along the entire frontier line; Jones himself visited all of the companies, enforcing discipline, and, to tie the command together, established a line of couriers to ride from camp to camp to carry information and pick up Indian signs. By October 8, 1874, Jones reported the battalion in good working order. During the first seventeen months of its organization, the battalion had twenty-one fights with Indians; from September 1875 to February 1876 no Indians appeared on the border guarded by the battalion, and a new feeling of security resulted. The Frontier Battalion was established to control ordinary lawbreakers as well as for defense against Indians. This control was particularly necessary in the period of lawlessness and social collapse following the Civil War and Reconstruction.
The situation was aggravated by the proximity of Texas to Mexico and the conflict between agrarian and cattle interests, as the farm frontier began to encroach on the ranching area. Men of the battalion made arrests, escorted prisoners, guarded jails, and attended courts; hundreds of lawless men were arrested; thousands fled. Among the special tasks assigned to the group were settling the Mason County War, cleaning outlaws out of Kimble County in 1877, ending the Horrell-Higgins Feud in Lampasas County, terminating the Salt War of San Elizario, and capturing Sam Bass. The breakup of the Frontier Battalion began with the death of Major Jones and the resignation of the principal captains in 1881. A court ruling in 1900 destroyed the authority of the force by allowing only commissioned officers to execute criminal process or make arrests. In reality the order destroyed the battalion. The work of the Frontier Battalion in making Texas “a fairly safe place in which to live” was largely responsible for the tradition which came to surround the term, “Texas Ranger.”
The Battalion lasted 27 years and was dissolved in 1901. They were renamed the Ranger Force but still retaining the title “Texas Ranger.”. In 1935 the Rangers were included as part of the Texas Department of Public Safety and have remained so up to the present time. The Texas Legislature acted into law a few years ago that “as long as there is a Texas there will be Texas Rangers.”http://www.fbtre.org/frontier-battalion/
During this period of time the Rangers were involved in some of the most celebrated cases in the history of the State of Texas. Historical facts that would later be mixed with Ranger legend occurred during this turbulent period.
http://www.texasranger.org/
John T Loftus and Mary Sullivan
John T. Loftus and Mary Sullivan were my 3rd Great grandparents. They were Irish and had a large and colorful family. Below are pictures of them along with a story submitted by a cousin Marilyn Glazier
My Great Great Grandfather John T. Loftus, we believe the T. stands for Thomas, would sail from Ireland about 1854 - 1855. We base his sailing date on his Naturalization papers. Per John's obituary he was born in County Galway. John was a devout Catholic and went to church every chance he could. John was always reading the newspapers and we have a picture of him in his late years reading a newspaper. A story passed down was that John was reading the newspaper and he asked his wife Mary Sullivan Loftus how she would say that in her tongue. Mary Sullivan Loftus was born in County Kerry.
John was not a heavy drinker as far as we know. A cousin has a flute that John brought with him from Ireland. My mother was nine years old when John died and she said he would say "aye faith and be glory". The daughters of John Loftus would sing about the moon over Galway Bay.
John would settle in the Fulton, Illinois, USA area and in the 1860 USA census he is a farm hand. In 1868 John would buy farm land in the Meredosia area of Albany, Illinois, USA. We believe John was born March 15, 1842 and John died October 10, 1924 of Influenza. John would marry Mary Sullivan November 27, 1862 at St. Mary's Catholic Church, Fulton, Illinois.Parents: Per the death certificates of John Loftus and his brother James their parents were John Loftus and Bridget Kelly Loftus. Naturalization date of October 15, 1868 and John was able to sign his name. John became a citizen on the same day as his brother-in laws, Jeremiah and Edward Sullivan and they were only able to make an "X" for their signature.
In John's Naturalization papers it states he has been a resident of the USA for 13 years.Children of John T. Loftus: Katherine 1865, John T. Loftus Junior 1868, Delia Amanda 1871, Mary E. 1873 and Edward James 1878. I believe there were four children that died early in infancy. I have no names for these children.Known siblings of John Loftus: John had a brother James with him in the Fulton, Illinois, USA area. In the 1860 census James is listed as a servant and is 14 years of age, making his birth year 1846. James, per death certificate, dies January 20, 1922 of Influenza and his age is listed as 73 years and five months with his birth month as September. Seems to be a difference in James exact birth year.
James was also a devout Catholic, James never married and James liked to drink. James smoked a pipe and James had his pipe in his mouth when they waked him. My mother was then seven years old and tried to pull the pipe from the mouth of James.Per the probate papers of James Loftus I would read that there were two nephews ( Michael Loftus and Harry Loftus ) in St. Louis and a niece and nephew( Mary Amanda O'Rourke Parmelee Husted and John O'Rourke ) in Sioux City, Iowa. Notice the additional use of Amanda as a middle name ( Delia Amanda Loftus ). Thus additional siblings of John Loftus were brother Michael Loftus born in Ireland in 1850 and died in St. Louis, Missouri February 26, 1902 of pneumonia. Also, sister Mary Loftus O'Rourke of Sioux City, Iowa, birth year unknown, died Sioux City, Iowa January 31, 1894 of consumption. Mary Loftus O'Rourke, wife of Henry O'Rourke, worked as a laundress in what was known as the South Bottoms of Sioux City, Iowa.
An area of single family homes where immigrants settled.The son of John T. Loftus, John T. Loftus Junior was so talented at dancing that he entertained locally and had a chance to dance in Chicago professionally. Also, the great granddaughter, Ginger Parmelee, of Mary Loftus O'Rourke was very talented at dancing and gymnastics and entertained locally and won many competitions. I have a picture of John T. Loftus senior with his wife and children taken on Thursday, October 2, 1891. John T. Loftus senior would have been about 49 years of age. John appears slight in build and his hair appears to be white as does his beard. My mother said he was small and had reddish/blond hair with blue eyes. John does indeed appear to be fair in the picture. I notice his hands are broad with short fingers, full lips, broad nose, somewhat curly hair, broad forehead.
I come away with the conclusion that my Great Great Grandfather John T. Loftus born of County Galway, Ireland 1842 had an upbringing that included devout worship in the Catholic Church, had some education of some sort, there had to be family gatherings that would include dancing, singing and flute playing. The family was probably of simple means and common laborers of the time and the area.
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| Mary Sullivan from County Kerry |
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| John T Loftus from County Galway |
My Great Great Grandfather John T. Loftus, we believe the T. stands for Thomas, would sail from Ireland about 1854 - 1855. We base his sailing date on his Naturalization papers. Per John's obituary he was born in County Galway. John was a devout Catholic and went to church every chance he could. John was always reading the newspapers and we have a picture of him in his late years reading a newspaper. A story passed down was that John was reading the newspaper and he asked his wife Mary Sullivan Loftus how she would say that in her tongue. Mary Sullivan Loftus was born in County Kerry.
John was not a heavy drinker as far as we know. A cousin has a flute that John brought with him from Ireland. My mother was nine years old when John died and she said he would say "aye faith and be glory". The daughters of John Loftus would sing about the moon over Galway Bay.
John would settle in the Fulton, Illinois, USA area and in the 1860 USA census he is a farm hand. In 1868 John would buy farm land in the Meredosia area of Albany, Illinois, USA. We believe John was born March 15, 1842 and John died October 10, 1924 of Influenza. John would marry Mary Sullivan November 27, 1862 at St. Mary's Catholic Church, Fulton, Illinois.Parents: Per the death certificates of John Loftus and his brother James their parents were John Loftus and Bridget Kelly Loftus. Naturalization date of October 15, 1868 and John was able to sign his name. John became a citizen on the same day as his brother-in laws, Jeremiah and Edward Sullivan and they were only able to make an "X" for their signature.
In John's Naturalization papers it states he has been a resident of the USA for 13 years.Children of John T. Loftus: Katherine 1865, John T. Loftus Junior 1868, Delia Amanda 1871, Mary E. 1873 and Edward James 1878. I believe there were four children that died early in infancy. I have no names for these children.Known siblings of John Loftus: John had a brother James with him in the Fulton, Illinois, USA area. In the 1860 census James is listed as a servant and is 14 years of age, making his birth year 1846. James, per death certificate, dies January 20, 1922 of Influenza and his age is listed as 73 years and five months with his birth month as September. Seems to be a difference in James exact birth year.
James was also a devout Catholic, James never married and James liked to drink. James smoked a pipe and James had his pipe in his mouth when they waked him. My mother was then seven years old and tried to pull the pipe from the mouth of James.Per the probate papers of James Loftus I would read that there were two nephews ( Michael Loftus and Harry Loftus ) in St. Louis and a niece and nephew( Mary Amanda O'Rourke Parmelee Husted and John O'Rourke ) in Sioux City, Iowa. Notice the additional use of Amanda as a middle name ( Delia Amanda Loftus ). Thus additional siblings of John Loftus were brother Michael Loftus born in Ireland in 1850 and died in St. Louis, Missouri February 26, 1902 of pneumonia. Also, sister Mary Loftus O'Rourke of Sioux City, Iowa, birth year unknown, died Sioux City, Iowa January 31, 1894 of consumption. Mary Loftus O'Rourke, wife of Henry O'Rourke, worked as a laundress in what was known as the South Bottoms of Sioux City, Iowa.
An area of single family homes where immigrants settled.The son of John T. Loftus, John T. Loftus Junior was so talented at dancing that he entertained locally and had a chance to dance in Chicago professionally. Also, the great granddaughter, Ginger Parmelee, of Mary Loftus O'Rourke was very talented at dancing and gymnastics and entertained locally and won many competitions. I have a picture of John T. Loftus senior with his wife and children taken on Thursday, October 2, 1891. John T. Loftus senior would have been about 49 years of age. John appears slight in build and his hair appears to be white as does his beard. My mother said he was small and had reddish/blond hair with blue eyes. John does indeed appear to be fair in the picture. I notice his hands are broad with short fingers, full lips, broad nose, somewhat curly hair, broad forehead.
I come away with the conclusion that my Great Great Grandfather John T. Loftus born of County Galway, Ireland 1842 had an upbringing that included devout worship in the Catholic Church, had some education of some sort, there had to be family gatherings that would include dancing, singing and flute playing. The family was probably of simple means and common laborers of the time and the area.
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| Delia Amanda Loftus my 2nd Great Grandmother Daughter of John and Mary |
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| Another picture of Mary Sullivan |
William Nelson Tucker
One of my Great,Great,Great Grandfathers was William Nelson Tucker. His son was Harvey Nelson Tucker,whose daughter was Elsie Magdalene Tucker. Below is his obituary, along with a note from his diary:
The following brief extract from the diary of the late Wm. N. Tucker was handed us by a member of his family for publication, and although it leaves out all his traits of character, such as honesty, strict integrity, loyalty, charity for the faults of others, loving fondness for his family and friends, yet they will go down in history and not soon will this kindly old gentleman be forgotten.
Contributed by Cynde Greer and brought to you by http://genealogytrails.com/ill/whiteside/obitT.html#WNT
WILLIAM N. TUCKER: Mr. Tucker had been in failing health for several months but his good constitution and wonderful tenacity on life kept him among the living until 10 o'clock on the morning of April 23, 1912, ages 80 years, five months and seven days, his wife and four surviving children and six grandchildren giving him devoted care and attention until the end came peacefully as stated above. Funeral services will be held at the Methodist church at 10 o'clock this (Friday) morning, Rev. Griffin conducting the services. The members of Capt. Knight Post attending in a body, thus paying the last sad tribute of respect to their beloved comrade. Commitment to earth will be made in Oak Ridge cemetery .
The following brief extract from the diary of the late Wm. N. Tucker was handed us by a member of his family for publication, and although it leaves out all his traits of character, such as honesty, strict integrity, loyalty, charity for the faults of others, loving fondness for his family and friends, yet they will go down in history and not soon will this kindly old gentleman be forgotten.
"I was born in Richland County, Ohio, Nov. 16, 1831. My father's name was Hosea Tucker, a Virginian by birth; his father being one of the first settlers. My mother's maiden name was Catharine Garrison, born in the state of New York; my parents were married in Ohio on Nov. 16, 1830, and one year from that date I was born. was raised on a farm and attended school in a log school house until I was 20 years of age. "In the spring of 1850, we changed our location from Ohio to Whitley County, Ind., at that time a new country. September 27, 1858 occured my marriage to Rachel Windell who died in December of the next year. "On the breaking out of the civil war of the Rebellion I enlisted on Aug. 5, 1862 as a musician in Co. B. 74th Inc. Vol. Infantry for the term of three years and served to the close of the war in the army of the Cumberland. I was mustered out at Indianapolis, Ind. on the 9th day of July 1865, and reached home on the 12th, after serving two years, 11 months and seven days. "After arriving home I went to work in a steam saw mill as engineer. In Nove,ber of '68 I located in Whiteside County in Fenton township, became acquainted with Miss Mary J. Montague to whom I was united in marriage on Sept. 1, 1869, and farmed three years in Fenton, four years in Garden plain, nine years in Newton. In March of 1881, I with my family located in Albany which has since been our home. "Five children were given to us, namely: Harvey N., Henry S., Etha B., George M. and Hattie E. "With my wife I united with the U.B. Church at Fenton in April of 1869."
Contributed by Cynde Greer and brought to you by http://genealogytrails.com/ill/whiteside/obitT.html#WNT
Cornelius Swartout and Lucinda Platt
Cornelius Swartout and Lucinda Platt were my Great,Great,Great Grandparents.
The Mercer County Historical Society produced a book in 1882 with profiles of various persons in the county.
"The History of Mercer County" You can read the book online or download it in PDF format http://www.archive.org/details/historyofmercerc00merc
Below is the sketch on Cornelius and Lucinda. Click on the picture to make it larger.
The Mercer County Historical Society produced a book in 1882 with profiles of various persons in the county.
"The History of Mercer County" You can read the book online or download it in PDF format http://www.archive.org/details/historyofmercerc00merc
Below is the sketch on Cornelius and Lucinda. Click on the picture to make it larger.
Berber In Illinois
When tracing your familytree and your genetic heritage, you have a few different ways to go about this.
Autosomal testing, were you test your own DNA for heritage. Y-Chromosome testing, this is passed down by males through the male line for centuries and mtDNA testing which is passed down through the female line for centuries. Autosomal testing is still in its infancy so getting a genetic breakdown can be hard. Males have their mothers mtDNA and their fathers Y-Chromosome but thats still only two lines in their trees.
One way to find more information about your family is by testing as many males and females that you can in your line. Ive been researching as many Y-Chromosome and mtDNA lines in my family that I can in my free time, and have had fun creating a "Heritage Chart". I recently received results for the "George" line of my tree.
My Paternal grandmother "Violet Irene George" was the daughter of Stanley John George and Elsie Magdalene Tucker.
I had researched this portion of my tree for a few generations, but was so busy working on a few other parts of my tree, it had fallen by the wayside.
I finally got back to the George's a few months ago and I started by searching for familytrees on Ancestry.com that matched our George family. You will often find others researching your line, more people as you go back in time.Many trees are amateurish, or projects that were started and have few facts or documents to back up associations. But sometimes you find one or two people that have done a lot of work on the tree and have sources for their work. I was very lucky to find Austin George a direct male descendant of John Swaddock George.
Stanley George also descends from the John Swaddock George, so having Austin test his Y-Chromosome was the same as having Stanley test his.
Stanley George
All males descended from John Swaddock George would carry the same Y-Chromosome. So I was very excited to hear that Austin had already tested with the National Geographic Society's "Genographic Project" and would receive his Y-Chromosome results any day. When Austin received his results, he emailed me and gave me his results. I was actually quite surprised but intrigued.
His results: Haplogroup E1b1b1 (M35)
I was able to get onto ySearch and find another male that descended from the same John Swaddock George a "Richard George" that lives in Florida. Richard had done further testing and I was able to see a more exact Haplogroup.
The full haplogroup: E1b1b1b2 (M183) which is also known as the Berber marker.
This means that there is a good chance that our ancient "George" grandfather descends from the Berbers in North Africa. Ive read this marker is possibly associated with the Morocco area, but its safe to say Northern African in origin. Im sure our Berber blood has been diluted from centuries in England and America, but we can add this to our heritage.
Below is the entire list of George males back to England were it presently stops. Before then, it gets kind of speculative....
James George
Birth 1645 in Norfolk, Norfolk, England
Death in Salem, Essex, Massachusetts, United States
John George
Birth 1675 in Charlestown, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States
Death 28 Feb 1716 in Haverhill, Essex, Massachusetts, United States
John Swaddock George
Birth 15 Dec 1702 in Haverhill, Essex, Massachusetts, United States
Death 28 Jul 1785 in Haverhill, Essex, Massachusetts, United States
David George
Birth 31 Aug 1724 in Haverhill, Essex, Massachusetts, United States
Death Apr 1799 in Conway, Carroll, New Hampshire, United States
Austin George
Birth 19 Mar 1760 in Haverhill, Essex, Massachusetts, United States
Death 1840 in Bartlett, Carroll, New Hampshire, United States
Daniel George
Birth 1 Apr 1789 in Conway, Carroll, New Hampshire, United States
Death 7 May 1830 in Conway, Carroll, New Hampshire, United States
Austin Moody George
Birth 16 Feb 1813 in Burton, New Hampshire, United States
Death 24 Dec 1888 in Garden Plain, Whiteside, Illinois, United States
Charles George
Birth 17 JAN 1841 in Boston, Massachusetts,United States
Death 11 MAR 1920 in Cordova, Illinois, United States
Earl Batchelder George
Birth 03 Dec 1873 in Cordova, Illinois ,United States
Death 15 DEC 1961 in Albany, Illinois , United States
Stanley John George
Birth 6 Jan 1900 in Cordova, Illinois, United States
Death 1962 in Fulton, Illinois, United States
Violet Irene George
Birth 1 Jun 1926
Death 1980 in Reynolds, Rock Island, Illinois,United States
Autosomal testing, were you test your own DNA for heritage. Y-Chromosome testing, this is passed down by males through the male line for centuries and mtDNA testing which is passed down through the female line for centuries. Autosomal testing is still in its infancy so getting a genetic breakdown can be hard. Males have their mothers mtDNA and their fathers Y-Chromosome but thats still only two lines in their trees.
One way to find more information about your family is by testing as many males and females that you can in your line. Ive been researching as many Y-Chromosome and mtDNA lines in my family that I can in my free time, and have had fun creating a "Heritage Chart". I recently received results for the "George" line of my tree.
My Paternal grandmother "Violet Irene George" was the daughter of Stanley John George and Elsie Magdalene Tucker.
I had researched this portion of my tree for a few generations, but was so busy working on a few other parts of my tree, it had fallen by the wayside.
Violet George
I finally got back to the George's a few months ago and I started by searching for familytrees on Ancestry.com that matched our George family. You will often find others researching your line, more people as you go back in time.Many trees are amateurish, or projects that were started and have few facts or documents to back up associations. But sometimes you find one or two people that have done a lot of work on the tree and have sources for their work. I was very lucky to find Austin George a direct male descendant of John Swaddock George.
Stanley George also descends from the John Swaddock George, so having Austin test his Y-Chromosome was the same as having Stanley test his.
Stanley George
All males descended from John Swaddock George would carry the same Y-Chromosome. So I was very excited to hear that Austin had already tested with the National Geographic Society's "Genographic Project" and would receive his Y-Chromosome results any day. When Austin received his results, he emailed me and gave me his results. I was actually quite surprised but intrigued.
His results: Haplogroup E1b1b1 (M35)
I was able to get onto ySearch and find another male that descended from the same John Swaddock George a "Richard George" that lives in Florida. Richard had done further testing and I was able to see a more exact Haplogroup.
The full haplogroup: E1b1b1b2 (M183) which is also known as the Berber marker.
This means that there is a good chance that our ancient "George" grandfather descends from the Berbers in North Africa. Ive read this marker is possibly associated with the Morocco area, but its safe to say Northern African in origin. Im sure our Berber blood has been diluted from centuries in England and America, but we can add this to our heritage.
Below is the entire list of George males back to England were it presently stops. Before then, it gets kind of speculative....
James George
Birth 1645 in Norfolk, Norfolk, England
Death in Salem, Essex, Massachusetts, United States
John George
Birth 1675 in Charlestown, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States
Death 28 Feb 1716 in Haverhill, Essex, Massachusetts, United States
John Swaddock George
Birth 15 Dec 1702 in Haverhill, Essex, Massachusetts, United States
Death 28 Jul 1785 in Haverhill, Essex, Massachusetts, United States
David George
Birth 31 Aug 1724 in Haverhill, Essex, Massachusetts, United States
Death Apr 1799 in Conway, Carroll, New Hampshire, United States
Austin George
Birth 19 Mar 1760 in Haverhill, Essex, Massachusetts, United States
Death 1840 in Bartlett, Carroll, New Hampshire, United States
Daniel George
Birth 1 Apr 1789 in Conway, Carroll, New Hampshire, United States
Death 7 May 1830 in Conway, Carroll, New Hampshire, United States
Austin Moody George
Birth 16 Feb 1813 in Burton, New Hampshire, United States
Death 24 Dec 1888 in Garden Plain, Whiteside, Illinois, United States
Charles George
Birth 17 JAN 1841 in Boston, Massachusetts,United States
Death 11 MAR 1920 in Cordova, Illinois, United States
Earl Batchelder George
Birth 03 Dec 1873 in Cordova, Illinois ,United States
Death 15 DEC 1961 in Albany, Illinois , United States
Stanley John George
Birth 6 Jan 1900 in Cordova, Illinois, United States
Death 1962 in Fulton, Illinois, United States
Violet Irene George
Birth 1 Jun 1926
Death 1980 in Reynolds, Rock Island, Illinois,United States
Family Finder
My name is William Bernard Allen and if you have received this link, you match me in the New Family Finder test at Familytreedna.com.
EDIT (I also took a test at 23andMe and recieved my results Jan 2011. Im sending this to you 23andMe folks as well)
http://www.familytreedna.com/landing/family-finder.aspx
So if we go by FTDNA's estimates, our match's should be within these generations:
Instead of sending each of you a gedcom or an email, I thought I would create a blog posting with this information and send the link. The following 4 JPEG's are my grandparent's and their families. The surnames I am primarily interested in, along with the areas of the country they come from are listed as well.
I'm getting the feeling that most of us match further back in history than 5 generations. I have 20+ match's so far through Family Finder and have only been able to match one or two names in my line. Even those titled "close relatives" are beyond the five generations I believe. Every line I can trace back far enough is either Irish, English or German. Supposedly we have some Cherokee in us as well on my mother's side, but not proven.
Surnames:
Allen Texas, Illinois
Brady Florida,USA
Bryant Florida,USA
Debord Kentucky,USA
Drinnen Illinois,USA
George Illinois,USA
Loftus Albany,Whiteside,Illinois,USA
Miller Hopkins County, KY
Montague Illinois,USA
Owens Kentucky,USA
Phillips Florida,USA
Platt Illinois,USA
Rice Cordova,Illinois,USA
Scott Georgia,USA
Sheppard Georgia,USA
Swartout Illinois,USA
Tanner Georgia,USA
Timmons Kentucky,USA
Tompkins Georgia,USA
Tucker Illinois,USA
These are a little further back. I'm not 100% sure of all of these and am open to debate or suggestions.
Feel free to email me at any time.
The portion of the tree that I have the littlest information on is through my maternal side. The Tanner line has been pretty well gone over but Minnie Lee Scott's parents end abruptly. They were from the Georgia area we believe. My grandmother Juanita's father was listed as Brady, but it could have been a Philips or even a mystery man. Missouri Bryant has been questioned as well as being her mother, there has been talk of Juanita being adopted by Missouri as a young child, but I believe she is her mother. So if you match me and have family that lived in Georgia or North Florida, then this could be where we match.
EDIT (I also took a test at 23andMe and recieved my results Jan 2011. Im sending this to you 23andMe folks as well)
http://www.familytreedna.com/landing/family-finder.aspx
"With our autosomal Family Finder test you may extend the power of genetic genealogy to all of your ancestors. Using a test of your own DNA, you can discover connections to descendants of all sixteen of your great-great-grandparents!"
So if we go by FTDNA's estimates, our match's should be within these generations:
Instead of sending each of you a gedcom or an email, I thought I would create a blog posting with this information and send the link. The following 4 JPEG's are my grandparent's and their families. The surnames I am primarily interested in, along with the areas of the country they come from are listed as well.
I'm getting the feeling that most of us match further back in history than 5 generations. I have 20+ match's so far through Family Finder and have only been able to match one or two names in my line. Even those titled "close relatives" are beyond the five generations I believe. Every line I can trace back far enough is either Irish, English or German. Supposedly we have some Cherokee in us as well on my mother's side, but not proven.
Surnames:
Allen Texas, Illinois
Brady Florida,USA
Bryant Florida,USA
Debord Kentucky,USA
Drinnen Illinois,USA
George Illinois,USA
Loftus Albany,Whiteside,Illinois,USA
Miller Hopkins County, KY
Montague Illinois,USA
Owens Kentucky,USA
Phillips Florida,USA
Platt Illinois,USA
Rice Cordova,Illinois,USA
Scott Georgia,USA
Sheppard Georgia,USA
Swartout Illinois,USA
Tanner Georgia,USA
Timmons Kentucky,USA
Tompkins Georgia,USA
Tucker Illinois,USA
These are a little further back. I'm not 100% sure of all of these and am open to debate or suggestions.
Feel free to email me at any time.
The portion of the tree that I have the littlest information on is through my maternal side. The Tanner line has been pretty well gone over but Minnie Lee Scott's parents end abruptly. They were from the Georgia area we believe. My grandmother Juanita's father was listed as Brady, but it could have been a Philips or even a mystery man. Missouri Bryant has been questioned as well as being her mother, there has been talk of Juanita being adopted by Missouri as a young child, but I believe she is her mother. So if you match me and have family that lived in Georgia or North Florida, then this could be where we match.
Heritage Chart
I have tried to gather as much information that I could on my heritage genealogically and anciently. So far I'm mostly Northern European. This is a work in progress and ill add more information as my various DNA tests and research turns up new information.
Here is a chart I created using Open Office draw. If you need a Visio substitute, try it out, it works great.
Here is a chart I created using Open Office draw. If you need a Visio substitute, try it out, it works great.
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