Three Balls in the Air

As usual, I'm waiting for DNA test results. Impatiently of course. This time there are three tests I'm excited about seeing the results of for a multitude of reasons.

One of my Elmer friends has convinced person on a different branch of the Elmer family tree (descending from Edward) to run the Y 37 test at FTDNA. Barring an NPE, those results could be really helpful in determining a baseline Elmer Y profile. Right now we have the two FTDNA tested Elmers from New York and one partial (but close for them) SMGF tested match from Vermont. Hopefully we get a nice close match from this tester too.

I trawled the Denmark Y DNA project for possible cumberland matches and came up with two kits that looked really promising. Checking with both kits I've found that they both had the DYS458.2 micro-allele that (for the time being) marks our group in the cumberland cluster. One of the kits has agreed to test for DF95 which is excellent. I am 99.99% sure it will come back positive. Even FTDNA projects they will be Z14+ which is a good sign (DF95 being the child of Z14).

I also broke down and ordered a 23 and me test for one of the Indiana Thompsons. It should provide me with a haplogroup for the Indiana branch of the family which is nice because it will tell me where to start testing for the FTDNA Y tests for the Indiana branch. I am pretty confident we aren't a Y match given the STRs I've seen (unless there was some nuclear accident that made their Y chromosomes mutate back to "normal"). My hunch though is that they will still prove to be a good match at 23 and me for my dad. I have a lot of paternal genetic relatives for my dad lining up in Kentucky in areas surrounding my Williamson family. My gamble is that even though we are most likely not Y line related we are related through the Williamson family...somehow.

There are lots of options that don't have to involve infidelity, although I think most people focus on that. Anyway, my bet is that the Indiana Thompsons share at least one great grandparent with my dad. Even one great grandparent should be a pretty large match. So that is the hope.

Otherwise, I think I am good and stuck on the Thompson/Williamson side. I have had no luck in recruiting other people related to Levi Thompson or the descendants of Henry Williamson's siblings. I will have to wait for a big fish to come in on one of my lines and probably shift my focus to sorting out my grandfather's maternal Finks family to try to get a handle on their glaring unknowns.

With a month or two of wait time..I will be eagerly watching my email for news on any of these three balls in the air.