Genetic Genealogy: Double Sixes

Genetic Genealogy Double Sixes

Roll and Win

Music to a genetic genealogist’s ears is the ding of an email that says “You have a match!” 

My husband recently tested with Family Tree DNA’s autosomal DNA service (Family Finder).  Within minutes of the first results being posted he heard the ding.


We’ve got a match!

I’m the genealogist so hubby fires the email off to me to handle.

By now, I’ve got this genetic genealogy inquiry sequence down to an art.  No time wasted here.

I have a web page listing our surnames and locations.  I refer Mr. or Ms. Match to this page and point them to either group 1 or 2 for my side of the family or group 3 or 4 for hubby’s side of the family.  My ancestry is homogenous UK with a smidgeon of French.  Hubby’s ancestors are mostly American with Dutch roots.

In this case Mr. Match answers back promptly.  “That was easy”, he says.  “I’m related to your husband on the Isaac ESTEY/Mary TOWNE line and here’s how”…upon which he elaborates the connection.  (Mary Towne Estey is our Salem witch.)

I love genetic genealogy matches that are sorted out so quickly.

Double Sixes – what are the chances?

THEN Mr. Match says he thinks he is ALSO related to ME!

REALLY??   Yes, Really!

It turns out Mr. Match is 1/4 French Canadian and has the name LEMOINE in his family tree.  My Lemoines are the Ottawa Valley Lemoines, originally from Quebec and all the descendents of Francoise Lemoine, one of the “Filles du Roi” (Daughters of the King) sent over to populate New France back in the 1600s.  His ancestor is also Francoise Lemoine.

We both go back to FTDNA to see if he and I have a DNA match in Family Finder.

Sure enough Mr. Match finds we share ‘shreds’ of DNA.  We are distant cousins.   (I haven’t found it yet but will look again).

The moral of this little story? 

Share all of your surnames…I mean ALL (both sides of the family, husband and wife) on your webpage or in your email. 

That next ‘ding’ in the mailbox might be genetic genealogy double sixes!