mtDNA Results

The first genetic test I had Family Tree DNA do for me was shortly after I'd hit a brick wall researching one of my mother's ancestral lines. It's really hard to describe the frustration one feels on such occasions, after having spent months digging through every database available. About that same time, I happened across a magazine article explaining in detail the services Family Tree DNA was offering. The article explained the science behind the research and the amazing advancements being made in a new field called genetic genealogy.

Soon I hit yet another of those annoying brick walls while researching my all female line: my mother, her mother, her mother and so on. After working months and concentrating solely on that line, I had a good paper trail back eight generations, counting my mother:

Theda Bell McMurrey Merrell (my mother);

Thelma "Tonsie" Bell McMurrey (my grandmother);

Lilla Emma Abernathy Bell (my great-grandmother);

Louise Mary McLemore Abernathy (my g-g grandmother);

Nancy Halbert McLemore (my g-g-g grandmother);

Susanna Elizabeth Higgins Halbert; (my g-g-g-g grandmother);

Martha Skaggs Higgins (my g-g-g-g-g grandmother);

Susanna McClung Skaggs (my g-g-g-g-g-g grandmother).

I desperately wanted to find more but the trail went cold. The only thing I was able to ascertain from that point on was very iffy, undocumented information saying my Susanna McClung was born in Montgomery County, Virginia sometime in the mid-1700's. Her father is now believed to have been James McClung, an Ulster Scot, whose family had originated in Galloway, Scotland. But that was just one of the many lines I was researching. Many others had ended against those nasty brick walls, too.

mtDNA . . .

So why did I find it necessary to pursue this family line through DNA research? Partly because science made it possible to do just that, and partly it was because I really had a yearning to find out more about my all-female distant past.

How is that possible you ask? For the best answer to that question, I direct you to any number of hyperlinks listed in the left column of this webpage. There you will find an overwhelming amount of information, from simple, straightforward explanations to exhaustive and very complex documents and elucidations offered up by the very best researchers in the field of Genetic Genealogy.

A short and very simple explanation is this: Found within every living cell are round or rod shaped mitochondria. These bodies produce the enzymes for the metabolic conversion of food into energy. The unique thing about the DNA found within the mitochondria is that it is passed only from a mother to her children. As in the male's Y-DNA, the females mtDNA mutates at a very, very slow rate. Over many thousands of years, these mutations have produced distinct sequences distinguishable from the mitochondrial DNA of other females. Over those same thousands of years, these unique mutations continued to occur within groups and subgroups of people as they spread out across the globe. This distinctive characteristic now allows researchers to identify the origin of a person's lineage. For more specific information on this, please go to Family Tree DNA's Tutorial.

These unique sequences are compared by geneticists to a reference standard known as the Cambridge Reference Sequence (CRS). After your mtDNA is sequenced, you will be assigned to a Haplogroup.

My mtDNA Haplogroup is designated "I". Haplogroup I is believed to be the second oldest haplogroup in European populations, something like 30,000 years old. It has been detected at very low frequency across western Eurasia with slightly greater representation in northern and western Europe. Geneticists at Family Tree DNA relate the following concerning this rare haplogroup: "given its wide, but sparse, distribution, it is likely that it was present in those populations that first colonized Europe." My all-female line might well have belonged to the ancient clans known as the Britons or Picts, the earliest inhabitants of what is now known as Great Britain. This information supports my paper trail, as the McClung family show their near-term habitation to be in Scotland and Ireland.

My mtDNA Certificate . . .

mtDNA Migrations Map . . .

Even though a number of people will tell you the mtDNA test results are not nearly as important as knowing the results of the Y-DNA, or paternal side, I believe they are both equally important. One must remember, both results are only going to reveal the narrowest slice through all the breeding pairs back through time that now make you who you are. To counter this ostensibly narrow view, though, and lend a bit of weight to the whole proposition of whether one should be tested or not, I wish to say this: Knowing both results gives you a very good idea where the vast majority of your ancestors lived. Soon we will know more about what clans and tribes they belonged to and over which regions their migrations took them. If you are like me, you will find this very fascinating and something to pass on to future generations.

Handing down the knowledge . . .

One should remember: Your exact mtDNA is present in every child your mother had. The girls will continue to pass that exact mitochondrial DNA along to their children and so forth for generations. Another interesting and obvious fact is that this exact mtDNA will also reside in the cells of all females born to your maternal grandmother and great-grandmother and so forth. If you are fortunate enough to have an extensive, documented family tree, you should fairly easily be able to trace all of those family lines passing on that exact copy. As I said before, it is fascinating and the knowledge adds a great deal to what you will soon learn about your family.

I urge all to have the testing done. Be sure to post your results, too. At the present time, Charles Kerchner maintains one of the very best sites to post those results. Check out his Mitochondria DNA (mtDNA) Test Results Log Book.

As of this writing, I have yet to have an exact match with any person posting their results. Bonnie Schrack, who also happens to be Haplogroup "I", has made a webpage where she is posting information. Please follow this link to her site: Mitochondrial Haplogroup I Homepage.

Best of luck to all seeking to learn more about their many ancient mothers.