Gordon DNA Update - November, 2005
Gordon DNA participants and interested Gordon researchers,
As of today, we have an astounding 76 participating Gordon families participating in the project!! This is by far, one of the larger surname projects. Numerous brick walls have been torn down for all of us and new questions have no doubt been created, even if it is not what we always expected. As we are learning the key in answering these new questions is recruiting new participants, especially from Scotland/UK, Australia, Canada, Europe, the USA and everywhere else they may be hiding.
Does anybody have connections to the Gordons of Huntly? How about descendants representing the great Gordon Houses of Abergeldie, Cairnfield, Cluny, Embo, Gight, Kenmore, Lochinvar, Strathavon, Strathbogie, Sutherland and Wardhouse? The Chinese Gordon?
Since descendants of the eldest sons kept well-documented family histories, they often do not feel it is necessary to participate in DNA testing. Ironically, it is their documented histories that make them so valuable to our project and placing our lost Gordons.
Most of the time, it is the lines descending from the second or third sons that we are most interested in tracing. Since estates were often passed on to the eldest sons, it is the younger sons that emigrated overseas seeking their opportunity and gradually forgetting their roots over the generations.
Hence, if you know somebody with a good documented history, recruit them and give them our link for the SPECIAL GORDON DISCOUNT of only $99 (55 GBP/82 EUR):
http://www.familytreedna.com/surname_join.asp?code=P14485DNA kits may also be ordered through National Geographic:
https://www5.nationalgeographic.com/genographic/A few more announcements are as follows:
1. NEW MEMBERS
We have about 10 new Gordon families since our July update, added to the Results page. They include a Gordon family from Russia (Kit No. N10127) - whofs DNA should match the Jock and Tam Gordons through the Gordon House of Haddo if a descendant of the famous 17th century Russian General Patrick Gordon - and from Spain (Kit No. N12088) whofs DNA should match the Seton-Gordons if a descendent of the famous 18th century Spanish Gordons of Wardhouse.There are also about 10 families that upgraded their tests to from 12 to 25 and 37 markers and the results are quite interesting, as they are starting to reveal when lines branched.
2. UPDATED RESULTS
I have updated the Results page and have added colors to the table to help make it easier to read. Please be sure to visit if you havenft lately.See the following link for the latest results update:
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~gordondna/status.htm3. TIP: SMALL GROUP AND UNGROUPED RESULTS
For those who are not grouped with one of the 3 major Gordon branches, you more than likely have an ancestor that adopted the Gordon surname at some point and this may be adding to the brick wall in your conventional research. To determine the surname of the ancestor, you can compare your results against the entire FTDNA database to find your results.To compare your DNA results against other surnames the entire database:
1) Login into your FTDNA account.
2) Click on Setup Preferences.
3) Then Check, "I want my matches to be set against the entire database"
4) Finally, press "UPDATE"If you see a number of Scottish clan surnames that suddenly appear, such as Douglass, Stewart, Grant, etc. then you may want to start calling them "cousin."
4. DOUGLAS AND GORDON CONNECTION
The head of the Douglas family DNA project Dr. Beryl Turner has contacted us concerning perfect 37 of 37 marker matches between the Douglas families and several Gordon testers found in the big group of Gordons in the center of the Results section of the Gordon DNA webpage. They probably share a common ancestor with several Gordons around 300 years ago. They are asking for Gordon help in trying to figure out how these Gordon and Douglas families may be related.A few days ago, we received 13-37 marker results for Gordon Kit No. 20304 back from the lab. This Kit is a part of the big group of testers that matches the Douglases. There are just sufficient mutations in Kit No. 20304 (5-red and 2-black) to support the big group of Gordons having used the Gordon surname for at least 600 years and probably back as far as Adam de Gordoun, as their family history dictates. Hence, most likely a male Gordon in the 1600s (possibly in Maine) married a member of the Great House of Douglas and assumed the Douglas surname.
If you are interested in helping unravel this mystery or just following, please contact Beryl at: bturner@occmed.com.au
See the follow webpages for more details and consider signing up to the mailing list set up specifically for this quagmire:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/douglasgordonDNA/
http://www.familytreedna.com/public/Douglas/5. STUART/STEWART AND GORDON CONNECTION
As with the Douglas clan, the Stewarts share a long history with the Gordons and now there are a relatively significant number of Stewarts matching Gordon Kit Nos. 6679, 23202, 23215 and 39896 on 35 of 37 markers. Descendants of this Samuel Gordon may want to consider an ancestor that was originally of the Great House of Stewart that married into the Gordons and assumed the Gordon surname within the past 600 years. In fact, there is a 91.45% probability that this is the case.The Stewarts currently have over 146 families in their project and our results can be compared at:
http://www.familytreedna.com/public/Stewart/6. FAMILY HISTORY SUBMISSIONS
If you have short family histories, that I can just copy and paste into to webpage, please forward to me. Please refer to the Ancestor section of the webpage for samples.**It would be particularly interesting to see the family history of Kit No. 20304 in the big group of testers. Although the DNA matches the Jock and Tam Gordons, enough markers are different to suggest a MRCA of 88% for the past 600 years when compared to the benchmark Kit No. 9564, which is far enough back to be the only representative descendant of Sir William Gordon, Laird of Strathbogie (b. late-1200s), who also was the ancestor of the Gordon Houses of Kenmure and Lochinvar. Further testers with documented descent from these houses will be necessary to prove such relation, however.
7. ANALYSIS SUBMISSIONS
If you have done any of your results, please forward it to me and I will add to the Results section. See blue sections on the Results page for sample analysis. Again, make it is on me so that I can just copy and paste your submission.8. UPGRADING TO 25/37-MARKER TEST
Some Gordons that have taken the 12-marker test, but may be only one or two markers off from other Gordons (especially if on the red Alleles), will certainly want to upgrade to 25-marker test if you are still have a gap to fill. Since the lab already has your swab sample, there is no need to resubmit a new sample. Just login and upgrade on the FTDNA webpage.**Kits 13291, 6771, N12088 and 9173 in the Ungrouped Section of the Results page will want to consider upgrading as their markers are reasonably close to the Seton-Gordons (see top of Results page) to warrant the 25-marker upgrade and see if they can connect. Most of the mutations on these kits are on the Red Alleles, which change twice as fast.
9. DNA PEDIGREE CHART
The following is a link to a pedigree chart on my personal webpage. Although the chart focuses on my Seton-Gordon line, I did include all 3 main branches of Gordons and how they fit into the bigger picture. The 3 branches are 1) Sir William Gordon, the Laird of Strathbogie, 2) Jock and Tam Gordons, and 3) Seton-Gordons. Testers from these 3 Gordon families might want to take a look.
http://www.gordonquest.com/Pedigree.pdf**From the chart, you will note that Sir William Gordon and the Jock and Tam Gordons should share the same DNA results because of the father-son relations back to Adam de Gordoun.
10. PROSPECTIVE TESTERS - SPECIAL ADMINISTRATOR TOOLS
If you would like to send a test kit to somebody and are hesitating to contact them yourself, please let me know. If you forward me their mailing address, I can have a test kit sent directly to them with no obligation. It is free to send the test kits and there is only a charge if they return a completed test kit with sample to the lab.Likewise, if there is somebody participating that you would like to see upgraded and would like to subsidize their upgrade, please let me know and I can contact them on your behalf.
Essentially, if there is someone you would like to participate and you know how to contact them, there are many ways we can help. Just let me know who they are.
11. NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC / IBM - GENOGRAPHIC PROJECT
If you havenft already, be sure to upload your results to the National Geographic and IBMfs Genographic Project to see the migration of your ancestors from 60,000 years ago to present!! Pretty cool project:
https://www5.nationalgeographic.com/genographic/12. HAVE YOU CONSIDERED TEST KITS FOR HOLIDAY GIFTS?
Something your whole family can enjoy and nothing could be as unique as DNA.==========================
Please write if you have any questions or requests. While I do get online daily, I also travel often and currently live in Tokyo, so please be understanding if it sometimes takes me a little time to reply.
Meantime, please donft forget to recruit!!!
Kindest regards,
Tei A. Gordon
Co-Administrator
The Gordon DNA Project
tagordon@hotmail.com
