Using Multiple DNA Sites to Investigate a Hidden Ancestral Line with Greg Liverman

 About This Program

Not all of your relatives test at the same DNA testing site. Just like we need to be able to use records of different types and from different repositories to prove relationships between one generation and another, we need to be able to combine the evidence from multiple DNA testing sites to establish evidence of relationships.

In this case study we will investigate a series of matches who did not appear to link into Greg’s ancestral lines. Through careful research of his matches on three different autosomal testing sites and combining that evidence into one master tree, it became apparent how these matches were related to him. In the process he gained new insights into a particular matriarchal line that had been frustrating him for a while.

Some of the DNA analysis techniques we will encounter are:

• using trees attached to DNA kits,
• techniques for identifying the real identity of a match, and
• evaluating the amount of DNA to estimate the number of generations to a common ancestor.

 Meet Our Speaker 

Greg Liverman, Ph.D., began tracing his family history in the 1990’s with an old Macintosh computer and a copy of Family Tree Maker. At that time, family and career pursuits did not leave much time for genealogy work. He was finally able to return to charting his family history in 2009. Greg quickly realized that he could bring to bear all the analytical and problem solving skills he had developed in over forty years of working as a journalist, scientist and business manager.

Living on a ranch on the western slopes of Pikes Peak means there are few libraries nearby, so Greg has become adept at using online resources for both domestic and foreign research. He has researched his family history “on the ground” in libraries, cemeteries and records offices in seven states, with more on the list to visit. He has experience in using various techniques, based on the careful application of reasonand logic, to successfully break down “brick walls”.

Greg and his wife Wendy added genetic genealogy or DNA testing to their brick wall demolition toolkit in 2013 and have immersed themselves in the details of DNA tests and evaluation methods. They have answered several questions about their family history using DNA evidence.