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When to Do an mtDNA Test for Genealogy

by | Mar 21, 2016

Should you be doing an mtDNA test for genealogy? Should you have a female relative tested? Here are 3 scenarios in which you should.

DNA testing is becoming more and more integrated into our traditional genealogical research. Over 1.5 million people have completed some form of autosomal DNA test, testifying that the idea has finally taken root and now is almost a commonplace notion.

However, with widespread success of autosomal DNA testing at companies like Ancestry DNA (click and use code for free shipping through March 31, 2016: FREESHIPDNA) and 23andMe, the two other kinds of DNA tests are often overlooked. The Y chromosome DNA test, or yDNA, traces a direct paternal line. The mitochondrial DNA test, or mtDNA, traces a direct maternal line. Both are offered by Family Tree DNA. Is there a place for these tests among your genealogical research?

I say yes! One of the biggest limitations of autosomal DNA testing is that it cannot reliably reach back past the fourth or fifth generation in your pedigree. But both yDNA and mtDNA can.

Let’s focus on mtDNA. Remember, mtDNA is directly maternally inherited, meaning that you have the same mtDNA as your mother and all of your siblings. It is the same mtDNA as your maternal grandmother, and her mother, and so on, for ten generations or more.

When and how would you use mtDNA testing?

1. You need to grab your mtDNA before it’s gone

You have an ailing great aunt, or you yourself are one of the last remaining carriers of your mother’s mtDNA.

Having your mtDNA tested first and foremost creates a record of your direct maternal line. Just as you would obtain a birth certificate or marriage license for your ancestor to see what other important genealogical information it might contain, having a record of your mtDNA is an important part of documenting your maternal line.

2. Unknown ethnicity

You have a female ancestor whose ethnicity is unknown. Perhaps you think she is Native American or African American.

Along with your mtDNA profile, which helps you make connections with others, taking an mtDNA test gives you a haplogroup, or a deep ancestral group. There are different haplogroups for different world regions and populations. Sometimes knowing your haplogroup can help either confirm or dispel a family rumor about the heritage of a particular ancestor. Though for most it will just verify what you already know, like confirming that your maternal line is from western Europe.

3. Unknown origins

In 1873, aliens must have deposited your female ancestor in Virginia.

If you have tried every other avenue to discover your ancestor’s origins, and currently your best theory of her origins revolves around extraterrestrial beings, you can try mtDNA testing.

The results of the testing will provide you with a list of individuals who may share direct maternal line ancestry with you, and therefore might be related to this mystery ancestor. However, that shared ancestor could be as recent as 1873, or as distant as dates that require the post nominal “BC.” So, it is more or less a shot in the dark. But hey, if you don’t shoot, you will definitely miss!

In general, mtDNA testing should not be the first test you turn to when seeking out your ancestors. But it does have its place in your genealogical toolbox, so don’t be afraid to pull it out once in a while.

To get started, I recommend my Mitochondrial (mtDNA) DNA for Genealogists quick guide. It covers the basics of mtDNA testing and more on how to use it in your family history research. If you’re looking for more help with using DNA in genealogy, consider my entire series of DNA quick reference guides or come find me at YourDNAGuide.com.

Evernote for Genealogy Tip: Create Your Own Genealogy Library

by | Mar 20, 2016

Here’s an innovative way to use Evernote for genealogy: create your own genealogy library for easy on-the-go reference.

Have you ever come face to face with a riveting book at a genealogy conference or bookstore and wondered, “Gosh, do I already have this at home?” Worse yet, have you bought multiple copies of the same genealogy book? It happens to the best of us. I cringe to think how many times I’ve checked out a book from the library only to find that I already own it!

It struck me a few years ago as I was creating the first of my many Premium videos on using Evernote for Genealogy that this handy free software and app could solve the problem. One of Evernote’s greatest strengths is that it applies Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to all of your notes. This means that the text in your photos and web clippings become word-searchable. Let’s use that to our advantage!

Here are 7 steps to create a reference library you can carry around in your pocket:

1. In the free Evernote app on your smartphone or tablet, tap Photos. (Tap OK to allow Evernote access to your device’s camera.)

2. Take a photo of the cover of one of the books in your personal collection. (With the new Auto capture feature in Evernote all you have to do is point your camera at the cover.)

3. Tap to select the new note you have created.

4. Tap the “i” icon and add the tag library. (You will need to set this up the first time, and then just select it thereafter.)

5. Evernote will automatically apply optical character recognition (OCR) to each image while it is synchronizing your notes (with an Internet connection). Once OCR is applied, your photo becomes keyword searchable.

6. Continue snapping photos of your book covers and tagging them.

7. Now you can use Evernote’s search feature to see if you already have a book. Just search an applicable keyword, such as the author’s name or a word from the title. (Do be aware there are limitations: OCR won’t catch cursive, Gothic or other fancy or hard to read scripts.)

SEARCH TIP: I use the Evernote app on my iPhone and iPad, and as of this writing, you can’t access all the notes associated with a tag with one tap the way you can see all notes in a Notebook. Here’s a way to target your tags. In the search box type tag:library and all of the notes with that tag will be listed. Take it a step further by searching within that tag with this search query tag:library German. The results will be all notes tagged with library that have the word German in the image, title or description.

I shared this tip in the free Genealogy Gems Podcast episode 179 and then heard from Janelle in New South Wales:

“I love the idea of saving the photos of our genealogy books to Evernote. I saved them to my phone ready for a conference earlier this year, but saving them to Evernote is taking it just that one step further.

As you said, Evernote’s OCR doesn’t handle cursive script very well, but in cases where the title is in a font that the OCR would struggle with, the photographer could snap the title page instead, which will have all the relevant information but in a more standard script. That way the OCR will be happy, and the information will end up correct in our Evernote Library.”

That’s a great tip! Title pages can be even easier for OCR to read than book covers.

Lisa Louise Cooke’s Genealogy Gems is home to the Ultimate Evernote Education for Genealogists! Click here to learn more using Evernote for genealogy. We have free and Premium how-tos; articles, podcast and video tutorials; and instruction for beginners clear through advanced Evernote users.

RootsMagic 7 Update Can Now Import Family Tree Maker Files Directly

by | Mar 19, 2016

Family Tree Maker users can now directly import their trees into an update of RootsMagic 7.

RootsMagic family history software just announced the release of RootsMagic 7.1.0.1. This new version that allows users to directly import any Family Tree Maker file.

According to a RootsMagic press release, importing Family Tree Maker files was “mostly effective” when users imported them as GEDCOMs. However, files were “often lacking data and details only found in the original file” and added an extra step in the conversion process.

Now RootsMagic 7 can actually import a bigger variety of Family Tree Maker files (more past versions) than the current software itself can do. These include Family Tree Maker 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2014 for Windows; Family Tree Maker 3 for Mac; Family Tree Maker 2010 and 2012 for Mac; and Classic Family Tree Maker files ending with the file extension .ftw.

This is a free update for RootsMagic 7 users (look for the “Update available” indicator in the lower right corner of your RootsMagic 7 program screen and click on it). Click here to purchase RootsMagic 7 (for new customers and those who have previous versions of RootsMagic). For specific instructions on importing Family Tree Maker files directly into RootsMagic 7, visit the RootsMagic blog.