DNA shared with a Third Cousin

In a prior post, we were introduced to a third cousin who reached out to me.  The common ancestors are a pair of German great great grandparents who settled in Newark, New Jersey: David Uhl (1834-1884) and Clara Patschke (1840-1914).  I featured pictures of the heirlooms from these ancestors- some passed down through my branch and others through his branch.

Just as the heirlooms from these ancestors were dispersed to the succeeding generations, so was DNA.  This cousin kindly added his DNA to the ongoing genetic genealogy studies of the family at 23andMe.

My father and his three siblings all share autosomal DNA with this third cousin.

 The amount of shared DNA for three of the siblings is on the high end, while the other sibling is on the low end, sharing only 43 cM.

This picture represents where on each chromosome these 3rd cousins match.  The colored lines represent segments of DNA that traveled four generations from David Uhl and Clara Patschke to their great great grandchildren.

Many people- "DNA Cousins"- match my father and his siblings on these segments.  If these DNA Cousins also match the known third cousin, then we know to look into the branch of our family that holds David Uhl and Clara Patschke.  I will have information that the DNA Cousins do not, and vice versa, and we will break down brick walls.

When compared to my father and his two children (my sister and me), we see interesting results.  I inherited most of my father's DNA that he shares with this third cousin.  My sister received almost nothing:  13 cm over two segments.  This is such a small amount that a DNA testing company may not even recognize it as a match on its own.  Imagine if my sister were the only one who tested her DNA.  A match this small would likely be disregarded, yet it is fully solvable based on surnames and locations.

Two years ago, we compared DNA to another third cousin from a different branch- great great grandparents Calvin Cook (1826-1889) and Mary Neal (1830-1898).  The amount of shared DNA was lower than what we see with the Uhl/Patschke cousin, with a low of 70 cM to a high of 121 cM.  The next generation- my sister and me- inherited none of this DNA.

Long Single Segment DNA Matches

New close matches appeared at 23andMe for my father and one of his siblings.

The person who shares 1.02% over three segments could be a 2nd to 4th cousin, which is workable on my end.  The shared ancestors could be as close as great grandparents, or a little more distant if this is a half relation.

Most intriguing are the two people who share just one segment because the segment is extremely long.  They may be sisters:  they appeared at the same time, share a maternal haplogroup (J1c2) with each other, and both match in the same manner- one very long segment.

No other information is revealed about these people.  I initiated contact through 23andMe's messaging system.  Most matches never answer.  My paternal tree is pretty full with or without input from these individuals, though their DNA comparisons would certainly help me and others.  I can imagine the grief that an adopted person would feel, having these close matches dangling in front of them, ignoring requests to explore their familial ties.

Any thoughts on the rarity of sharing just one very long segment?

ODonnell of Ireland and Y-DNA: The Matches

My ODonnell cousin is matched with over 700 other men who share a very similar Y chromosome at FamilyTreeDNA.  Very few matches list an ODonnell paternal ancestor.  As we go back in time, it is important to remember that surnames were not consistent and may not have followed the pattern of father to son transmission.

The beauty in Y-DNA testing is that the common ancestor is going to emerge from only one ancestral line:  the direct paternal line, meaning father to son and his son and so forth.  Compare this type of DNA inheritance to autosomal DNA, where the common ancestor will be from any line.

The most distant ODonnell ancestor that I can find for my line is Peter ODonnell, probably born around 1820 in County Donegal, Ireland.  I do not know if he came to the United States.

At the top of the list is someone who can trace back about 200 years to an ODonnell ancestor, so I started with him.

This ODonnell line lived in Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts.  Irish are plentiful in Boston.  There were (only) two men named Philip ODonnell in the targeted time frame; and both were born around 1820.

A lot of records are online for Boston, so I lucked out.  Boston city directories are on Fold3.com.  Images of original vital records are at FamilySearch.org.

After gathering records, I determined that the great great grandfather, Philip ODonnell, of the Y-DNA cousin was a son of Manassas ODonnell.  Manassas was born in Ireland in the 1790s.  He first appeared in the Boston city directory in the year 1840.

 Manassas ODonnell died in 1869 from a fractured skull and ribs.  His death ledger entry lists his parents as Philip ODonnell and Bridget.

Death caused by fractured skull and ribs.
Did he fall or was he attacked?
I did not find a corresponding article or death notice in the newspapers online.

The DNA results tell us that the direct paternal line of my ODonnell cousin will merge with the direct paternal line of this Y-DNA cousin.  I can trace back 6 generations for the Y-DNA cousin, but only 4 on my own ODonnell line.  If the ancestors of Manassas are more discoverable than my own, I might make the breakthrough on my own line by researching the Manassas line.

This ODonnell group in Boston did not produce many hits in the newspapers or at FindAGrave, which are usually great sources of information for me.  If anyone out there is experienced in locating newspapers, burial records, probate files, or other useful sites for Boston, please comment below.  Thank you.

Are probate records online for Suffolk County, Massachusetts for the 1800s?