Maxton misdoings

Wanted! pages updated to include the Tonbridge family of Robert and Grace (WATT) FAIRBAIRN, along with a page added for Robert explaining why I think he belongs to the James who subsequently married Helen GOODFELLOW (check the dates).
However, candidates for the project from this line look to be rather thin on the ground, the line appearing to have either daughtered, or died, out.

1660s split?

The supplementary pages have now been updated to include the latest set of full results, from the line of John & Christian(WOOD) FAIRBAIRN.
This includes a relatively major revamp of the dna signature chart for Lineage 1 "clump 2" incorporating this new knowledge - hopefully sensibly.
Any contributions to this interpretation are most welcome!

Looking at the marker results we now have available, I'm guessing that there was a split in the "clump 2" lines about the 1660s, where those including the above John, also James and Helen (GOODFELLOW), and F-11's James, can be deemed to have genetically split (slightly).
Take a look at the by now very wide signature chart and see if it makes sense to you.
(It also now includes the Eckford line of F-27).

The project is still very interested in finding representatives of other known lives to aid in piecing this huge jigsaw together - direct male line descendants of John and Helen (ANDERSON), and of the Ednam Blacksmith family with all the Edwards would be most welcome - and what about the Selkirk families?
Check out the Wanted! pages for some lines we are particularly interested in, but any not listed on the pages anywhere are also "wanted", just not yet documented.
Then of course there are the Yorkshire ones, are they related?

Subsidies for testing may be possible for the first of a line to test.
Those ineligible to join in the fun by reason of sex, or descended from a female line may help by contributing towards the subsidies - simply follow the "Contribute to the Surname Project General Fund" link on the lhs of our Family Tree DNA project pages.

28th: Lineage 1 "clump 2" results update

Full results now in for LE (F-31), confirming that, as expected from the partial results, his line, that from John & Christian(WOOD), does indeed match most closely (exactly in fact) to that of James & Helen (GOODFELLOW)'s representative.
The summary result page has been updated while the supplementary pages are being reviewed for what this may or may not mean on how families "fit" together.

16th: Yet another LIneage 1 Clump 2

Only partial results in so far (markers 38-67) but it looks like LE (F-31) is yet another line in Lineage 1 Clump 2, with marker 446 = 14 indicating his closest match is going to be with the James and Helen (GOODFELLOW) FAIRBAIRN line.
Not really a surprise, given the paper trail leads back to the family of John and Christian (WOOD) FAIRBAIRN who married at Nenthorn 1787.
John is probably the son of a Robert, (naming pattern of children of both known siblings Robert and George), possibly a Robert and Janet (naming pattern of Robert's children).

Supplementary pages updated with these partial results.

3rd: Another match - clump 2 results

Final results are now in for (F-11) so he's been given a page of his own on the supplementary pages to explain the matches more fully (and why they are apparently so distant).
He has also now been included on the Theoretical signature chart for Lineage 1 "clump 2", placed over with his nearest match, the line of James and Helen (GOODFELLOW) FAIRBAIRN.
His earliest known ancestor, James (marr. Isabella CAMPBELL), has also been given a page of his own with some introductory notes.
Happy reading.

Anyone else out there wanting to see where they might fit into these trees would be most welcome to Join the Project.

Further results F-13

Another panel of results in for Tom (F-13). Nothing unexpected, continues to prove a good match to his paper trail connection to Doug (F-6) on the James & Helen (GOODFELLOW) FAIRBAIRN line.

Some updates - results as expected

Two of our Lineage 1 members have had their haplogroups confirmed under FamilyTree DNA's free offer where their initial results could not predict or confirm a haplogroup.
Unsurprisingly, both were I1.

The results table has been updated to reflect the above, and to include another panel of Tom (F-13)'s results. Again, no surprises, as he does indeed match the representative sharing his paper trail. This will be our first dna signature with a fully confirmed paper trail linking two participants, Doug and Tom, descendants of James & Helen (GOODFELLOW) FAIRBAIRN.

A replacement kit has been ordered for the one still swimming across the Pacific somewhere, and our 16th member has advised his kit is en route back to the lab.

If you are a male FAIRBAIRN interested in your family history, do consider joining the project to assist us in determining an overall picture of how the assorted lines may or may not relate.

See the Wanted! pages for lines where representatives would be particularly welcome, but any male FAIRBAIRN is welcome to join in the fun.

Our confirmed paper trail

The dna signature for the line of James & Helen (GOODFELLOW) FAIRBAIRN, is well on the way to being confirmed with the preliminary results (12 markers) in for Tom (F-13), a descendant of their son George & Electa (COWDREY) FAIRBAIRN showing a 12/12 match with Doug (F-6) a descendant of James & Helen's son Andrew.

Results chart and Tom's page updated,

Another kit back to the lab

Another kit, Tom (F-13), has made it back to the lab and begins the long process. Results scheduled for end April, all going well.
This should be our confirming dna signature for the lineage of James & Helen (GOODFELLOW) FAIRBAIRN.

Results page updated to show change of kit status.

New recruit; Some updates

Welcome to Thomas (F-13) who has agreed to help us define more fully the dna signature of the James FAIRBAIRN who married Helen GOODFELLOW.

Confirmation today that yes, a descendant of James & Mary Bell (THOMSON) FAIRBAIRN does indeed live in my neighbouring town. Watch this space.

Both of the above are reflected in some minor changes to the Patriarchs page

DNA Surnames has had a full re-load so there may be some wording changes, new charts, or simply some missing links fixed. One change is that a Researchers index has been added to the Lineage overview page.

Some small twigs added here and there

Small twig or two added to the pedigree of James and Mary Bell/Mabel (THOMSON) FAIRBAIRN given that a sequence of coincidences have led to my finding someone I think just might be a descendant living in the town next to me. Awaiting confirmation of the connection.

Also documented a new branch of the James & Helen (GOODFELLOW) FAIRBAIRN pedigree in the hope that a participant may join to help firm up James' dna signature.

67 marker results in for Goodfellow line

Results table has been updated to show the latest set of markers in - for Doug (F-6) of the line of James FAIRBAIRN and Helen GOODFELLOW.
Closest match is now with F-8 the descendant of the Rideau Canal Thomas (marr. Elspeth REDPATH), at a Genetic Distance (GD) 7 by the official FT dna reports, although bear in mind their response to my puzzlement over this, which said take some off that for those markers in the faster mutating range.

As to how close their Most Recent Common Ancestor is? This TMRCA web site may help explain (although it only goes up to 37 markers).
By reading this I finally realised that it isn't just the fact that marker x differs, but by how many steps on that marker, the values differ.

Remember however that mutations can creep in at ANY generation. I have 2nd cousins who show up at GD 1, and they share a great grandfather.

25th: Sunderland and Ontario match looking good

Full 37 marker results now in for F-7, David with the Trotter F. m. Jean F. 1795 Ladykirk, who moved south into Sunderland.
There's a 36/37 marker match with the representative (Doug, F-6) of the family of James & Helen (GOODFELLOW) FAIRBAIRN , which family emigrated to Spencerville, Ontario in the 1830s.

At 37 markers, David is apparently a Genetic Distance (GD) of 3 from Doug (was GD 0 at the 25/25 match); and has slipped to GD 6 with Martin (F-1), and GD 7 with Earl (F-2) and Roy (F-3), which at 25 markers were all GD 1.
I need to swot up on how this is calculated, particularly as a 36/37 match ended up a GD of 3 instead of the GD 1 I thought it was, and Martin/Earl/Roy ended up at GD 6 and GD 7!!

WFN Results pages updated with the above results.

Sorry about this blog being repeatedly marked as spam. I've requested, yet again, it be unblocked.
But I will persevere with this format for the project diary as I like the label filtering over what the forums offer.

GD findings:
I found the following explanations of Genetic Distance which all seems fair enough, EXCEPT that on the individual GD reports available on the admin pages, the actual GD numbers given are far higher than the marker results appear to be showing.
I'll ask FamilyTree DNA to explain.

Rideau Canal connection holding up

Preliminary (12 marker) results are now in for F-8, the representative of the line of Thomas & Elspeth (REDPATH) FAIRBAIRN, and they show an exact match with the two last results, F-6 the James (GOODFELLOW) line, and F-7, the Trotter line, and are reported as being a Genetic Distance of 1 from Martin (F-1), Earl (F-2) and Roy (F-3), this latter being a descendant of William (marr. Jean WANLESS) reported to have also worked on the Rideau Canal.
So, on the face of it, there is indeed some connection between the two Rideau Canal workers, William and Thomas FAIRBAIRN (see the Patriarchs page for outline lineages).

8th: 3 new results, 2 matches

Result pages updated with several recent sets of results:
a) 2 preliminary 12 marker sets representing the lines of James and Helen (GOODFELLOW) FAIRBAIRN and of Trotter and Jean (FAIRBAIRN) FAIRBAIRN.
These two lines have a 12/12 match with each other, and 11/12 match with all 3 Lineage I representatives. However, at only 12 markers and no records available to show how the lines connect, I'm waiting until the next set of markers come in.
Trotter is a brick wall for David, although I found it interesting that they married at Ladykirk, which is where David, son of Archibald and Alison CROSSER, had one of his daughters baptised.
James married Helen GOODFELLOW at Maxton in 1813, and rather looks like he is the son of George FAIRBAIRN and Janet MURRAY, but they inconsiderately emigrated to Canada before appearing in a Scottish census.

b) Full 67 marker results in for the representative of the line of Robert & Janet (HOGARTH) FAIRBAIRN. No match within project, but several matches with MONTGOMERY families. To be investigated further.

6th kit - FAIRBAIRN/GOODFELLOW

Sixth kit ordered - descendant of James FAIRBAIRN and Helen GOODFELLOW, James from Maxton, Roxburghshire, emigrated abt 1833, probably from Eccles, Berwickshire, and settled around Spencerville, Ontario

25th: 67 marker results in, pedigrees updated

Patriarchs & discussion pages updated to reflect the new results received (67/67 matches).
New pedigree loaded - for James FAIRBAIRN and Helen GOODFELLOW.