Did you have your DNA tested and do the results confuse you? Amy Johnson Crow has some suggestions that might clear the confusion. You can read her article, 5 Things You Need to Know About DNA Testing for Genealogy, at: https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/dna-testing-for-genealogy.
5 Things You Need to Know About DNA Testing for Genealogy
Dick Eastman · February 2, 2018 · DNA · 8 Comments
Dick Eastman, author

Dick Eastman has been writing this genealogy newsletter for 23 years.
He has been involved in genealogy for more than 35 years. He has worked in the computer industry for more than 40 years in hardware, software, and managerial positions. By the early 1970s, Dick was already using a mainframe computer to enter his family data on punch cards. He built his first home computer in 1980.
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8 Comments
I do not expect to receive any new ethnic information about myself via DNA testing. I have only German and Irish ancestry and it has been previously very well researched and documented. However, I am interested in keeping records of my family’s heritage, including our genetic footprint, so have gifted all my sibs with DNA testing kits. This may be a resource for their offspring if genetic information about our family is ever needed in the future, including for medical reasons, tracing missing persons or ID-ing next of kin.
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Make sure that the company you chose will preserve the samples and allow them to be reused for future tests.
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“Be prepared for surprises’. The surprises are the point. I see people agonising over the results showing they have a new cousin or sibling or someone has a different relationship to them that they thought. So what. We are all human and subject to the foils of humanitity. Assuming that your family is the only one that has never ‘misbehaved’ or misrepresented something is naive bordering willful ignorance. The truth always outs, and I’m glad of it.
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Amen Jay… my son has no family on his fathers side that we know, as his father is an adoptee from Germany, who’s father was a supposed military man who had fallen for a local girl when serving there, then was deployed back home. The DNA shows a great deal of English and a lot of USA addresses off GedMatch. However a DIFFICULT task is underway to find his family, with “hopeful” reception when we find them. Wish us luck.
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Michele – get in touch with the folks at DNAAdoption. They have proven methodologies for determining possible and probable unknown fathers. Best of luck
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Good Luck . My mother was born out of wedlock (as they called it in those days) and always thought she had been dumped by her mother who didn’t care. 89 years after her birth I found out that her mother had written a note to the family that took her baby and asked for a picture. She was eventually married, had a second family and when I discovered her granddaughter, she had the picture but did not know who it was. The second family had no idea that Mom existed nor did she know that she had half brothers and a half sister. What a shame! She found out that her mother actually did love her and that she had family in the last two moths of her life! DNA might have helped.
Wayn
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Wayne, I got chills reading your note. Was SO happy to hear that your mom learned some truth about her past and that she was loved. Your words are encouraging, thank you for sharing her story. Michele
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Some very touching stories here.
My husband had suspicions he might not be true son of his father. He was told by an aunt there were rulers. His grandparents raised him when his parents were having problems. To keep story short I’ll jump… DNA shows his birth name is not his dad. Strong possible cousins came in. We contacted one who has turned out to be a first cousin. My son in law found a photo from a family reunion of his strong potential family. There sitting is would be his grandfather is the exact image of My husband at his now age. He never met this family but we have a little price together from this lovely cousin. Even a photo a friend of hers gave her because it had a cousin of hers in it from many years ago. In that same photo is my husband as a child at a birthday party. My husband and her cousin did not know each other, but they both New the birthday child. And there they were together. We would like to get in touch with his now known to be cousin. Everyone is older now and iv tried a few people with no reply from anyone. They most likely do not believe any of this and now I’m afraid I may bring up hurts that are unnecessary. But I would love to know the fill ins. But don’t want to cause undo problems.
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