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What is a “Paternity Event”?
You may see the phase "paternity event" used periodically on this website. What does it mean? For our purposes it applies to a birth in which a boy received his Y-chromosome from one man and his surname from another. In other words the reported father is not the biological father.
This is a subject we need to be aware of during our search for connections through DNA. The Y-DNA is passed down from father to son, generation after generation. There is an occasional mutation but basically this DNA remains unchanged. That is why we use it. A male living today will have essentially the same Y-DNA that his direct male line ancestor did 10, 20, or more generations ago. Two males with a common ancestor long ago should have matching Y-DNA.
Sometimes we find two well documented lines tracing back to the same ancestor, but their Y-DNA doesn’t match. There are three explanations:
1. The documentation was wrong – which is common.
2. The DNA test results are wrong – which is rare, but does happen. There could have been a clerical error when recording results, contamination, etc..
3. There was a paternity event. Somewhere up the male line there was a “break”. No biological connection between a father and son. We don’t know when – it could be two generations ago. It could be ten generations ago. As a result the Y-DNA actually comes from a different line than what we were expecting.
There are many possible explanations for a paternity event. Below is a list of ten, which is an edited version of what was originally posted by Anne W. Nelson.
1. A woman who was widowed in Colonial days often remarried quickly -- life was hard and in those days women needed someone to provide for them economically. If she was pregnant from her first marriage at the time of her second marriage, the child would be recorded as the child of her second husband.
2. Women died far more often in childbirth in Colonial times and earlier than they do today. For various reasons, the father might not have felt capable of raising an infant, so the infant might have been raised by the mother's sister or brother, or even the father's sister and her husband.
3. People died from illnesses we take two aspirin for today, from badly preserved food, from logging and mining accidents, from farm accidents, from being thrown from horses, from drowning in floods, from hurricanes collapsing their homes, in fires, etc. Family or even neighbors would "take in" orphaned children and raise them as their own.
4. Men with no children might give an apprentice their name. Or their son-in-law might adopt the surname.
5. Inheritance of a mother's family fortune might prompt the adoption of the mother's maiden name.
6. A married woman left on an isolated farm might be subjected to rape. The child would legally be the husband's when born inside the marriage.
7. People changed their names when they moved to escape a past -- sometimes that was simply the result of running away from an indentured servitude situation. Or perhaps they had had a disagreement with their father and took another name.
8. A married women may have had an affair with a neighbor or some other “visitor” and the resulting son was raised as if he was her husband’s child.
9. Even up to recent times, legally, formally adopted children often weren't told they were adopted. If a man is tested for DNA, his father might well have been adopted and he wouldn't know it. Again, while some of these children might be the result of illegitimacy, some were also legitimate children given up by poor families or widows. We have examples of this as recently as the Depression, during which many parents gave up their children rather than watch them starve to death.
10. We are rapidly approaching the point at which people who are the result of sperm donor artificial insemination may be signing up as DNA participants and they may not know their parents took this route to have them.
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Although the Davenport Surname DNA Project is geared toward following the Y-DNA down the various Davenport lines, that doesn't mean that it is the only choice available. Below is a brief description of the types of DNA that can be used for genealogy. Each has it's own use, so care should be taken before ordering any such test. |
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Y-DNA The primary test used in the Davenport Surname Project is the Y-DNA test. We test a small portion of the DNA on the Y chromosome, which only males have. This Y-DNA is passed down from father to son, generation after generation, virtually unchanged. So the Y-DNA of a Davenport male today should be nearly identical to his male ancestor many generations ago. Thus, by comparing two individuals, we can determine if they have a common ancestor. It works very well. Over the years we have tested well documented male descendants of the various Davenport lines, and have been able to establish a base signature or “Haplotype” for each. The Haplotype for a Rev. John Davenport descendent is very different than a Humphrey of Barbados descendent. They are both different from the Newberry Davenport’s, and so on. The Y-DNA of most male Davenports will match one of the dozen or so major Davenport lines. There are two types of Y-DNA that can be tested. Short Tandem Repeats or abbreviated to STR, and Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP), pronounced snip, The standard Y-DNA tests we use involves STR testing. We can test on 25, 37, 67, or 111 “markers”. The values for the markers are compared between two males and usually the more that match, the closer they are related. SNP testing is used to determine Haplogroups – a much broader method of categorizing Y-DNA. The results of a STR test will usually report a pretty accurate estimate of what the Haplogroup is too, and with that information possibly zoom in on a particular world region where the line may have originated. But the Haplogroup estimate is just that - based on others who have had deeper SNP testing and have STR results that are similar to yours - this is what we think your Haplogroup is. In most cases, it is possible to refine the SNP test to a much more specific sub-Haplogroup. Think of it like a tree, with you being very small and climbing to a particular leaf - take the third branch up > seventh branch on the left > second branchlet on the right > fourth twig on the right > third twig on the right > first leaf on the left. You have to follow a specific path of SNP's to get to your leaf or terminal SNP (sub-Haplogroup). There are exceptions, but the original Haplogroup estimate is the equivalent to the first branch. So taking a Haplogroup Deep Clade may be interesting and will allow you to zoom down to a much more recent SNP, but it is still not that useful in genealogy - yet. Now, with recent advances in technology, there has been a phenomenal increase in the discovery of new SNP"s. FTDNA has a Big-Y test that looks at over 70,000 named SNP's. It will soon be possible to distinguish families by their unique SNP's - veins in the leaf. Important - Before ordering a SNP Deep Clade or Big-Y test, contact the project administrator. If someone in the same line has already tested, another may not be necessary. It is likely the results will be identical. |
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mtDNA Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is another form of DNA that is commonly tested. Everyone has mtDNA, but only females can pass it on to their children. So, the mtDNA in each person is from their mother and it is passed down virtually unchanged. Therefore, an individual's mtDNA would be the same as their mother, her mother's mother, and so on, generation after generation. Like Y-DNA, which follows a straight male line, the mtDNA follows a straight female line. It is unlikely anyone will find a missing ancestor or prove a connection via mtDNA. Due to the slower mutation rate, an exact match would only mean there was a common ancestor possibly within the last few thousand years. It is also much more difficult to track a straight female line. Women tend to take their husband's surname at marriage, therefore there is a name change each generation. However, the test is useful for disproving an ancestor. If two individuals had different mtDNA - they did not have a recent common female ancestor. It is also an indicator of where ancient ancestors may have resided. Haplogroups A, B, C, D, and X are common for Native American, H is very common in Western Europe, etc... Our testing company, FTDNA, offers two levels of mtDNA testing. The mtDNA+ test captures information from selected bases on the mtDNA molecule. This is essentially just enough to determine the Haplogroup and can disprove a connection. The mtFull Sequence test looks at all 16,569 locations in the mtDNA. This additional information can help zoom in a little deeper into the Haplogroup and possibly more recent deep ancestry. Again, it is probably not going to help in making connections, but exact matches increases the probability. Some of our male Y-DNA project participants also took the mtDNA test. We have also had many females test too. It doesn't relate to the Davenport surname, but as a courtesy, they are listed here: mtDNA Results |
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aDNA The third type of testing looks at the “autosomal” DNA. Unlike the Y-DNA or mtDNA, the autosomal test looks at the DNA you get from both of your parents. FTDNA calls it their Family Finder test. It cannot be used to compare to Y-DNA or mtDNA. However, it can be very useful when looking for connections on both sides of the family. You get about half of the aDNA from your mother and about half from your father. Since they each get half from each of their parents, that means you receive about 1/4 from each of your grandparents - or 1/8 from each g-grandparents - or 1/16 from each gg-grandparent. As you can see, the aDNA from one individual becomes more "diluted" for each generation. Realistically, it can be used back to about five generations, but it can still be very helpful in the more recent genealogy on all sides of the family. It is important to remember that Y-DNA, mtDNA, and autosomal DNA are all different and are not interchangeable. A Y-DNA Haplogroup H is not the same as a mtDNA Haplogroup H. |
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Once you decide to become a participant - you have a couple options. You can order a test kit via the link on the DavenportDNA home page. Or you can contact the project administrator, if you have questions, and he can send you the link when you are ready. It is important to use one of these links. If you order directly through the Family Tree DNA (FTDNA) website - you will not get the Davenport group discount rate or be placed in the Davenport group. When filling in the order form - you can choose one of two tests. The "Y male 111 marker" and the "Y male 37 marker". Which one to select is depended on what you hope to accoumplish. If you are just trying to determine which of the already tested Davenport lines you belong to, then the 37 marker will usually work for you, with a few exceptions. Since the Y-DNA of the four American lines - Rev. John, Thomas of Dorcehster, Captain Richard, and Albemarle, along with the English Cheshire line - are very simalar, then the 111 marker test is recomended. The 111 marker test may be helpful in distinguishing between branches in other lines too. But generally, we recommend you start with the 37 marker test. After the order is placed, in a few days you will receive a small package from FTDNA. It will contain two scrappers ( like mini toothbrushes), two small vials, instructions, a release form, and return address labels. Just follow the instructions and swab the inside of your cheek with a scrapper and place it in the vial. This is done two times to make sure there is a good sample. Please sign and return the release form. It makes it possible for the administrator to view and interpret your results and for you to find matches. (If you are concerned with privacy - there are other ways to handle it.) You then place the samples and release form in the envelope and drop it in the mail. Once FTDNA receives your sample - they will do the necessary paperwork and begin to process your sample. You will be given a "personal" page at FTDNA where you can track the progress of your test and view your results later. In the meantime the project administrator will ask if he can use your name, email address, and results on the DavenportDNA website. He will also ask for a brief genealogy so we know which Davenport line you believe you belong too. If you don't know, don't worry, hopefully your results will help with that. This site is used to report to other Davenports the progress of this study - explanations, results, analysis, and conclusions.Remember, it is by comparing your results to others that helps you and us to move forward. Otherwise, it is just a bunch of random numbers. After FTDNA receives your test kit, it usually takes about 4-6 weeks for your results to come back. This is just an estimate, since many things can affect how soon you see your results - quality of the cheek scrape, extraction and amplification of the DNA, etc... Sometimes if they can't get a good "reading", they start over again, which adds to the time. When the time does comes, you, (and the project administrator), will receive an email saying your results are ready. You will be given a link to your personal page where you can see your results and explanations. If you signed the release form, you may also get an email that your results match someone else in FTDNA's database. It will most likely be another Davenport. About this time the project administrator will enter your results in the appropriate place on the DavenportDNA website. He will also contact you and discuss what the results mean. It would be wise to check back on the DavenportDNA website periodically. As more results come in - they will be posted and may be of interest to you. |
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Davenport Gathering 2013 Edenton, North Carolina August 23-25, 2013 The 2013 Davenport Gathering took place in Albemarle Davenport territory in Edenton, North Carolina, with over 60 in adendance. |
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Family reunion 383 Years on Leicester Mercury Newspaper - Leicestershire, England April 6, 2007 The Albemarle Davenports of North Carolina have a very close Y-DNA match to Richard Davenport (d. 1624) of Wigston, Leicestershire, England. So descendents from both sides convened in Leicestershire to search for a connection, plus more. This article covers that reunion. |
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Paving the way with DNA by Edwin M. Knights Family Chronicle Magazine Jan/Feb 2007 Edwin gives a brief introduction about using DNA testing in genealogy and then passes the pen on to five genealogists to write about their own DNA project. The Davenport project was one of them. |
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Davenport Surname DNA Project by Ian Davenport Cheshire Ancestor Sept 2006 - Page 24 Ian discusses the DNA project, some success stories, and his quest for a match. |
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DNA Projects: What are they and what can you expect? by Susan Meates Family Chronicle Magazine Sep/Oct 2006 - Page 40-43 In a four page article, Susan gives a good description of what DNA testing involves, and what it can do for genealogy. Page four includes a sample of the successes a surname project can have using the Davenport Surname DNA project as an example. |
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DNA Studies in Process New England Ancestor Magazine published by the New England Historic Genealogical Society Vol. 7, No. 1, Winter 2006 - Page 58 A new section in the magazine announcing DNA projects. |
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On occasion a Davenport would like to participate in the DNA Project but lacks the necessary funds to do so. Other times we may find a willing DNA donor in a branch that has yet to be tested but he is not interested in genealogy or paying for the test. Since the project is open to all Davenport males - we hate to miss any opportunity. You never know what the next result will bring. In the past we have asked for donations. But now, in order to reduce the number of "pleas" for assistance we have set up an easier method to make a donation. It is ongoing and always available. With the help of our testing company we have established the Davenport DNA General Fund. When you click on the link below - you will be transferred to a contribution form at FTDNA. You will have the option of making a payment by mail, credit card, or PayPal. All are fairly simple processes. Make sure you enter "Davenport" in the Surname Project box. If you wish to contribute to a specific Davenport line - please inform the project administrator at "donations @ DavenportDNA.com". If there is no preference then it will be used for one of the future participants. The total cost of one 37 marker test is $119 and $249 for an 111 marker test.. However, any amount is welcome. Remember, if you are uncomfortable using any of these method, you can contact the project administrator and make a donation the old fashion way via check through the mail. Thank You. To make a donation now - click on this link : http://www.familytreedna.com/contribution.html Note: The administrator does not handle any money. All funds go through Family Tree DNA. |
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