Saturday, August 27, 2016

More results!

Grandma's brother's results came in this morning.  Still waiting for his raw data to be available so I can upload to GEDmatch, but I at least have a few things I can do while I wait.  :)  I'm working on uploading files into Genome Mate Pro right now.  Once I get the files in there, I can start making some comparisons.

Still waiting on Grandma's sister's results.  Those are due in on Thursday.

I also managed to squeak one more test in before the end of the summer sale, a known third cousin of my grandmother's on the FALK line.  That one should batch next Wednesday, which should yield results between September 28 and October 12th.

Wednesday, August 3, 2016

Summer sale!!

Hooray!  :)

FTDNA just announced a summer sale of $30 off!  I had enough saved to order Family Finder tests for two kits.  I decided to stick close to the tree and ordered two of my grandmother's siblings.  I figure between them, my grandmother, their half-uncle, the one cousin that I've run so far, and their assumed double second cousin, I should be able to dig up a lot more KLASSEN and FALK DNA.  :)

I'm really hoping to see these two kits batch today.  It would be a bummer to have to wait until next week for them to batch!

Tuesday, June 21, 2016

Kit Updates

Currently we have:

-  5 Loewen/Franz kits at the lab waiting for a sale
-  1 Petkau/Klassen kit still outstanding
-  1 Petkau/Klassen kit at the lab waiting for a sale
-  1 Falk/Guenther & Schpansky/Warkentin at the lab waiting for a sale
-  1 Falk/Klassen kit at the lab waiting for a sale
-  1 Kroeker/Falk kit should batch tomorrow.

So... of the 10 unprocessed kits, 9 are at the lab and 1 is outstanding!  :)

Wednesday, June 8, 2016

Harder than I'd hoped....

Well, I'm finished with the initial analysis of the FALK/KLASSEN kit.  I have learned a few things.

1)  If Peter & Katharina were brother and sister, this would make their kids double first cousins, because Peter married Susanna, and Katharina married Jakob, Susanna's brother.

2)  This also makes Peter & Katharina's grandchildren double second cousins:



As double second cousins, we would expect them to share about 425 cM of DNA.  So far, I've tested three possible double second cousins: my grandmother (circle pictured above), her first cousin (not pictured) and the man represented by the square above.

Grandma's first cousin and the man represented by the square share 490cM of DNA. That's great.  That's about 65cM more than we would expect.  However... they share X DNA.  Because they're both males, we know this DNA could only have come from their mothers.  Grandma's first cousin's mother doesn't factor into the KLASSEN puzzle to my knowledge but the mother of the man represented by the square was actually a KLASSEN.  *alarm bells*  The fact that they do share X DNA does indicate some sort of relationship between Anna (pictured above) and the mother of Grandma's first cousin (not pictured).  It could be another KLASSEN connection, or it could be completely inconsequential to what we're working on with our KLASSEN line.  Right now there's no way to know for sure, but it is enough that it could account for the extra 65cM of DNA they share.

Grandma and the man represented by the square share about 319cM of DNA.  That's a little less than I had hoped for, but not enough less that it's a problem for them being double second cousins.

Between the three relatives, they share a total of about 809cM, of which only 69cM overlaps.  We know now that it's likely those 69cM came from some combination of David Falk & Maria Schpansky, and the unknown Klassen parents, but we need to get more data in order to figure out which of the pairs each piece came from, and from there, which person in each pair it came from.

So, now we wait for that KROEKER/KLASSEN test.  That relative is a half-uncle of my grandmother and her first cousin, so they should each share 850 cM of DNA with him.  He's also a first cousin, once removed to the man represented by the square above, so they should share 425cM of DNA, some of which will be shared with my grandmother, some of which will be shared with my grandmother's first cousin, some of which all four of them will share, and some of which will only be shared between the first cousins, once removed.  Based on the known relationships, the 425cM of DNA that the KROEKER relative and the man represented by the square share should have all come from David Falk & Maria Schpansky, since the KROEKER relative has no known connection to the KLASSEN line.  Getting those segments figured out will help a bunch.

I *know* that was confusing, so if you have any questions, please leave me a comment and ask!  :)

It's in!

I got the results for the FALK/KLASSEN kit yesterday, a couple hours after my post about waiting.  :)

I spent a good part of yesterday catching up on emails and messages pertaining to the other kits I manage.  I was able to compare yesterday's kit to my grandmother's first cousin, and while they share about 6.25% of their DNA, it didn't seem to be in very many places that overlap with my grandmother.  This is both good and bad news.  The bad news is that I wasn't really able to draw any conclusions from my investigations yesterday.  The good news is that this means that we should have a good portion of KLASSEN DNA and a good portion of FALK DNA uncovered.  Next up is the challenge of figuring out what is what.  That's where the KROEKER/FALK kit will come in, and another FALK kit that I'll run at Christmas.  I also have another KLASSEN/FALK first cousin kit to run at Christmas, as well as one of Grandma's sisters, and hopefully a brother by then too.

While I was writing this post, I was uploading the raw data from yesterday's kit to GEDmatch.com so I can compare him against my 23anme kits.  Historically that has been a long process, but it only took about 5 minutes this time!

Doing a quick comparison between my grandmother and the FALK/KLASSEN kit from yesterday, it looks like they share about 180cM LESS DNA than my grandmother's first cousin and the FALK/KLASSEN relative do.  That's a bit disappointing, but all the more reason to test multiple people in the same family.  I'll do a more thorough analysis of their shared DNA after breakfast.

Tuesday, June 7, 2016

Tomorrow

Tomorrow is a big day in my genealogy journey.  Tomorrow is the first day that we could have confirmation of Peter Klassen's sister's identity.  Stating it like that makes it sound so simple, when it really probably won't be.  Because Peter's sister married Susanna's brother (we assume, from pictorial evidence), their kids are double first cousins.  This means that they share double the amount of DNA that plain old first cousins share.  And of course, that double amount of DNA will trickle down through the family to their descendants, namely, Peter's sister's grandson, and Susanna's son.  Sorting out the FALK DNA from the KLASSEN DNA will be an interesting process.  But tomorrow is the first day it could begin.

However, it's not uncommon for tests to be delayed the first time they go through processing.  I don't think we'll actually get results tomorrow.  I'll be very surprised if we do.  I'm just hoping that the test makes it through on the first round of processing so we don't have to wait and wait and wait.  :)

The other big piece of this puzzle that we're waiting on is the KROEKER/FALK test.  That one should be on it's way back to the lab now.  I called that relative last week and coached him through swabbing his cheeks and preparing his test for mailing.  Hopefully he did it right!  I guess we'll see in a week or two when the lab records it as received.  Comparing his DNA against the other FALK/KLASSEN test (from the first paragraph) will be key, because the only DNA they should share (hopefully) is the FALK DNA.  But there should be twice as much of it as there would normally be, so.... I guess we'll have to see!

All that to say, I'm really hoping we get the results from the first test tomorrow!

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Kit Updates!

Currently we have:

-  4 Loewen/Franz kits at the lab waiting for a sale
-  1 Loewen/Franz kit outstanding
-  1 Falk/Klassen kit in processing, results due end of June
-  1 Petkau/Klassen kit still outstanding
-  1 Petkau/Klassen kit at the lab waiting for a sale
-  1 Falk/Guenther & Schpansky/Warkentin at the lab waiting for a sale
-  1 Falk/Klassen kit at the lab waiting for a sale
-  1 Kroeker/Falk kit still outstanding

So... of the 11 unprocessed kits, 7 are at the lab and 1 is processing!  :)

Monday, May 9, 2016

Kit at the lab!

I received an email this morning notifying me that the DNA kit for Peter Klassen's assumed great-nephew made it to the lab!  I've already purchased the actual test for this kit, so it should start processing on Wednesday.  Based on current processing times, we should have results somewhere between June 15 and June 29 if the samples are good!  :)

Friday, April 22, 2016

Kit updates

Currently we have:

-  4 Loewen/Franz kits at the lab waiting for a sale
-  1 Loewen/Franz kit that never got delivered was re-ordered this morning
-  1 Falk/Klassen kit mailed back to the lab on 4/20/16
-  2 Petkau/Klassen kits still outstanding
-  1 Falk/Guenther & Schpansky/Warkentin kit in the mail back to the lab around 4/8/16
-  1 Falk/Klassen kit still outstanding
-  1 Falk/Kroeker kit still outstanding

Yesterday FTDNA announced a sale for DNA Day, so I ordered the Family Finder test for the outstanding Falk/Kroeker kit.  I'll have enough to order the Family Finder test for the Falk/Klassen kit on it's way back to the lab before the end of the sale, so I'll order that one on Tuesday.  :)  Both of those tests will help narrow down what DNA came from Susanna Falk and what probably didn't.  Really excited about those, and very glad I got them on sale before Christmas!

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Joy comes in the morning! :P

Called FTDNA first thing this morning.  The kit that was designated for the relative who later refused to test is now going to my grandmother's first cousin.  I spoke to her this morning, and she agreed to test, so I called the lab and got the replacement test sent to her.  I also got in touch with one of my great-aunts who was supposed to have received her kit back in January.  As I suspected, she never received it, so I called the lab back and got a new test sent to her.  :)

So, three out of the four fits from yesterday's post have been taken care of.  Now I just need to get in touch with two of my great-uncles and see if the first intends to test, and the second has received his test.

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Ugh.... Not the update I wanted to write....

Apparently FTDNA charged my card for two DNA tests on January 3, and then two more on January 22nd.  I did order all four... except it looks like FTDNA never mailed them!  I know two of them were for sure never delivered.  Now at least one of the four testers has changed her mind and decided not to test.  I'm waiting to hear from FTDNA what my options are for that test.

Tuesday, March 22, 2016

Another "not quite immediate family member" is going to test!

Just got off the phone with the grandmother of a high school classmate.  Her husband (J) is my grandmother's third cousin, four different ways, through Heinrich Schapansky, #946301 and Jacob Falk, #213384, both twice.

J's DNA will help us sort out the FALK DNA that my grandmother and her first cousin share from the KLASSEN DNA that Grandma and her first cousin will share with the KLASSEN matches mentioned in previous posts.  However... it's still not going to give us pretty little clean cut answers, because J and Grandma's top 23andme match (K) are also third cousins through Heinrich Schapansky and Jacob Falk. What this will tell us is the places where J, K, and Grandma's family all match, we know would come from the FALK/SCHAPANSKY shared lines, and NOT the KLASSEN lines that K and Grandma share.

First "might be a KLASSEN relative" has agreed to test!

This is BIG.  I've been working on our KLASSEN brick wall for quite awhile, and kind of sort of getting a fuzzy picture of our KLASSEN ancestors.

 Right now all I have as proof (well, not me, but my great-aunt) is a family picture of my great-great-grandmother, Susanna with her siblings & their spouses, and Susanna's parents.  One of the women is labeled as the sister of Susanna's first husband, Peter, the man whose family we're looking for.  This woman married Suanna's brother, Jakob David Falk.  Her name is Katharina KLASSEN.

So, now we have strong pictorial evidence to suggest that Peter and Katharina were brother and sister.

With some help from the "Mennonite Genealogy & History" group, in addition to the GRANDMA database, I was able to track down some descendants of Katharina KLASSEN.  It took a few days to exchange Facebook messages and friend requests, but I just received word this morning that Katharina's grandson has agreed to test for me!  If Katharina is indeed Peter's sister, this man would be a second cousin to my grandmother, and the DNA should show that.  It's not going to be a super clean-cut process to prove the relationship, but we can also use the DNA from Grandma's top 23andme match to help.  Grandma's top 23andme match, and the man who has agreed to test for me are double first cousins, so they should share lots of DNA.  From there, it comes down to questions of where Grandma (and her siblings and first cousin) match the two KLASSEN matches, and whether those two matches match each other on those places.

Lots of questions still to be asked and answered.

Friday, February 19, 2016

Did I find a KLASSEN sibling?

I've been working on my Grandma Loewen's 23andme matches for about a year and a half.  Her second highest match responded to my messages, and we've been in sporadic communication.  She has VERY strong KLASSEN ties, including a KLASSEN brick wall at the same generation we do.

Anyway, I was finally able to get in touch with Grandma's top match (other than Mom and me), and from their response, it was apparent to me that they were likely to be the aunt of Grandma's second highest match, because they gave me the name of the person the profile belonged to, and it was the same name as Grandma's second highest match's grandmother.

I got back in touch with Grandma's second highest match to see if she knew about this person who was likely to be her grandmother.  She confirmed that she tested both her grandparents, and that her aunt has the log-in information for both accounts.  Her aunt is not well right now, and was not very receptive to working with me.

So, I asked the second highest match if she's sharing with her grandmother's account, and if she is, if she could compare Grandma Loewen with her grandmother's DNA and then let me know where they match.  It's likely that her grandmother and my grandmother are 2nd cousins, which means that our grandmothers' grandfathers are likely to be brothers!

I'm actually pretty excited about this because that would mean that I found one of Peter Klassen's siblings.  I have a name for one of his sisters as well, thanks to a picture I saw at Christmas time that one of my great-aunts has.

Monday, February 8, 2016

Updates!

UPDATES:
- December 8 LOEWEN/FRANZ swab #3--Arrived at the lab on January 21.  I haven't ordered the test yet, but when I have enough, it will be the first one that I order.
-  February 8 LOEWEN/FRANZ swabs #6 and #7--Ordered this morning!
-  USPS raised their prices, so FTDNA had to as well.  Round-trip shipping is now $12.95.


No updates:
-  August 31 PETKAU/KLASSEN swab #2--This one is still outstanding, and as far as I know, hasn't made it back to the lab yet.
- December 31 PETKAU/KLASSEN swabs #3 and #4--These two I assume have reached the testers, but I have no further information.
- January 20 LOEWEN/FRANZ swabs #4 and #5--Ordered. I expect the swabs to ship sometime next week

Wednesday, January 20, 2016

Two more swabs ordered, and another to be ordered!

Eek!  I'm getting really close to having swabs out for all my grandparents' siblings!

Here's where we're at:

-  August 31 PETKAU/KLASSEN swab #2--This one is still outstanding, and as far as I know, hasn't made it back to the lab yet.
-  August 31 LOEWEN/FRANZ swab #2--This one made it back to the lab and was processed in near record time.
-  December 8 LOEWEN/FRANZ swab #3--This one has been mailed back to the lab, but to my knowledge hasn't made it back yet.
-  December 31 PETKAU/KLASSEN swabs #3 and #4--These two I assume have reached the testers, but I have no further information.
-  January 20 LOEWEN/FRANZ swabs #4 and #5--Ordered.  I expect the swabs to ship sometime next week

AND....

-  January 20 LOEWEN/FRANZ tester #6 agreed to test!  I'll order her test in the morning, I think

This means I have:
-  1 more LOEWEN/FRANZ sibling
-  3 more PETKAU/KLASSEN siblings