atDNA help

[kelsmell]

Hi I hope someone with the knowledge can help as I find this so confusing!

I have a atdna match on ancestry with someone born in the 1940, I was born mid 70’s we share 209 centimorgans shared across 9 DNA segments.

that seems to make us 2nd - 3rd cousins
or almost according to an Autosomal (atDNA) Predictions Percentages chart

Full 2nd Cousin - 211.78
Great Great Great Grandparent - 211.78
Full 1st cousin 2x removed - 211.78
Half 1st Cousin 1x Removed - 211.78
Half Great Grand Uncle/Aunt -211.78

Our families were from the same town.
His grandmother on his father side shares one of my family surname but I can find a link back to my family it’s a very common Irish surname.

I can’t find a link via his grandfather’s side either.

His mother was adopted not sure when but was born 1919 and he knows nothing about his mother’s family.

Would it be possible for one of my great grandparent to be his grandparent via his mum?

If not, where should I be looking.

Any help would be grateful received.

Thanks

[davidft]

Have you contacted the match? If not might that be a good next step.

Do you know which chromosomes you have the matches on and whereabouts on each chromosome? If you do then look at your other matches and see if you have matches on the same chromosomes in the same places as if you do you may be able to make progress looking at the other matches trees.

However if Ancestry does not give you this level of detail then you could upload your data to gedmatch.com (its free) and use their tools eg chromosome browser, and it may help you make a connection. Gedmatch will also have data from people who have tested with other companies

[kelsmell]

Hi davidft

I’ve had contact with him he’s only on Ancestry at the moment, I messaged him yesterday waiting for his reply we don’t seem to have any shared matches & as matches don’t seem to show up in all cases on Ancestry I sent him a list of my closest matches to see if there’s any cross over.

I’m on Ancestry, gedmatch & ftdna I was hoping to ask him to add his result to gedmatch but to be honest I don’t really understand how to used it at the moment I’ve been watching lots youtube videos to learn, I’ve just been trying to learn about x-DNA!

I’ve been on http://gliesians.com/autosomal-analyzer.faces trying to figure out how we could be related and I just can’t make the info I have fit with data it’s because of the dates nothing fits quite right.

I’ve got this relationship chart http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~kordyban/chart/relationship_chart.html

It’s helped me visualize it, to be a second cousin it works out that one of my -
2x grandparents (had a child)
1st child (who had a child my - Great Aunt/Uncle)
2nd Child (who had a child my - 1st cousin once removed)
3rd Child (who had a child my 2nd cousin)

That option will not fit to 2nd cousin as my 2x grandparents were born between 1896 – 1902 my DNA matches mother (1st child) was born 1919 he (2nd child) was born 1940’s, that would make him my Half 1st cousin once removed which looks most probable to me.

Unless the connections on his father’s side somewhere!!!

Hopefully he can add his detail to gedmatch then I will have to learn how to use it 

Thanks

[davidft]

I don't know how long it is since you did your test but I guess the first thing to say is it is only a very small percentage of people who test and so you can wait years before you get a match if ever! Ok some people get matches straight away that give a wealth of new information but these are very much the exception. I started off DNA testing with a yDNA test hoping it could help unblock my brick wall on my direct male line but 5 years on I am still waiting.

The relationship chart you have is similar to ones that the genealogy DNA testing sites use or cite. The first thing to say it is only a rough guide and I think you are taking it too literally trying to fit your observed centimorgans into a relationship area. As we inherit our genes at random there can be a quite wide disparency in how many centimorgans people with the same relationship to a third party. Also as we inherit our genes at random it is possible to rapidly lose any genetic link back to an ancestor after only a few generations.

You are on all three of the main DNA testing sites so that should help. I do think it would be good to ask you contact to upload their data to gedmatch as they have some good analytic tools that could help break down your link maybe with the help of third party matches. However one problem is always going to be the adoption of his grandmother and not knowing anything about her ancestors. (as you are on ftDNA as well it is worth mentioning that you can see on there if matches come from the male or female line but this requires close relatives to DNA test as well and link the results - there will be more explanation on the site)