Help with finding 4th to 6th Matches please

[Braytons]

Hi

I received my DNA results back from Ancestry DNA about 3 weeks ago and have succeeded in tracking down the link to the first 3 matches.  Only another 243 to go.

Does anyone have any suggestions of methods of tracing the matches?  I know I can write to people but is there a process I could use?  I have a particular BRICK WALL which I mentioned in July. 

I think my grandmother Mary Vincent born 1875 was not the natural child of her mother and/or father. It is possible she was the child of her mother Mary Vincent by some other man.  However I think she must have been informally adopted.  She had a brother Robert Richard Vincent born 1871 (neither of the births were registered). With this in mind and with my results is there any way I could discover more about this problem?  Can anyone give me any hints of where to look for clues?  From the results I have scanned down people who were living in the area around the time she was born.  If it was a little village I would have a hope but its Saint Pancras, one of the most densely populated areas of London!  Considering she is my Grandmother her ancestry should show up in the 2nd cousin range?  I have found the family linked to the only one of those, the rest of the suggestions are 4th to 6th which I feel confirms the adoption idea?

Sorry about the length of the question. 

Kind regards Braytons

[Regorian]

I would have thought your grandmother was 3rd. My 2nd cousin is from a brother of my grandfather. 4th to 6th generations. Trouble is unless they have a surname known to you, how are you going to know unless you have a Tree going back that far, or they do, and willing to co-operate. There seems to be too many people on here who say they get no responses from messages. 

[Gadget]

I found using the Shared matches facility really helpful; checking each of the shared matches in a group for further shared matches (a bit like snowballing). I could then list all those who matched into groups and compare their trees: use the list facility with trees.

There are lots of hints on the other threads on this board that you might like to read through.

As Regorian has said, some people don't reply.


Gadget

Added - this facility is quite useful as a guide to relationships

https://dnapainter.com/tools/sharedcmv4

[Braytons]

Thank you both for your replies.  Yes I will try your suggestion Gadget.  As my school reports said, must try harder! 

Braytons

[sugarfizzle]

Braytons, Your best bet when looking for your grandmother's origins may be to concentrate on 2nd and 3rd cousins, as and when they appear.

As far as possible identify anybody from your known grandparents' and great grandparents' lines, make a note of any who do not obviously fit in with these names. If possible, get as many of your known cousins and second cousins to get tested, this will make the job easier.

If no cousins willing, able or available to be tested, the job is harder, but can still be done.  It might take time, but a process of elimination in your closest matches should help.

4th to 6th cousins prove useful if you know the name you are looking for, less useful if you don't know the name.

Regards Margaret

[Braytons]

Thank you Margaret. 

I don't have any outstanding 2nd cousins, only 4th to 6th.  So I will just have to be patient and hope some come along.  I will carefully approach a couple of (real) cousins and see if they would be at all interested in getting tested.  I uploaded my raw data to Gedmatch but nothing seems to happening with that either.

I am trying very hard to tidy up everyone in my tree, making sure I've got all the information available.  I am sure there is loads I have missed over the years.

Regards Braytons

 

[Gadget]

Are you in contact with any of the descendants of Robert Richard Vincent b. 1871 or are there any Ancestry trees which include him?

I would think that DNA comparisons with any of his descendants might help.

I had to trace an unknown great grandfather - it took me 3 months of carefully research based on a very distinct group of shared matches. I've mentioned it on other threads.

Gadget

[Braytons]

Hi Gadget

Yes, thank you, after quite a lot of detective work, we did make enquiries with a family related to Robert Richard Vincent 1871 about 3 years ago, but they were not very forthcoming, we wrote a second time but no answer at all.  I think the suggestion of a DNA test would be out of the question.  I cannot find any others, nor any trees on Ancestry which includes others. 

Am I correct in thinking that any descendant of his would be in the 2nd or 3rd cousin range?

I will read your other threads and see if I can pick up any hints. 

Braytons

[sugarfizzle]

Hi again.

With matches you are looking for the most recent common ancestor, which in this case would be great grandparents. Descendants from them would be your 2nd cousins to some degree (maybe 2nd cousins once or twice removed, depending upon the number of generations between you).

I think it is a matter of patience and sorting through your matches to group them as far as possible into paternal/maternal matches, matches with recognised surnames from your tree, shared matches etc.

Concentrating on this line may not be productive for a while, as you have so little to go on.  Concentrating on 4th to 6th cousin matches may also prove unsuccessful at this time. Have you read Peter Calver's Lost Cousins DNA masterclass? If you follow some of his tips for the rest of your family, it might become more apparent which matches belong to this line as they just don't fit into any of your other lines.

It may not be possible to find out anything until you do get closer matches, but I think it will be by a process of elimination that you get the best results.

I hope you're not too disappointed that we/I persuaded you to have autosomal DNA testing and you haven't got the results that you were hoping for.

BTW, a lot of people have claimed Robert Richard Vincent 1871 for their own at ancestry trees, but seem to have given him the wrong parents. Have you looked at any of them at all?

Regards Margaret