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« on: Wednesday 25 September 19 00:38 BST (UK) »
Hello all, Wow it's amazing how postings can ignite so many years later. Thank you so much for your replies regarding my father - John "Jack" Gray.
Yes, one of my brother's, my half-sister and myself did our DNA and we are now officially a Robertson from Scotland and McCallum and can trace my tree back to the 15th century.
Beg was wonderful and found a rogue birth registration in the name of Skinner, nothing like I had imagined nor researched in the past, and bingo - it is almost certainly my dad with McCallum being his mother, this all tying up with our DNA.
So DNA opened up a minefield of information and family. However I am now in the situation as to whether I inform relations of my generation that their grandfather almost certainly had an affair with my grandmother and Dad was the result. I have read some interesting articles lately on the merits and downfalls of DNA discoveries and while it is wonderful for my family to finally discover our roots and family members, do I contact them and broach the subject - let alone ask if they are interested in doing a DNA sample? I will have a think.
Just why my father who was registered as a Skinner being his mother's married name at the time with NR for father, then became a Gray when put into the orphanage. There a three registrations for a Jack/John Gray later in the years which were failed adoptions so I wonder if that was my dad but unfortunately that information is not available to me. Otherwise that aspect will perhaps always remain a mystery.
I hope to contact the archives for social welfare records and see if there are any records for John Skinner now as opposed to John Gray (which they could not find anything for - hence Dad not existing).
So there you go. I would definitely advise DNA testing but caution with the results.
Kind regards
Sue