Thanks for all the replies. The Harrell side of the family supposedly were Welsh coalminers when they came to the USA.Unfortunately I understand from a Harrell DNA group there is 15 different lines in the USA, my particular line #6 R1A1 and has a separation of some 20,000 years of the R1A1 of the majority Harrell line. Naturally, there is literally hundred of Johns, Williams, James etc first names to choose from, especially hard when you have a bunch of them living next door to one another in a census with wives and children with similar names. So my Harrell line stops early 1700s and is based on family records. So im stuck in the USA for the Harrell line.
For the Johnson line, all I have is my g grandfathers name and his father. Apparently he he from England as an indentured slave (servant).
The patri Neill line was not so hard, Ive gone back to 12th century Ireland and the Nialls. What is interesting ive only got 8% Irish in the DNA and 87% Northern Europe.
How they got to the USA and in what capacity is unknown. The vast number of name changes within the current family from Niall, Neal, Neill, O'Neal, O' and so on might suggest all sorts of things.
At this point my interest is the USA only for all three of the families. The Welsh coalminer story I can believe because that is exactly what a majority of my matri family did in Indiana, Ky and Va., that and farming.
