ISOGG Newsletter October 2008

Vol. 1 No. 7 Oct 2008

From the Director - Its election time - vote Nat Geo!
     "Nat Geo" - the abbreviation for National Geographic, is much more than
just the familiar yellow-bordered magazine. Founded in 1888, Nat Geo is
a non-profit society which promotes historical conservation, along with
preservation of the environment, and study of world culture. In 2005, Nat
Geo's mission intersected with genetic genealogy with the launch of the
Genographic Project. While the Genographic Project primarily focuses on
"deep ancestry" DNA testing, genealogists have been benefiting from the
project as well. Nat Geo has been advertising the project internationally
which has brought in many new DNA testers that might have never
otherwise heard of using DNA to reveal ancestry (like Larry Vick in our
"Success Stories" article below). Several international participants who
have unique DNA profiles have furthered science in genetics studies.
A recent example is the rare mitochondrial variant discovered in a
Genographic Project public participation tester.
     You can show your appreciation for National Geographic
by voting for them in Trip Advisor's $1 million dollar giveaway.
Voting ends November 9.
     Dr. Spencer Wells will be speaking on the Genographic Project at
two upcoming events: at the 6th & I Historic Synagogue in Washington DC
on Oct 27 @ 7 pm, admission is $6 and at the Penn Museum in Philadelphia
on Oct 29 @ 5 pm, FREE admission, reg. req. For more on the latest news
from the Genographic Project, visit their new blog Genographica.
Thank you for your vote! And don't forget to share with family and friends!

-Katherine Borges
ISOGG Director

Vick Surname DNA Success Story
By James "Larry" Vick

    In 1991, my father’s brother organized a small family reunion. My daughter was 13, and she had never been around so many Vicks. During the visit, out of the blue, my daughter asked where the Vicks came from. After we returned home, my uncle mailed my daughter a pedigree chart detailing her Vick line for eight generations. The chart listed birth, death, and marriage dates for all of the Vicks in our line back through her fourth great-grandfather, Stephen Vick. The chart also showed that Stephen was the son of Jacob and Mary Vick of Dobbs Co., NC.
     When my daughter studied the pedigree chart, she wanted to know who Jacob was and who his father was. We learned that John D. Beatty was writing a book to be titled "Joseph Vick of Lower Parish, Isle of Wight County, Virginia and His Descendants". So, we decided to write John and see if he knew anything about our Jacob. John told us that there were two possibilities for our Jacob. One was through Joseph’s son, Richard, and the other was through Joseph’s son, William. While John had not found any evidence that could prove which Jacob was ours, he did give us information showing that the Jacob descended from William was a Revolutionary War soldier.
     So, we hit a genealogical “brick wall” in 1991. In 2005, I heard a radio program about the Genographic Project, and its goal to trace the migration of man using DNA. The program said that by testing my DNA I could be a helpful part of the project. I was not sure what that meant, but it seemed like a worthy project so I purchased a kit.
     When I received my results, I was also surprised to find a link at the bottom of the web page that said, “Click on the link below to learn how Family Tree DNA, our testing partner, can help you apply your results from the Genographic Project to research your family genealogy.” Little did I know that by clicking the link I was about to enter a whole new world that could help determine which Jacob was my ancestor.
     I clicked the link and found I was the first Vick with Y-DNA results in the FTDNA database (or at least the first who was willing to share his e-mail address and results). I had wondered if I would match a Vick, or if I would match another surname. I had no idea whether my Y-DNA signature would be common or rare. As it turns out, the patrilineal descendants of Joseph share a rare Y-DNA signature. Five months later, Ray Vick showed up as a match. Ray had also tested through the GP, and he too was eager to learn about his Vick family history, so we established a Vick DNA Project at FTDNA. Ray started contacting as many Vicks as he could to get them to join our project. He set up a web site, and we were off and running with a goal to reconstruct the Vick family tree.
     I will not go through all of the details, but the answer to which Jacob I am descended from became clear as more and more Vick men tested. We found at least three descendants from each of our Joseph’s five sons that agreed to test (as well as Vicks from other clans). What I found was that I did not have a little change in my Y-DNA that all of the tested descendants of Richard had (and none of the other tested Vicks had). I did have a small change in my Y DNA that the descendants of the Jacob from William’s line had (and none of the other Vicks had).
     We were very lucky to have a well-researched reference book for our family. Only by combining the research in the book with the Y-DNA results was I able to see which Jacob was my ancestor and that he was the Revolutionary War soldier. In our project, we have also found a descendant of a slave who shares our Vick ancestry. We continue to help others jump over the brick walls that block the search for their Vick ancestor.

For more Genographic Project success stories, or to submit your story, click here.

The Neanderthal Code
In September, The Neanderthal Code debuted on the National Geographic Channel. The show shares similarities found in Neanderthal DNA and human DNA such as the genes for language ability and red hair. A segment of the program covers the new technology developed by 454 Life Sciences headquartered in Branford, Connecticut which has extracted 38,000 year-old Neanderthal DNA.
A companion piece to the program, the cover article of the October 2008 National Geographic magazine, "Last of the Neanderthals" by Stephen S. Hall contains additional diagrams and information.

DNA in the News

Are You My Cousin? - AARP - Nov/Dec 2008
Last of the Neanderthals - National Geographic Magazine - Oct 2008
Jews and their DNA - Commentary Magazine - Sep 2008
Danes to be tested for Viking ancestry - jp.dk - 29 Sep 2008
Revealing Hidden Roots - Boston Globe - 23 Sep 2008

For more articles:
http://www.isogg.org/newsarchives.htm

NEW to the ISOGG Speaker's List:

David Boyett
Region: Tampa Bay, Florida
100 mile radius
Terms: Contact

Need a DNA speaker?:
http://isogg.org/speakerslist.htm

For upcoming DNA presentations:
http://isogg.org/meetings.htm

Recently updated pages:

mtDNA Testing Comparison Chart:
http://www.isogg.org/mtdnachart.htm

Y-DNA Testing Comparison Chart:
http://www.isogg.org/ydnachart.htm

Y-DNA Haplogroup Tree 2008 - v. 3.16
http://www.isogg.org/tree/

The ISOGG newsletter is a membership benefit of the world's first society founded for the promotion and education of genetic genealogy, ISOGG - The International Society of Genetic Genealogy. Membership is FREE! Members automatically receive the newsletter to share the latest news and happenings in the world of genetic genealogy.

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