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I am completely new to this DNA stuff so would greatly appreciate some information and advice on how best to proceed to track down my maternal grandfather. I have no anecdotal or documentary information about this relative so am looking to dna testing for a way forward. How should I start? What is the appropriate research strategy? What dna tests should I take and from what companies? I have made a first step by signing up for a FT Family Finder test but might Ancestry have been a better choice? Thanks for your help.
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In a case like yours, you need to fish in all three ponds. As you can afford it, do the AncestryDNA and the 23andMe tests so that your results are on all three (autosomal DNA) databases.Originally posted by eyendall View Post
Good luck!
Jack -
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If you have any close relatives especially of an older generation that can be tested, be sure to test them. Having your parents test would be the best as you would then have a starting point on deciding where on your tree your matches would most likely be placed. If you can do your mother's DNA, a first cousin on your mother's side could be of help with filtering maternal matches, especially if the cousin is definitely not descended from you unknown grandfather. If you have siblings, test them and see which of their matches you also share. Test everyone you can.
I've been having problems figuring which of my distant cousins are from my mom's side of the tree, as I can't trace her family back past my Great grandparents. But recently I had a first cousin from one of her brother's test and a 1st cousin 1X removed (the grandchild of another of her brothers.) Now when they pop up as shared matches with a totally unknown individual, I have a good guess as to where that individual fits and can start looking for names and locations shared in common with other matches.Comment
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