My father told me there are Cherokee genes in our family background.

[MineralMan]

That was when I was a teenager. I just shrugged and ignored that bit of useless information. I have no idea whether there was any truth to it, and he didn't know the name of anyone in his family background who was a Cherokee to any real degree.

I never told anyone about that claim, because it didn't matter, not even a little bit. I don't care, actually. I'm not going to get my genetic profile, either. I know who my great-great-grandparents were on both sides, and at that level of ancestry, I know from where they immigrated here. (England and Scotland).

Why would I have ever mentioned my possible Cherokee ancestry? Who would have cared?

That's what's so puzzling about the whole Elizabeth Warren thing. Apparently she's 1/64 Cherokee. So what? I don't see any significance in that at all. Why would she have bothered to tell anyone that, really? I have no earthly idea. It's not like we Europeans treated the Cherokee people well or revered them in this country.

Where is the benefit in telling such a story in the first place? That's what I don't understand.

Do I have Cherokee genes? Maybe. Maybe not. Given my known heritage, I might also have Viking genes and Neanderthaler genes. I don't care. None of that has any meaning whatsoever in any real sense. I'm content with not knowing.

[Wellstone ruled]

1. Yes sir re,we can choose our friends

but,the Relatives,that is another story. Got a couple stinkers in the family tree,and they are still in the tree and the World is a better place.

[MineralMan]

5. Afraid? That's not it.

Of what benefit would it be to me? Why should I pay for something I don't care about? Fear has zero to do with it.

[Rorey]

15. I'm not particularly interested either.

My mom did a lot of genealogy work on our family, but I have to say it really didn't care too much. I am me.

[unblock]

29. all cases are different, and you may have a particular individual reason to care.

i have a brother who was adopted. not long after his 21st birthday, he received a letter forward from his birth mother.

he sent back a letter saying he has had a happy life growing up with the only family has has ever known or ever considered his and had no interest in further contact.

in his case, there was no need for dna, if he wanted to connect with his birth history.

your story might be different, as i imagine it would be for anyone who was adopted at an older age (old enough to remember birth parents, e.g.) or if such records or ability to contact birth parents wasn't possible or feasible.


i'm not sure anyone's talking about banning dna testing, just encouraging people not to be so cavalier about it and the potential for misuse.

[unblock]

53. if it worked out for you, and you feel a connection, that's great.

my brother feels no connections to his birth parents, our family has always treated it as a matter of irrelevant trivia that he was adopted.

he's now in his late 50s and has had plenty of time to revisit the issue if he cared to, and he's never changed his view on the matter. he gave her the gift of reassuring her that she made the right decision and that he has life he's happy with. she should be fine with that.

you're welcome to think there's something "sad" about that, i don't see it that way at all.

in any event, i'm not about to push your views on the subject on my brother, not that he would listen to either of us anyway....

[912gdm]

64. My mom was in the same boat.

She was adopted as a toddler and her parents never hid it from her. My grand-parents adopted three kids; my mom and a pair of siblings that are my aunt and uncle. They knew growing up..

My aunt did try to find her birth parents, but my mom and uncle never cared. They considered grandma and grandpa as their 'real' parents.



Fast forward a couple years ago, I did do the FTDna test just out of curiosity to find out where in Europe her line was from. We assumed northern Euro since she is so fair and has blue eyes

Anyway, I asked if it was okay and she had no problem with it. If a close genetic relative popped up and didn't want to know about it, but she was curious about the ethnic part.

Never found anyone as a close match but did find out her Mdna comes out of the Finland area which she thought was pretty neat.


As for me, if I would have had any close matches I wouldn't have cared to follow up. My grandparents, aunt, uncle, and cousins are my family. Not the genetic donors

[customerserviceguy]

46. Me, too

but I have yet to find a close enough match to be able to identify even one of my two parents. And the way that DNA testing is getting twisted around in the mass media lately, I might never find that magic match that unlocks the secrets.

Having law enforcement agencies use consumer DNA databases for fishing expeditions will deter people from testing, in my opinion. Also, the ridicule coming down on Sen. Warren for the handling of her results might well discourage some from testing, too.

[customerserviceguy]

69. Not surprised

but I did not expect the nearly 25% British-Irish when I first got my results. Then, I came to understand that cross-channel migration between people from the British Isles and the north of France probably contributed to that. And the few percentage points of Italian were probably from the Roman Empire.

23andMe did redo their algorithms a few weeks ago, they took a bit from my Native American DNA (no doubt acquired from Acadian intermarriage with the Mikmaq people) and changed it to a sub-Saharan African designation. The only thing I can figure is if that is true, it might have been from the slave trade that occurred around the founding of New France.

And, yes, new people are coming on board all of the time, so far, they don't seem to be terribly freaked out by the possible downsides of the use of DNA by police, etc. That could change on a dime if something bad were to happen.

[unblock]

26. in part because bigots would love to have a list of individuals to hate on for stupid reasons.

as a baby, my mother was smuggled out of nazi germany with the help of fake documents. at one point, some ss officers literally held her in their arms while my grandparents struggled to appear perfectly calm.

if they had had a searchable database of anyone with dna they decided was "jewish", none of them would have survived and i would never have even existed.

[unblock]

31. but genocides exist in the 21st century, and likely will in the future.

[LexVegas]

3. I think there are some white people that want to be something other than just white.

[MineralMan]

6. Hmm...

Perhaps you're right.

[PatSeg]

39. Yes

I've known quite a few people who bragged about their possible Native American heritage. Some had some interesting family stories that had been passed down as well.

I've been working on our family tree for twenty years now and find this sort of thing fascinating. I love making new discoveries and solving old mysteries. Right now we know that my daughter-in-law has some Native American DNA, but haven't been able to find what branch it was on. It is hard as it probably wasn't something family talked about years ago and the person could have taken a European name.

In Elizabeth Warren's case, it seems that this was a family story that she found interesting or significant. Most families have such stories.

[customerserviceguy]

50. Agreed

I've been involved with genetic genealogy for nearly four years now, and I've seen a lot of folks who were told fanciful stories about their family heritage that were simply lies. I even have one fourth cousin who has a website set up to bolster her claims of recent Iroquois heritage as part of her business of selling "magic" healing gems and such.

I did have to talk a young woman off of the ledge about a year ago, in her profile, she said that her great-great grandmother was a South American princess whose marriage to her French-Canadian great-great grandfather had to be hushed up by the rest of the family. Yes, this ancestor had a Spanish-sounding surname, but I was able to show her that the lady in question was a blended down descendant of a Portuguese settler who came to New France about 1655 or so. He had a lot of sons, and they spread the surname throughout the French-Canadian population.

It may be a coping mechanism to deal with white guilt.

[avebury]

4. My Dad's mother was 1/8 Cherokee which was not viewed

as a positive thing and just not talked about. Not having grown up in Oklahoma I thought it was rather cool although I don't think my Aunt viewed it in a positive manner either. One of my Uncles was really into genealogy and could trace the ancestry back but I don't know what happened to his documents. I think that my other Aunt told that the original Cherokee great whatever Grandmother is buried in some graveyard in Checotah, OK. None us have every tried to publicly claim Cherokee heritage, it is just cool to know about it.

I am working on a project at work that will be located in Checotah. I plan on going out to the project site when it is done to see the results. I may chase down that cemetery location when I go there.

[GumboYaYa]

22. My great grandfather was full blooded Blackfoot

That makes me 1/8 Blackfoot. It is easy to trace the genes through my family tree. Every person descended from my great grandfather is lactose intolerant. Apparently this is a common genetic characteristic for descendants of that tribe. When I was applying for colleges I had the option of claiming my native american ancestry and elected not to do so under the theory that I might deprive a truly deserving member of the tribe a much needed opportunity. Like you, it is a cool piece of family history, but has no impact on my current life other than the lactose intolerance.

[PatSeg]

47. I worked on a friend's family tree

who was from Oklahoma and he definitely had Cherokee ancestry, which was easily verified. He seemed to be proud of it, but when he was a child, it was probably a bit of a family scandal. With him, one could easily see the heritage in some physical attributes.

Its been quite awhile, so I can't remember a lot of the details now, but it was fascinating at the time.

[notdarkyet]

54. My grandmother was 1/2 fox. My dad would never talk about his Indian heritage. Ashamed

Of it. I’m a quarter. Can’t prove except for an old picture of my grandmother where she definitely looks Indian. Maybe I should get my dna tested.

[PatSeg]

62. It usually is hard finding

actual documentation, as it often will only show Christian or European names. Even the census might say the person is "white". DNA testing can be fascinating. Most people have some surprises waiting for them and many find relatives they didn't know they had.

I am hopeful that some day we'll find the Native American ancestor in my daughter-in-law's tree. Apparently it was also treated with shame at one time, as there are no family stories or legends about it. What a difference it might make if everyone knew their genetic origins. Perhaps they might look at the world around them differently.

[Rorey]

7. For eligibility for college grants or placement, maybe?

Seems like I read something about that.

[MineralMan]

9. Perhaps. I don't know.

I went to a state college, back when there was no tuition. First, my parents paid, and then, after I dropped out and joined the USAF, the GI Bill paid for the rest. Nobody asked me about anything else, really.

[Rorey]

16. I went to University of North Dakota

There were some Native Americans who attended who received grants based on their ancestry.

My dad's side of the family was German and my mom always said that her ancestry was "Duke's Mixture", which I always took to mean that nobody knew or they fooled around a lot.

[bigbrother05]

18. There are a lot of benefits available in certain locations

Where there is a significant NA population, health and welfare benefits are available to tribal members. There is an Indian Health Service hospital where I grew up and where I was born as well as my children at no cost to my family. Works great (socialized medicine), but you have to provide proof, not just Grandma said.

Also are some programs/jobs set aside with NA preference, i.e. a NA will be hired first if qualified.

[Johnny2X2X]

8. You are a lot like Warren

She just mentioned it in passing that he grandma said they had some native blood. That should have been the end of it.

However, it appears she put it on an application, which was really stupid, but still shouldn't be a big deal now.

[MineralMan]

12. Well, see, if she put it on some application for something, then

apparently she thought it mattered. I never did think it mattered, and don't remember any application for anything where it would have mattered, either. In fact, I don't remember ever being asked.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

10. My Mom has claimed that she possibly has some Native American heritage on her side

Nothing wrong with wanting to explore that further. Nothing wrong IMHO with Warren believing/sharing that information about herself.

[bigbrother05]

11. It's very common in OK to hear such stories about links to state history

Imagine that people around Boston allude to Mayflower heritage or folks in Portland discuss arriving by wagon train over the Oregon Trail.

It's mostly about roots and a sense of place. Where it gets sticky is when it's used for gain where it's not valid. In fact, my son had to provide proof before his High School would allow him to check that on his records because of his blond hair and blue eyes.

As a card carrying member of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, I resent false claims of privilege but ignore self congratulatory boasts. Just like I ignore fraternity/sorority/DAR/etc.

[MineralMan]

13. My father was born in Oklahoma.

Maybe everyone in Oklahoma claims that. I don't know.

[bigbrother05]

21. Pretty much, have met very few with OK roots that don't cites some connection

For some reason Cherokee is most often mentioned if the there's no clear, direct links. Guess the Trail of Tears story tugs at their heart and there was a lot of intermarriage.

[Runningdawg]

80. Nope

For every person with no Native blood that claims it, I think that there are many more who have the blood and would never admit it. This is not a state (today)where you want to claim anything other than European heritage. Even though its called Indian Territory. IDK WTF is up with Warren, some people are just confused.

[bigtree]

14. you do what's fine for you

...we don't always act in others interest, and there's a strong argument to be made that Elizabeth Warren made the associations she did in her own personal interest.

The fact that her personal identification years ago is being scrutinized doesn't make it any less personal. It's certainly not legitimately characterized as a political act, but that hasn't stopped critics from framing it with negative political connotations.

There's Indian blood in both my wife's and my own family history, almost all of it anecdotal and word of mouth. It's a source of interest to both of us, and not a small amount of pride as we hold much affection for Native American community and culture.

For my father (born on a reservation in Black Mountain, N.C.) and his family, it wasn't something they readily admitted to, as Indian associations were regarded with derision in the community they had settled in.

In my wife's case, there's more than affection for beloved relatives whose origins stemmed in part from an Indian woman and a storied outpost and store that she ran as an independent successful Indian woman in a harsh and unaccommodating time in American history. In fact her father (considered a white man) was born on the very same reservation as my father, in BM, NC (albeit, years later).

I don't know why it's so hard to understand the affinity some feel for their Indian roots, to understand the desire to share that identification with others, however awkward or inappropriately presented.

[riverwalker]

17. 573 Native American tribes

Recognized by BIA. These anecdotal claims seem to always be Cherokee.

[LakeSuperiorView]

41. And the Ancestry DNA test has ONE "group" for all of the Americas,

not counting Mexican and Central American groups. I think it is likely that Ancestry DNA does not have enough data to make any precise conclusions on North American ancestry. That's not to say they never will, they make updates to their algorithms as they increase their databases.

[kentuck]

19. I can remember my great grandmother...

The Grandmother of my Father.

She was old and tanned when I was but a young man.

She was a Collins, rumored to be part of the Lost Colony, and they were known as Melungeons. They seemed to occupy the area around SW VA, SE KY, and NE TN. It was a rather small geographical area.

She said she was one-quarter Cherokee. She did not say whether from her mother's side or her father's side?

[Triloon]

20. My earliest recorded american ancestor

is on paper petitioning the congress for a pension in reward for his work burning native villages during the revolution. It's a pretty crappy legacy, and I'd really rather have a speck of native dna. Except that any such speck would most likely have been the result of rape and family separation rather than Frontier Love. So I guess I'd rather just live my own life.

[eleny]

23. Perhaps she's proud of the heritage as told to her by her family

It happens.

[Demonaut]

25. I checked mine only to see the level of traveling my ancestors had done

[HeiressofBickworth]

27. I've spent about 45 years doing genealogy research

I've never done a DNA test but I've researched the records. I've found that I have deep roots in Scotland. In fact, my surname is a Scottish name and I even know the small village in the Northern Highlands my distant relatives came from.

According to the rules applied to Elizabeth Warren, I owe the government and people of Scotland an apology for mentioning my heritage. I can't think of a time I've been asked my heritage, but if asked, I would say on my paternal side, I am Scottish. Likewise, on my maternal side, I am Swedish.

Lots of people proclaim their heritage. Thanks to my daughter's father, she can claim descent from Canadian First Nations. Not in a general or family lore way; I found the documentation. Her ancestors were part of the French claim to Quebec. Yes, it was hundreds of years ago, but it is real.

Maybe because of my years of research i just don't see that Warren has betrayed anyone's tribe. We all have "others" in our heritage. There is no pure American. Even Native Americans originally came from somewhere else.

So can we give this issue a rest and concentrate on policies and candidates to defeat Trump.

[kentuck]

34. +100

[eleny]

49. This makes sense to me

[Polly Hennessey]

77. Yes.

My ancestors came from Northern England and Southern England. Who knows what else is in the mix. Does it matter? No. I suspect lots of Americans are proud of any American Indian lingering in their genes. It is amusing what we choose to argue about or what we choose to fuss over. By the way, the Hennessey comes from my husband. It is rumored his family has some Cherokee. Good grief, what should we do? Lordy, Lordy.

[Croney]

28. My ancestors were Mississippi Choctaw.

But they weren't.

That family myth ended when some of us did DNA tests. I did find a half-brother I didn't know I had, and don't want, because he's a TrumpDumpster.

[Greybnk48]

76. For me it was Mississippi Chickasaw.

But it wasn't. It was a great grandmother who was French, Italian and Spanish.

[LakeSuperiorView]

32. Some people do care to know about their ancestors. Others don't.

Disparaging either for their choices is pretty inappropriate.

[MineralMan]

35. I disparaged nobody. I only spoke about

my own opinion of such things, and my puzzlement about others. If your genetic heritage is important tobyou, that's fine. For me, it's meaningless past two generations.

[LakeSuperiorView]

38. I didn't say you did...

"That's what's so puzzling about the whole Elizabeth Warren thing. Apparently she's 1/64 Cherokee. So what? I don't see any significance in that at all. Why would she have bothered to tell anyone that, really? "

You did question her choices. Maybe you didn't mean it as such, but I saw it as being negative. Likewise, you saw my words as being directed towards yourself. Easy to read what one wants to read...

[MineralMan]

40. Ah, but you did.

I mentioned one person, and wondered why she did that. Apparently, you took that personally. That was not my intent at all.

[LakeSuperiorView]

45. I'll quote myself.

"Some people do care to know about their ancestors. Others don't.

Disparaging either for their choices is pretty inappropriate."

Nothing there mentioning anyone in particular. Lots of people in this thread opining what others should and shouldn't do in regards to their ancestry. If you choose to believe my post is about you specifically, that would be an error. I believe questioning other's choices in regard to their ancestry to be inappropriate in general.

[MineralMan]

51. LOL!

[Aussie105]

33. My wife did an Elizabeth Warren

ie followed up on the family folk lore there was Native American blood in the family.

This was a source of pride for some, apparently. Makes you superior, ties you to the history and heritage of the county, apparently.

Anyhow . . . no Native American, but 2% Sub Saharan African, came back the results. lol

I guess the 'some black slave blood in the family' would have been a point of shame in the past for some?

Wife doesn't care, she has a whole family in Maryland on her father's side (WW2 GI Joe) and in England (Mother was an innocent flower).

As far as genetics go, having a diverse genetic background is only a good thing, hybrid vigour and all that. Explain the dark skin, hair and eyes in some family members as North American heritage, Spanish decent, whatever.

Me? Haven't done the DNA test myself, not interested. My ancestors probably came from some small inbred village in Northern Europe somewhere. Care factor zero.

[MineralMan]

37. Well, when you ask for your genetic background, you have to

be prepared to get the results. Apparently, White Nationalists are big on genetic testing. Not all have been pleased with the findings, I understand, especially in the southern states...

[Squinch]

36. Maybe she's proud of her ancestors. I am an Irish person, but I am 1/64th Spanish.

I love that! I imagine some intrepid Armada guy who blew everyone's mind in some Irish seaside village.

[MineralMan]

44. Yeah. All those red-headed Irish folks

with Nordic heritage, too. When my brother grew a beard, it came in red. I started calling him Eric. He shaved it off. Our surname is Campbell. Hah!

[kskiska]

42. My great-aunt, who was quite a character, used to tell us we were part Kickapoo Indian.

In later years she said she made it all up. We thought it was cool at the time.

[MineralMan]

43. Cool!

I like your great aunt!

[ZeroSomeBrains]

52. Warren didn't use the characterization to gain an advantage

In the grand scheme of things I don't think this is the biggest deal. She didn't claim to be a part of the Cherokee Nation and every person who hired her said what she put on her records were not the deciding factor in hiring her. She has done a lot of great work through the years and am still willing to consider her for President.

[HopeAgain]

55. I thought she indicted that heritage on an application...

and that is why the Republicans jumped all over it, claiming she lied.

She made a terrible mistake by responding to the Trump allegations by showing she did, in fact have a small amount of American Native in her genes. She would have been better off playing Trump's moniker of "Pocahontas" as a racist stereotype and an example of his bigotry and extreme immaturity. You never argue with a bully and she fell for it.

That being said, she is still my first choice for President. Despite the mistake, she is extremely smart and economically very liberal. She is behind workers and the disadvantaged. She is ready to regulate Wall Street and fight economic disparities. My kind of pol.

[Evergreen Emerald]

68. Very often in applications, etc

Wasn't it in response for application for the state bar? Applying for a state bar license is just a matter of passing the Bar exam and paying the fee. A specific race / gender would have no advantage.

There are questions regarding race, heritage, etc. in many applications for school or for employment. These are mostly for statistical purpose, and perhaps to meet a percentage for the agency/school/etc. for federal funding. There is no advantage to the student / employee / attorney in answering these questions. I always thought the answers were not disclosed. I know they are optional, and I always fill them out. I will think twice!

Scholarships and funding is available for college for people with a specific heritage. I believe she stated that she gained no advantage. So, it was likely not in response to attempt at a scholarship.

I think it is overblown--the Hillary treatment--damn the Republicans suck. She is an amazing leader. And she could out think any of the Republicans. She just needs to stop apologizing and tell em to get over their attacks.

[Aussie105]

56. Sucked in!

All those who concentrate on this trivial point are ignoring who she is as a person, and the qualifications and ambitions she has in the political arena.

So to all the dipshits out there who have made this a negative point, thanks for nothing. Trolling at it's worst, diversion at it's worst. (But some elements in the news media and social media are experts. Trump with his 'Pocahontas' label is just a raw beginner/early learner Troll in comparison.)

To all those who wish her well, but are hung up on the DNA thing, I say . . . SUCKED IN! You have been successfully trolled!
(By experts granted, but try to maintain some objectivity, please!)

[madamesilverspurs]

57. Conversation points.

We moved to New Mexico when I was in high school, and that was the first time I'd ever seen any reference to tribal ancestry on school enrollment forms. I remember thinking that some of my classmates had far more interesting family histories than mine. More recently, one of my Dem friends mentioned something about the Mayflower Society and I told her that my uncle had enrolled us as a result of his genealogy research. We compared notes and discovered that we are distant cousins thanks to a common ancestor on the Mayflower tree; she's a bit jealous, though, because she doesn't share the ancestor that makes me a cousin to Sidney Biddle Barrows (aka the Mayflower Madam). Again, it's interesting, but doesn't change a thing. But it does make for some fun conversation.

.

[SoCalDem]

60. Why she "bothered"

People of her generation and mine were taught to fill out EVERYTHING that pertained to us on applications.. Leave no blanks..

At the time she was applying to colleges, Civil Rights/Affirmative Action laws required applications to include EVERYONE, and when she saw Native American /Indian on the application . she no doubt just checked the box..

Why she did not just SAY that when Trump started the Pocahontas thing, I cannot understand.....and then never reply or comment again

I have had the same dilemma..My father was born in Cuba, but I do NOT check the Hispanic box...why? because his mother was born in France and his father in Spain...and I consider them European..

If I had been born in Canada, I would not consider myself to be Canadian

[ecstatic]

61. Did she bring up her ancestry in any context outside of college/bar/job interviews?

If not, she was doing exactly what it's starting to sound like she was doing. The irony is that there was no need to fudge her background--simply being a white woman in an industry where women were underrepresented was enough to result in a second look.

[Beringia]

65. As an aside

My father used to joke that his grandmother married an Indian for her 3rd marriage, and if she did not get married a 4th time, our last name would be Rain-in-the-Face. It was a joke. However I found out there is a famous Indian named Rain-in-the-Face. Ha.

[ooky]

66. I think she said her Mom told her that IIRC.

So it could be that's just what she thought she was, and was trying to answer the question on the application truthfully. The 1/64th thing didn't come out until after she was attacked and called names by Lying President and M$M blew it up like a bullhorn. So she took a test to prove it, hoping to get M$M off her back? Wrong, of course. M$M just keep right on making a big huge deal out of what amounts to nothing and has absolutely nothing to do with her qualifications for president.

The biggest problem in this country is the shit M$M stirs up. (My opinion fwiw)

[trev]

67. 1/64th is meaningless legally.

My children are 1/16th, which qualifies them for the rolls if they want to get on them.

I don't know why she bothered to mention this.

[Wounded Bear]

70. IIRC, we were told we had Blackfoot blood in us...

from one of our grand parents, not sure how many greats, had married a Blackfoot woman. That fits our story better, since we've been in the PNW for many years. I remember having some beers with a couple of Native friends and they claimed that every white man in America wants to claim Cherokee blood. Apparently they got around.

Never thought much about it, certainly never mentioned it on any applications or resumes.

We're kind of mutts anyway. The geneology on my mother's side is pretty straightforward going back to 15/16th Century Germany, I saw the chart one of my cousins did, but Dad's family wasn't really well documented, if you know what I mean.

[Niagara]

71. I'm sorry to hear that it doesn't matter to you, MM

I have several family members who are into genealogy research. It is amazing how far back that they were able to go.

It's significant to me since we had a Native American ancestor who fought on the American side in the Revolutionary War. Thanks to this ancestor, anyone in my family with proper documents can join DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution) or NSSAR (Sons of the American Revolution).

As far as I know, there hasn't been any Native American DNA that has shown up on any of my family's DNA test kits. The possibilities of why the DNA doesn't show up on the test kits could be endless.

The benefits is knowing one's family history. To some people it matters and it clearly matters to Elizabeth Warren and myself.

[MineralMan]

79. Why are you sorry?

I don't understand. You might have an interest in geneology. I do not. As I said, I know my ancestry back to great, great grandparents. That's plenty for me, and it has no direct impact on my life at all. I did meet one great grandparent as a 10-year-old child, but can't really remember much about her.

Some people are interested and even wrapped up in their ancestry. My interests have to do with today and the future.

[Niagara]

83. I'm sorry to hear that because I feel that you're missing out

I'm sorry to hear that because I feel that you're missing out on this wonderful and sometimes unexpected puzzle. It's a part of your history. Wouldn't it be amazing if you had an ancestor that fought for or fought for rights in our country? Or not

Learning family ancestry is not going to prevent anyone from having interests to do with today and the future.

I can relate to meeting a grandparent and not remembering much about them. I'm glad that you got to meet your great grandmother, even if you don't remember her.

[Greybnk48]

72. In my family history, my great-grandmother was

full blooded Chickasaw from Northern Mississippi. I'm 70 years old and have always told people that was part of my lineage because I was proud of it.

I had my DNA tested last year and it turns out that the Native American looking woman who was my mom's grandmother is most likely the person who brought Spanish, Italian and French blood into our almost 100% Irish/Scots Irish lineage. Not a drop of Native American.

As much as we love Spaniards, Italians and the French, we were sad and disappointed to learn we were not part Chickasaw.

I'm sure this story is common among people with family in places like Mississippi, Oklahoma, etc.

[Tanuki]

73. Alex Haley was told by family oral history that his link to Africa

was a man named Kunta Kinte. Fortunately, that sort of thing interested him.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunta_Kinte

[ProudLib72]

74. A college I taught at offered a full ride scholarship for Native Americans

I believe up to 1/16 qualified. I could really tell that some of my students were Native. Others, not so much.

FWIW, I'm 1/4 "Viking", and all it means is that I have a continuous hankering for lefsa and pillage.

[Niagara]

85. +1000

DAR & NSSAR offer scholarships as well.


The next time your on a pillage run, can you bring me back some potatoes? Thanks!

[Homer Wells]

75. My mom told me the same thing

I believed it for over 60 years, however, I went to Ancestry.com and had their DNA testing.

Nope. No mention of ANY Native American genes. I guess they could have missed something.
Seems their reading pretty much matched my genealogic research.
Family traditions are often mythological.

[Mariana]

78. There was a similar story in my dad's family

except, being New Englanders, they didn't think the ancestor was Cherokee. Anyway, the records in New England are generally pretty good. I was able to document a great deal about my ancestors, and some of them had very interesting stories. However, every single scrap of record said everyone was white. Last year my first cousin, my dad's sister's son, got his DNA tested and the result jibes with the documentation I found - essentially 100% European.

[Iggo]

81. There was a point in my life where almost every white person I knew was some tiny fraction Cherokee.

Just one of those things I learned to ignore.

[treestar]

82. She and her family may not have looked at it the same way

for whatever reason. Obviously, they cared.

[milestogo]

84. The lore in my family was that we were one sixteenth Sioux Indian.

Since three of my grandparents immigrated from European countries, there was only one grandparent that could be the link. Well, now that I've had my DNA tested and gotten onto Ancestry, guess what! Those ancestors were in the US going back to the American Revolution and none of them appear to be American Indian of any kind.

I guess it was cool to be American Indian in the sixties.

[crosinski]

88. How Our DNA Knowledge Has Enriched Our Lives

My husband and I began by sending our DNA samples to the National Geographic project quite a few years ago. Those DNA samples allowed us to see how our ancient ancestors moved out of Africa and across Europe taking two very different paths! My matriarchal line comes from the Sami Reindeer herders. My husband's paternal lineage is Celtic.

Then we moved on to ancestry.com for a look at our more modern relatives. My husband has black heritage in is DNA, but we have not been able to find who that person/s is yet. He is also related to two Mayflower pilgrims. I have very old American families on both sides of my tree. They didn't come over on the Mayflower, though. They waited to see how things were going, and then took the next boat. All of my early American Ancestors settled in Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Indiana. If any of you grew up in or married someone from one these states, I'm related to you. Really. I'm your cousin somehow.

I can't tell you how much American history I've learned/re-learned from studying our family trees! I've studied world history too. One area in particular I've had to look at is Polish history. My paternal Great Great Grandparents insisted they were from Poland when Poland didn't exist during the time they immigrated. My father always said Polish people were 'hard headed,' and in this way he passed down to me the emotional memory of how the Polish People did not give up their country, even though it was taken from them in 1795.

DNA is a journey through time if you look at it with curiosity!

[Niagara]

90. Thank you for sharing your family history, crosinski

I'm glad that you mentioned the National Geographic project since I've never heard of it. I'm definitely going to look into that.

I'm related to at least one Mayflower pilgrim. I will have to double check with the researchers in my family to see exactly how many Mayflower pilgrims that I have connections to. I"m originally from Indiana so you and I might be related.

Barack Obama and George W. Bush share an ancestor named Samuel Hinkley, making them something like 10th cousins. It really is a small world after all!

[lame54]

89. The family DNA ads...

Feature those who grew up believing they are a certain heritage and are surprised to find they are a totally different heritage

They are claiming it's very common

That is their selling point