Category: My Family Research

Unraveling the Truth: Unfolding DNA Mysteries

Our story is very much like the many DNA mysteries discovered each day when the DNA testing company informs donors that their DNA results are ready. Usually, the person’s first quest is to learn about their ethnic make-up. Then there is a realization that ethnicity predictions are only estimates based on algorithms. Come on, did we think they could discover the journey of thousands of our relatives from a saliva sample?

My husband and I ordered genetic DNA tests in hopes of determining who his paternal grandmother was. We had a few clues and wanted to see if DNA could help us find her. Little did we know, answering this question would lead us to more unanswered questions and thus our journey of discovery, enlightenment, and acceptance began.

My husband’s father was James Patterson Hill, Jr. He was born in 1926 in West Palm Beach, Florida. Jimmy only had a few memories of his mother from when he was a young child and he knew very little about her. Jimmy died in 2007, and left us with a birth certificate and a baptism record for clues.

The birth certificate listed James Patterson Hill, Sr. as the father and Susan Lloyd as the mother. Susan was born in 1903 in Minnesota. The certificate of baptism listed his mother as Katherine Lloyd.

I researched the name Susan Lloyd in Minnesota with the birth year of 1903. I found one woman in several censuses’ who met these criteria. I reached out to a gentleman, Shawn Lloyd via Ancestry messaging and asked him about the Susan Lloyd in his tree. Unfortunately, this Susan was his grandfather’s sister, and the family didn’t have much information about her.

The DNA test revealed that Shawn Lloyd was my husband’s second cousin. The Susan Lloyd in his tree was his mother. Although the DNA was helpful in determining who is grandmother was, my husband had no DNA connection to the Hill family.

James P. Hill Sr.

Susan Lloyd

Susan Lloyd 1903-1961

Susan Lloyd

Susan was the daughter of Victor Lloyd and Catherine Moore. She was born in Hennepin, Minnesota in October of 1903 and she was the eldest of eleven children.

As the eldest daughter, Susan’s responsibilities probably included taking care of her younger siblings. Her youngest sibling was born in 1921 when Susan was eighteen years old.

 

Susan’s father worked for the Glenwood Inglewood Company and was a member of the Teamsters Union, Local 544. By the age of eighteen, Susan was working as an operator for Northwest Bell Company and living with her parents and two years later she would be married.

Marriage to Donald Babler

On January 25th, 1924 Susan married Donald Babler who later moved to Miami, Florida and opened a newspaper stand. (Marriage Certificate)

The Miami News

Timeline of events:

January 1924- Married Donald Babler

May 1925- Pregnant with “Jimmy”

February 1926- Gave birth to “Jimmy”, in West Palm Beach, Florida and listed James P. Hill Sr. as the father.

May 1926- Donald Babler died

The Star Tribune, Minneapolis

The newspaper article in Miami mentioned a postcard found in Mr. Babler’s pocket. It indicated that his mother wanted him to return to Minnesota because she didn’t want him to be alone in Miami. Apparently, Mr. Babler and Susan had separated.

James Patterson Hill, Sr.

James Patterson Hill Sr. 1888-1962

James Patterson Hill was born to Alexander N. Hill and Mary M. Young in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1888. He had had three older sisters, (Leah, Ida, and Mitzi) a younger sister, (Edith) and a younger brother, (Michael). His parents had two more daughters, (Alexis and Beatrice) who died prior to the age of one.

Death of Father

In 1902, James was fourteen years old when his father, Alexander Hill, died. The cause of Alexander’s death is unknown but two of his brothers died prematurely. His brother Adam died at age 42 and his brother William died at 52, from tuberculosis.

Alexander N. Hill

The Public Ledger, Obituary Philadelphia, Pennsylvania August 30, 1902
“Hill- On the 28th, Alexander Hill, aged 40 years. The relatives and friends of the family are respectfully invited to attend the funeral on Saturday afternoon at 1 o’clock, from his late residence, the rear of No. 1519 South seventh street. To proceed to Mount Moriah Cemetery.”

U.S. Navy

Five months after the death of his father, Mr. Hill joined the Navy. He enlisted on January 21, 1903, at the young age of fifteen. He began as an apprentice seaman in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and was later assigned to the U.S.S. Indiana (BB-1).

U.S.S. Indiana BB-1

The U.S.S. Indiana was the Navy’s first battleship. She was commissioned in 1895 and was one of many ships, in the Battle of Santiago Bay during the Spanish American War in 1898.

The U.S.S. Indiana was decommissioned from December 29, 1903, through January 9, 1906, for repairs. She was drydocked in the U.S. Naval Yard in New York City for a thorough overhaul.

After the necessary repairs, President Theodore Roosevelt sent the U.S.S. Indiana to Havana, Cuba in 1906 to protect U. S. interests. This second occupation of Cuba was also known as the Cuban Pacification and lasted three years, ending with the establishment of a legitimate government. The U.S.S. Indiana had returned to the League Island Navy Yard in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania by September 1907. She traveled between Philadelphia and New York naval yard, often during the remainder of Mr. Hill’s service.

The Washington Times, September 26, 1906

U.S. Navy Part II

Mr. Hill enlisted in the Navy for the second time in Chicago, Illinois on May 21, 1918. He attended the U.S. Naval Acadamy in Hampton, Virginia from May to November. In November, Mr. Hill began serving on the torpedo destroyer, U.S.S. Gamble (D-123).

The U.S.S. Gamble (D-123), February 24, 1919

U.S.S. Gamble Service history
After shakedown training out of the Virginia Capes, Gamble sailed from New York City on 13 January 1919 to take part in maneuvers off Cuba; Key West, Florida; and New England seaboard until June 1919. Following overhaul at Norfolk, she joined the Pacific Fleet at Sandiego 7 August 1919 and operated along the Pacific coast until placed in reserve status in the Mare Island Navy Yard, 1 December 1919. She was decommissioned in San Diego on 17 June 1922. “

New York City

June 2, 1917

Death of Mother

Mary Young

Mr. Hill’s mother, Mary Young died in October of 1924.

The Public Ledger Obituary, Philadelphia Pennsylvania. “Hill-Oct. 29 MARY, widow of Alexander Hill. Relatives and friends are invited to attend funeral services, Sat. 2 P.M. late residence, 2510 Gross St. Int. private. Friends may call Fri., 8 to 10 P.M.”

By 1926, Mr. Hill was living in West Palm Beach, Florida. He worked as a Taxi Cab driver and was in a relationship with a woman named Susan Lloyd.

Susan Lloyd

5,300 Year Old Ice Man, Our Ancestor

How cool is this?!  My husband and I have done DNA testing with multiple providers.  This is copied from his 23andme profile.

Maternal Haplogroup

You descend from a long line of women that can be traced back to eastern Africa over 150,000 years ago. These are the women of your maternal line, and your maternal haplogroup sheds light on their story.

Your maternal haplogroup is K1b1a1.

As our ancestors ventured out of eastern Africa, they branched off in diverse groups that crossed and recrossed the globe over tens of thousands of years. Some of their migrations can be traced through haplogroups, families of lineages that descend from a common ancestor. Your maternal haplogroup can reveal the path followed by the women of your maternal line.

Migrations of Your Maternal Line

Haplogroup L

180,000 Years Ago

If every person living today could trace his or her maternal line back over thousands of generations, all of our lines would meet at a single woman who lived in eastern Africa between 150,000 and 200,000 years ago. Though she was one of perhaps thousands of women alive at the time, only the diverse branches of her haplogroup have survived to today. The story of your maternal line begins with her.

K1
22,000
Years Ago

Origin and Migrations of Haplogroup K1

Haplogroup K1 is a relatively old branch of haplogroup K that traces back to a woman who lived approximately 22,000 years ago. She and her early descendants likely lived in the Middle East, where the K haplogroup traces its origins and continues to have a strong presence. Then, about 12,000 to 15,000 years ago, some women carrying K1 likely joined early migrations that moved west into Europe. The Ice Age was ending and temperate forests spread over the previously frigid continent. Human populations that had been blocked by massive ice sheets now expanded into the interior. Others came later, entering Europe with the spread of agriculture from the Middle East about 8,000 years ago.

Today, members of K1 can be found throughout Europe, the Middle East, and even in Central Asia.

K1b1a1

8,000 Years Ago

Your maternal haplogroup, K1b1a1, traces back to a woman who lived approximately 8,000 years ago.

That’s nearly 320 generations ago! What happened between then and now? As researchers and citizen scientists discover more about your haplogroup, new details may be added to the story of your maternal line.
 K1b1a1 TodayK1b1a1 is relatively uncommon among 23andMe customers.
Today, you share your haplogroup with all the maternal-line descendants of the common ancestor of K1b1a1, including other 23andMe customers.
1 in 1,200
23andMe customers share your haplogroup assignment.
See references 

Ötzi the Ice Man also belonged to haplogroup K

Ötzi was named for the Ötztal Mountains

Ötzi the Iceman was discovered in 1991, protruding from a snow-bank high in the Alps near the Austrian-Italian border. His 5,300-year-old remains turned out to be so well preserved that researchers were able to construct a detailed account of his life and death. Chemical analysis of Ötzi’s teeth indicates he came from the Italian side of the Alps. He had suffered during the year before his death with whipworm, a stomach parasite that was found in his digestive tract. Yet he was fit enough to climb 6,500 feet in elevation during the day or two before he met his end in a rocky alpine hollow. Ötzi apparently was murdered, struck by a stone arrow point that was found lodged in his left shoulder. The twisted position of his body indicates that the murderer, or one of his accomplices, pulled the arrow’s shaft out of Ötzi’s prone body.

Yet whoever killed Ötzi did not take the valuable and finely wrought copper axe that he carried with him — an indicator that at the age of 45, the Ice Man may have been a figure of some importance in his community. Recently, scientists who were able to extract DNA from Ötzi’s remains discovered that he belonged to haplogroup K, which reaches levels of 20 to 30% in present-day populations in the region. But Ötzi’s maternal line, which fell into the K1 family of haplogroup K, did not match any of the branches that are known today. His maternal line must have died out in the 5,300 years since Ötzi’s death.

The Genetics of Maternal Haplogroups

  • Mitochondrial DNA
  • Maternal Inheritance
  • Maternal Haplogroup Tree
  • Tracing Female Migrations
  • Mitochondrial DNA

    Maternal haplogroups are determined by sets of genetic variants in a tiny, unusual loop of DNA called mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). As the name suggests, mtDNA is found in the mitochondria, small but mighty structures inside our cells that turn fuel from the food we eat into energy.

    Mitochondria evolved over billions of years from an independent bacterial cell that was engulfed by another cell. Instead of becoming lunch, the bacterium helped its new host use oxygen to produce energy. Over time it completely lost its independence and became an integrated part of the larger cell.

Samuel Curtis The Son of Eunice Flagg and Capt. Samuel Curtis: Documentation Errors

One of the first written histories about Henry Curtis of Sudbury was The Family of Henry Curtis of Sudbury, Ma., written by Henry Earnest Woods in 1907.

My focus is Samuel Curtis III, b. 1792 (the son of Capt. Samuel Curtis), as noted below.

17. Capt. Samuel Curtis {Samuel,^ Ephraim,'^ Ephraim,^ Joseph,"^
Henry^) was baptized in Worcester, Mass., 11 Oct., 1761, and died
there, 29 Jan., 1811. He was a Capt. of Militia.
He married first, in Worcester, 20 Aug., 1785, Eunice, born in
Worcester, 16 July, 1762, died there, 22 Aug., 1802, daughter of
Col. Benjamin and Abigail (Chadwick) Flagg, of Worcester; and
married second, about 1806, Eunice, daughter of Taft and
widow of David Stowell, of Uxbridge, Mass.
Children by first wife, all born in Worcester :
i. Sally,' b. 25 Nov., 1785.
ii. Abigail, b. 23 Feb., 1788.
iii. Aaron, b. 5 May, 1790.
iv. Samuel, b. 17 Apr., 1792. (Subject of this article/Samuel Curtis III)
V. Ephraim, b. 8 Apr., 1794.
vi. Lydia, b. 22 May, 1796.
vii. John B., b. 29 Apr., 1798; d. 29 July, 1823.
viii. Benjamin Franklin, b. 7 Sept., 1800; ra. in Auburn, Mass., 4 Apr.,
1731, Hannah S. Wakefield.
Children by second wife, all born in Worcester :
ix. Albert, bapt. 13 July, 1807.
X. William.
xi. Eunice, bapt. 21 Oct., 1810.

In the 1950s, Harlow D. Curtis compiled research and continued documenting this ancestral line in his book, A Genealogy of the Descendants of Henry Curtis of Sudbury Mass.   He gave the following account of Samuel Curtis III b. 1792, based on a letter written to him by Mrs. George Dean.  “SAMUEL, 132.113.4, b. April 17, 1792, Worcester, Mass., son of Samuel and Eunice (Flagg) Curtis. The following information, in its entirety, has been furnished by Reference [67]. “Reference [67]: (information from Mrs. George Dean, nee Edith Curtis, Gen. no. 132.113.852 to Harlow D. Curtis.)

Samuel migrated to Haldimand township, Northumberland County,
Ontario. He married Sarah Ann ---------' who was born in New York
state in 1800 and died in Fenella, Ontario on Oct. 12, 18?8.
Samuel Curtis died in Haldimand township in 1844.
Children:
132.11).41. Eliza, b. May 27, 1814; m. William George who was born
in 1822 and died on·Feb. 17, 1909. She died Sept.
27, 1872.
132.113.42. Elizabeth, b. ; name appears in the will
of her brother, Ira.
132.11).4). Mary Ann, b. r m. Charles Kelley.
*132.113.44. James, b. __ , 1822.
*132.113.45. Ephraim, b. ______ , 1823, New York state.
1J2.11J.l~6. Ira, b. Jan. 11, 1826; lived on Lot 20, Con. 8, Ha1dimand
township, Northumberland County, Ont.; died
Feb. 4, 1861. Unmarried.
*132.113.4?. John B., b. Sept. 2, 1829.
132.11).48. Nathaniel, b. , 1832; lived near Baltimore L?], Haldimand township; died Sept. 9, 1908. Unmarried.
*132 .llJ. L~9. Samuel, b. Sept. 8, 1833.
*132.113.4(10). Anthony, b. Oct. 12, 1836.
*132.113.4(11). Andrew, b. _, 1837·

Unfortunately, Samuel Curtis III died in 1810 (as evidenced by his gravestone below).  He is one of four children born to Samuel Curtis and Eunice Flagg, who all died at a young age and were buried together in Hope Cemetery in Worchester, Massachusetts.  Therefore, he could not have been the father of the children listed.  The information given to Harlow Curtis was incorrect.  The source of his information was “information from Mrs. George Dean, nee Edith Curtis, Gen. no. 132.113.852 to Harlow D. Curtis.”  Unfortunately, most genealogists researching this line have this misinformation in their records, and perhaps if they read this article, it can be corrected.  DNA evidence suggests this line goes back to Thomas Curtis of Wethersfield, Connecticut, via John (or Samuel John) Curtis and Sarah (Nickerson?).

The death certificates of their children suggest John/Samuel may have gone by either name.  Sarah’s (Ferguson)  grave is in a cemetery in Canada.  Cemetery records reflect she was the wife of Samuel Curtis.  Our research has shown that Sarah married Ira Ferguson after the death of her husband.

Ephraim-Listed Ira as his father(could have been step-father)
James-
John- Listed on Death certificate John and Sarah Nicholson
Samuel-
Nathaniel-Listed John and Sarah Ann Nicholson on his death certificate
Anthony-LIsted John and Sarah Nickerson/Nicholson on the marriage certificate to Mary Ann Williams.
Andrew–Listed John and Sarah Nicholson Death Cert.
Harrison-

My research shows Ira Ferguson’s first marriage was to Catherine Nickerson.  Could Sarah have been her sister?  Andrew listed his mother’s maiden name as Nicholson.