AncestryDNA match category spread for my family's tests.

Mom's AncestryDNA matches include
2 children
1 granddaughter

2nd Cousin AncestryDNA category
(which includes some projected 1st-2nd cousins & 2nd-3rd cousins)
11 cousins--3 of which have uploaded to GEDmatch.com
AncestryDNA estimated shared cMs ranges from 623 cMs over 21 segments --235 cM over 9 segments
All are Paternal cousins except one--a known maternal 1C1R of the Acuff/Hale variety

3rd Cousin AncestryDNA category
39 cousins--6 of which have uploaded to GEDmatch.com
AncestryDNA estimated shared cMs ranges from 188 cMs over 9 segments-- 91 cMs over 5 segments

Subtracting those 50 matches and the 3 immediate family from her total shown 4th Cousins or closer match total and she has 2,266 4th cousins.  For the record all of Mom's 3rd cousins or closer have been asked if they would consider uploading their results to GEDmatch.  Looking at Mom's matches made me curious how the numbers compared to my results as well as those of my daughter, and my sister.

Mom is very fortunate to have many of  her closer cousins who have tested.  I wish more of the closer cousins would upload to GEDmatch.  It certainly would make sorting the matches easier.  In the end though it is their choice and more times than not, it is just not a priority for them.

Care to guess the AncestryDNA estimated shared amount of cMs?

The DNA match(at AncestryDNA) that is related to me 5 different ways(all on my Dad's side) responded after a 2 year wait.  Never lose hope.  People get busy and have other priorities outside of genealogy---shocking--isn't it?

Here are all 4 connections paths with the Frizzell / Deason line being double for me so in essence 5 ways. Want to hazard a guess at the Ancestry predicted shared amount of cMs? Hopefully I will be able to see the amounts at GEDmatch soon and see what, if any, segments were excluded from that Ancestry estimate.  Also even with the intermarriage between these families I think I may be able to identify the difference in the segments. There are several testers who have the Frizzell/Deason lines exclusively, two with Morrow/Frizzell.

5C1R(2x)------Nathan Frizzell & Margaret Deason(my 4Gr his 5Gr) (*)
4C---------------James Morrow & Margaret Sutton(both 3rd Grs)
4C---------------James Jakes & Nancy Harger(both 3rd Grs)
4C1R-----------James Jakes & Nancy Harger(my 3rd Gr= his 4th Gr)

* my 4th Greats thru two lines.

Post your guess in the comments.  I'll post the answer along with the closest guess on Monday, April 17th. (There is no prize other than being correct or as close as possible)


Helpful Links:

Cousin Chart

Blaine Bettinger's Shared cM Project post
(link to the PDF file with range of shared cM amounts for given relationships is at the bottom of the post)

International Society of Genetic Genealogy Wiki  --autosomal DNA stats

Shared Ancestor Hints are just that--Hints

I was extremely happy to get 14 new 4th cousins or closer matches on my AncestryDNA results overnight.  I wish people understood the importance of uploading to GEDmatch. Too many treat the circles or the DNA Hints as facts.  To them it is unnecessary to upload their raw data atDNA results to GEDmatch because Ancestry has told them the connection. Sure,  if you don't want to prove your research, go ahead and believe that!  Ancestry gives you hints and clues,  It is on you to investigate and research those.

I have the perfect example among my matches.  This match is kin to me on my Mom's side thru the Luna line at my 4th Great Grandparents.  She is not DNA kin to me or my Mother but she shows as DNA kin to my daughter and the Shared Ancestor Hint is my 4th Great Grandparents(my daughter's 5th Great Grandparents)  Clicking on the "i" shows that my daughter and this match have a shared estimated atDNA of 6.6 centiMorgans(cMs) shared across 1 DNA segment.

Ancestry has done a better job on their wording on the Shared Ancestor Hints than they did when they first appeared.  [If you want to learn more about hints & shared records watch Ancestry's Crista Cowan and her presentation, "Don't be a Searcher, be a Researcher" from RootsTech 2017.


What we should hear  "You have a 6th cousin through the Luna line of your maternal Grandmother with whom you share a 6.6 cM  portion of DNA across 1 segment.  It is possible that it may be through that Luna line. You need to investigate further"

Instead many people feel that they don't need to investigate further and take that info at face value whether it is through lack of understanding, laziness or just not really carrying to know the truth. I'm not talking about those that just tested to learn ethnicity and don't care to do more. I am fine with that.

Thankfully this match agreed to upload to GEDmatch.  Since both of my daughter's Paternal Grandparents have tested I was able to tell that the connection was through my daughter's Paternal Grandmother's lines.  I was also able to take it back a step further in finding where to look as my daughter's PGM's Mother(my daughter's Great Grandmother) had also tested.

The match amount at GEDmatch to:
Daughter:  11.3 cMs on 1 segment
Her  PGM:  12.4 cMs on 1 segment
Her PGM's Mom 12.6 cMs on 1 segment

I should also mention that while my Daughter tested at AncestryDNA, her PGM tested at 23&me and her Great Grandmother tested at FTDNA.  We can compare all of these test at GEDmatch.

I did run the One to One for this match against my results and my Moms and she didn't have any measurable DNA match with us.

Blaine T. Bettinger's Update to The Shared cMs Project

More improvements in helping to determine possible relationships given the amount of shared cMs between matches in Autosomal DNA testing.

Blaine T. Bettinger's Update to The Shared cMs Project

Great info for those using Autosomal DNA testing in genealogy research or to locate unknown/lost family lines.