Genealogy - Would you submit DNA to trace your roots?

Bill Silver Eagle wrote:re: Long before the days of the internet when tracing ones ancestors was even more of a challenge, my sister decided to look into our dad's family in Indiana. They have lived in what is now Allen County for generations. She traced the German branch to 2 brothers who immigrated in 1778. They moved into what was then the Ohio/Indiana Territory. There were sketchy accounts and recorded marriages to a Mary and an Elizabeth. Neither woman was recorded as having a surname. Mary was my great-great grandmother. I did not think much about it at the time and neither did my sister given how little information was recorded in those days.

Allen County in Ohio?

Then where in Indiana? Kosciusko County? Van Buren Township?

My maternal grandmother's mother was of the Speicher Family, German/Pennsylvania Dutch. The great-great grandfather in that line was a Speicher also recorded as Spiker in Census records in Allen County, Ohio. The "Indian lineage" I believe comes from my grandmother's father and the Ecker line of the family, or both 3rd great grandmothers in that line. One I believe to have been Shawnee and the other to have been Miami.


Hi Bill-
My father's family was from Allen County Indiana, near Ft.Wayne. I was born in Goshen, IN where my Irish ancestors settled. They arrived in the early 20th century- my grandmother on mom's side was first generation born in America. My father was born in 1915 and used to joke that he had one thing in common with Abe Lincoln- he too was born in a log cabin, which was true. I never got into the geneology research like my sister did. She has let it lapse for now but keeps saying she is going to get back to it again one of these days. To be honest my father did not look German- he had an olive complexion and straight black hair. He looked a lot like his father who I have only seen in an old photo as he died of TB when my father was just a small boy. I have always thought if we all trace our ancestors back far enough we will find we are all related. The Irish Celts were a tribal people for a long time too- I have always wondered what tribes my European ancestors cane from so long ago. Interesting questions...
Blessings- Paula.





regarding lack of surnames in trees or records when doing searches, I've come to the same conclusion when a record of a tree just abruptly stops. Besides having GWB and Papa Bush as 6th and 7th cousins, my wife has other notables like LBJ, Walt Disney, George Washington Carver, a few first ladies, in various levels of cousins relationships.