Project News
Look at the newest Group Six - One of our most recent participants, #68070, who tested 67 markers, descends from Nathaniel Hunt Greer. He matched with three Greer participants from the FTDNA MacGregor Project. Two of those participants have now joined our group.
There is also a match with other members of the Sorenson Project who claim descendancy to John Greer and Sarah Hunt, the same ancestors he traces to.
#35624 tells of his ancestor, Samuel Greer b. abt 1758, who arrived with his parents in Derry Township, Pennsylvania in the late 1760's then settled in Kentucky.
Kit #10589 claims Thomas Greer and Jane Dunlap of Pennsylvania. His family tradition tells of a possible connection to Henry Grier and Mary Turner who migrated from the Scotland/England border to County Tyrone, Northern Ireland around 1653.
Thanks to DNA research, we no longer must depend on family tradition. Sooner or later, with more participants who have varied documentation, we will know with certainty who our ancestors were and where they came from
One thing is known for certain, that they share a common Grier/Greer ancestor.
Note in Group One on our chart that three men listed as earliest known ancestor, were all born 1813 in three different states, i.e. Kentucky, Virginia and Georgia. The fourth man, William Greer, b. 1710 in Baltimore, Md. has strong possibilities of being their direct ancestor.
We would, however, need a full 37 marker test on all four of them to determine this. A twelve marker test only indicates that all four of them shared a common ancestor somewhere in time.
If William was born in 1710, then when did his father arrive in North America? Who was his father? Are these men direct descendants of William or of his brothers? All questions we can answer by combining DNA with genealogy.