About us
The Bruce Surname Project (was ..Y-DNA Project)
No Joins will be accepted from people that have not read this section.
Use the Join button and follow the prompts. If needed, purchase a test kit or a 3rd party dna test/transfer.
All Y-DNA tests with the surname of Bruce and variants will be automatically accepted.
As soon as possible after any Join, confirm by email that you have read this criteria, and briefly how you fit in.
People with an Autosomal test such as FamilyFinder or tests from the 3rd party vendors accepted by FTDNA (Ancestry, myHeritage, etc)
..will need to email screenshots showing DNA affinity with Bruce males especially and Bruce families generally.
People with only a mt-DNA test - likewise show your closer matches or other strong indications.
Adoptees and NPE cases: If your surname is not Bruce and you have DNA indications of Bruce ancestry,
then please email us. You will be made welcome if the indications look correct.
In all cases, we are hoping to see your matches with our members. But even that's never guaranteed!
Eventually we would like to see your direct male Bruce Lineage supported by paper trail along with your DNA.
Genealogy depends on the paper trail, and is now supported by the DNA evidence.
New Members:
Please continue and read all of this page, and our FAQ.
Please include your kit number in any emails, so that we can properly identify you.
This is essential if we've had no previous contact with you. (but not if we know you!)
Use the DNA Results tab at top left to see the STR and SNP reports.
From your FTDNA home page...
Your Most Distant Ancestor and Country of Origin should be set as best you know them.
Ensure your Privacy Settings allow OUR members to see your DNA results.
Visibility to the general public is also encouraged.
Please don't set your security so tight that Admins can't see your Matches.
You are encouraged to set up your Beneficiary Details.
Paternal Lineages:
The collection and presentation of our members' paternal lineages is an ongoing task.
You are strongly encouraged to email yours to us for incorporation.
The lineages are public so we don't publish any names or dates of living persons.
The Bruce Family Genealogy Project Site presents an extensive collection of Bruce lineages and biographies.
More testing of SNPs could provide a better understanding of the relationships within and between groups.
About 50% of our R-M269 branch now have SNPs resolved below that point.
In some cases upgrading to more SNPs and STRs will improve grouping and matching,
but there are cases where further testing is unwarranted...
Where a group contains members who already know by paper trail etc that they are closely related,
then it's only useful for one of them to extend their testing, as their DNA will be almost identical.
But those exploring their female lines as well as male should consider their particular case.
The more markers you have tested, the more resolution is possible.
FTDNA minimum is 37 STR marker test. The Big-Y tests provide great detail but are expensive imo.
Old Member Forum:
Our Activity Feed provides a good forum for member communications.
Our old forum at Family Tree DNA Forums is still (possibly?) useful for...
Communications when FTDNA Matching does not provide you with an email icon, and general public communications.
You need to register with Family Tree DNA Forums before you can access it.
Project history:
In its earliest form, our project started in May 2002, when Dean Bruce and Thomas B. Bruce first got their DNA tested. They were participating in a Scottish/Melungeon project run by a university graduate student, to determine the relationships between Scottish families and their origins.
At that time there were very few companies doing DNA tests for the public and FamilyTreeDNA had only recently started doing business. FTDNA seemed to be the most credited and scientific company pioneering this new approach in genealogical research.
The founders recruited their cousins and other acquaintances, and foot the bill for quite a few of those first tests as many were skeptical on the new technology.
The Bruce Y-DNA Surname Project made its first appearance on the internet around 2004 and was hosted and maintained on another website.
Thomas took over the project administration reins around 2005, and he hosted the website at brucefamily.com.
Rod Bruce was added as a co-admin in 2013 to provide some assistance with the workload. He first tested in 2008.
Around 2014 FTDNA enforced the rule that all project pages be 'hosted' by them on the FTDNA servers.
Our project was then migrated from brucefamily.com to the FTDNA domain where it now resides.
Links:
Bruce Family Genealogy Project Site
Family of Bruce International, Inc
Bruce Surname forum at Ancestry.com
Bruce members forum at Family Tree DNA
