Supplementing traditional forms of genealogical research,this Y-DNA project will investigate Lunsford/Lunceford surname inheritance for present-day descendants of Baldwin Lunsford (abt 1764 – 1850) of Fauquier County, Virginia. Also appearing in various public records as "Bolda, "Baldy" and"Archibald" Lunceford, Baldwin is our earliest known ancestor. His origin remains unknown; hence the need for this project.

Baldwin had two known families, the first by Anna Ball (unknown – abt 1796) and the second by Judith Creel (unknown). Jim Ball has done extensive work on Baldwin as part of his Ball family research as have others. This work suggests that Rodham Lunsford (abt 1762) who migrated from VA to Lincoln Co. KY shortly after the Revolution may have been Baldwin’s brother. Both men married Ball sisters (Anna Ball to Baldwin and Clement Ball to Rodham). Interestingly, a son by Baldwin's second wife (Judith Creel) also was named Rodham (abt 1810).

Recent testing strongly suggests unbroken paternal inheritance back to Baldwin’s first son, Benjamin (abt 1793; Anna Ball line). Presently our Y-chromosome profile is designated haplogroup I1 with a terminal public SNP of FT116446 (I1-FT116446*). Recent BigY700 analyses of one member of our line revealed the following private SNPs specific to our family: FT115266; FT117124; FT118443; FT119515 all of which are available in the YSEQ catalog.

To complete our analysis back to Baldwin and beyond, we need additional test subjects (Lunceford or Lunsford males) descending from Baldwin’s second wife (Judith Creel) as well as those derived from the VA Northern Neck. Equally important, the testing of present-day males derived from Rodham of Lincoln Co, KY. This might help us confirm or deny a familial relationship between Baldwin and Rodham.