Gooch DNA Project - Virginia & Eng Origins
I am genealogical researcher who has spent nearly twenty years researching the Gooch family of Virginia and of the American South.Much of my research is posted at a website at http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Farm/4162http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Farm/4162 and my notes are on file at the Virginia State Library, the North Carolina State Library and numerous genealogical collections around the country.
I am starting a new project involving DNA tests among Gooch men.The test is limited to the y-chromosome passed from father to son.In itself, the test does not tell you much, but together with other samples from Gooch men much can be proved about family connections and perhaps even about the first emigrant.This test will help historians fill in many of the mysteries that surviving records cannot answer.
The Gooch family has been researched for many years, but only in recent years has the access to records and to data-sharing via the internet allowed historians to construct accurate histories of this family.Family history is based on research backed by public documents such as wills, deeds, and tax records.Over the years many of Virginia’s historical records were lost to courthouse fires and during the burning of Richmond in the Civil War the Virginia archives were destroyed leaving researchers with very little to study.The DNA test is the first new tool that genealogists have found to help start filling in this gap of missing records and only through your participation can we do it.
Current research has identified about eight Gooch families in 17th century Virginia.From these families are descended most of the Gooch families found in the American South.My line is found in Caroline County, Virginia and later in Granville County, Virginia just after the Revolutionary War.It is my hope that this DNA survey will tell us 1) if these eight families are related; 2) how closely they are related; and 3) where they came from in England.The latter involves obtaining samples from English Gooches.DNA research is the newest and most exciting development in historical research today.
I am looking for men willing to participate in this survey by taking a 25-maker y-chromosome test.The test is provided by FamilyTreeDNA.com a company online.The test is quite simple, involving the rubbing of your inside cheek with a rough cotton swab.I am hoping to get at least two samples from each major family line.Please contact me if price is you main issue as I may be able to help.I have taken the test for another research group and the test was easy and painless.Familytreedna.com has a detailed website and their staff is good about answering questions, you can just log on at http://FamilyTreeDNA.comhttp://FamilyTreeDNA.com.
To participate you must be male and you must be descend from a Gooch (i.e. have the last name of Gooch).The older in age of the participant the better, but the important thing in this survey is to get a wide sample.The y-chromosome test maps the chromosome that is past on from father to son.The reason that this test is used is that the mutations of the y-chromosome are frequent enough to reflect time when compared with other test can tell closeness of relationship between the two people within 14 generations.The test does not test for any private or sensitive information such as possible genetic diseases.
If you cannot participate, but are interested in the project please contact me directly at [email protected] will be happy to share our findings and look forward to adding this data to the general discussion.
If you are not from a Virginia line, I will be searching for English participants soon to compare the Virginia data.
To sign up log onto FamilyTreeDNA.com website and go to the Gooch family survey.Alternatively, you can phone their Houston headquarters at (713) 868-1438 for assistance.
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