Discussion of Results

An up to date summary of our data can be found by clicking on the Data Summary Table tab in the left margin.  This page provides a brief narrative of how we conduct our research, what we have learned to date and on our current ideas for future study.  This page was last updated on March 11, 2008 so it may not be completely up to date.  Results are usually discussed on our mailing list as they become available so feel free to join the list and/or search the archives for additional information on the line of Pughs that you are researching.  If you have any questions or comments on the Project, feel free to contact us by clicking one of the links at the bottom of the page.

 

Introduction

Genetic Genealogy is a relatively new field that uses DNA to fill in the gaps present in paper trail research, confirm relationships which are not well supported and make surprising discoveries that were previously unknown.  DNA is an extremely powerful tool when used in conjunction with conventional paper trail research and our Project is making significant progress toward resolving issues that have stumped genealogists for decades.  Some of our more important findings will be presented below.

This Project focuses on the male Y-chromosome.  The reason being that the Y-chromosome is passed from father to son to grandson and so on largely unchanged.  A male receive an X-chromosome from his mother and a Y-chromosome from his father.  A female receives an X-chromosome from her mother and an X-chromosome from her father.  Therefore, a female has two X-chromosomes whereas a male has an X and a Y-chromosome.  This makes the Y-chromosome very powerful in tracing back male lineages of a particular surname.

With only 65 participants, we have already learned that there were several distinct Pugh lineages represented in Colonial America.  This can be observed in our data summary table.  The participants are arranged within groups sharing similar DNA.  We refer to these groups as lineages but there are several groups that contain more than one lineage.  As new participants join the Project, we will be able to refine our sorting of data so that actual lineages and branches within those lineages are clearly shown.  For the time being, it is useful to have lineages with similar DNA profiles shown together within groups.  If we go back far enough in time we all share a common ancestor but the goal of this Project is to illuminate genealogical relationships, those which emerged after the adoption of surnames.

The process we go through for each participant is relatively simple.  We start by learning all that we can about the most distant (direct-male) ancestor of the participant.  When the DNA data for a new participant is received from the lab, we compare that dataset with the data already present in our database.  We are finding that we are now frequently able to assign a participant to a particular lineage based on his DNA results, whereas in the early stages of the Project we had many “founders” of new lineages with each new test.  If we are stumped as to how two participants connect, we can apply a mathematical model to predict the time to the most recent ancestor.  This can be useful in developing a research plan to further expose likely ancestral relationships.

Armed with the DNA evidence, we then take a fresh look at paper trail research, focused on specific timeframes and geographic locations.  We also determine the need for additional DNA participants and make attempts at recruiting them.  While the DNA evidence is just another piece of the genealogical puzzle, it provides information that is not always available through paper trail research.  We must keep in mind that both DNA and paper trail evidence are necessary to establish and prove the genealogical relationships that have for so long been our “brick walls.”

To provide you with specific examples of what we have learned, the current status of our research and our ideas for additional study, we will present a brief discussion of each of our Lineages.

 

Pugh Lineage I

Pugh Lineage I is focused on Lewis Pugh (ca.1670-1741) who emigrated from Wales to Richmond County, Virginia in 1695.  He married Ann (maiden name unknown) in 1704.  Their children were all born in Richmond County, Virginia and were baptized in the Anglican Church.  In 1731 Lewis Pugh and his eldest son, John Pugh, traveled back to Wales.  Lewis is believed to have died there.  In 1740, the second son of Lewis and Ann, David Pugh, also traveled back to Wales.  It is not known if the two elder sons of Lewis and Ann Pugh had families before they left for Wales.  We are trying to sort out the descendants of the couple and have already made quite a bit of progress.

Robert Hughes, a Welsh DNA researcher, has developed a “Welsh Surname Cluster” modal haplotype for the first 37 markers used by FTDNA.  This modal haplotype can be envisioned as the theoretical haplotype of the common ancestor of one group of Welsh males.  A cluster of surnames is associated with the haplotype defined by Mr. Hughes.  It is interesting that Mr. Hughes’ “Welsh Surname Cluster” modal haplotype actually matches the apparent modal haplotype for Lewis Pugh (ca. 1670-1741) very well.

The “Welsh Surname Cluster” modal haplotype is shown under Pugh Lineage I and above the Pugh Lineage I modal haplotype.  Since we have many participants in the Pugh Lineage I group, it is possible to develop a representative modal haplotype.  The modal haplotype for Pugh Lineage I is nearly identical to the “Welsh Surname Cluster" haplotype developed by Mr. Hughes.  It is off by a genetic distance (GD) of only one in 37 markers.  The difference occurs at marker CDYa.  The GD of each participant under the Pugh Lineage I group is calculated from the modal haplotype.  The GD column reports the distance over the number of markers compared.

 

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the Pugh Surname DNA Project

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