Tag: DNA

Methodology, Sources and resources

More than a source citation for DNA evidence

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As good genealogists, we know that when we add information to our family history we should also cite the sources that we used. But what do we do when the source is DNA? A source citation may be sufficient in some cases, but in other cases it is not.

When does DNA need to be cited?

I have written before about how you can incorporate DNA evidence into your family tree. Actions that might warrant citing DNA are:

  • adding DNA matches to your tree and information about the DNA that you share, the tests taken and so on
  • adding common ancestors who you identified using DNA evidence
  • adding people on the line of descent between common ancestors and DNA matches based on DNA evidence
  • using DNA evidence to confirm relationships between people who are already in your tree
  • removing people from your tree, if DNA evidence identifies errors
  • altering relationships based on DNA evidence.

DNA source citations

The source citations for most of these actions will be fairly straightforward.

When adding a DNA match, you will probably want to cite your DNA test initially. You can then add citations to documentary sources after you conduct further research to verify the relationship. Similarly, when adding people on the line of descent between common ancestors and DNA matches, you might initially just cite the family tree of your DNA match. Then add citations to documentary sources after you conduct further research.

When confirming people in your tree who are great great grandparents or closer, you can rely on evidence from one or two DNA matches who are close relatives (third cousin or closer). For these, a DNA source citation is usually sufficient.

Example DNA source citation

You can see from this example that a DNA source citation does not merely refer to the source. It also summarises the key evidence used to reach the conclusion. The main reason for this is that the source is not one that can be accessed by other researchers. DNA test results are available only to the tester and anyone that is provided access by the tester. So the citation needs to include sufficient information to convince another researcher that your conclusion is reasonable.

Evidence summaries and arguments

The evidence supporting other actions is more complex and a source citation may not be enough. For example, when confirming people in your tree who are more distant than great great grandparents, removing people from your tree or altering relationships.

My colleague, Veronica Williams, has written a great blog post describing the types of DNA evidence and situations in which you need more than just a source citation.

The DNA groups of the Society of Australian Genealogists are trialling a template for presenting the DNA evidence used to support a conclusion.

The purpose of a case study is to:

  • help researchers practice presenting evidence so that they can provide soundly reasoned and coherently written conclusions based on a reasonably exhaustive search, critical analysis and the resolution of conflicting evidence, with complete and accurate source citations
  • invite others to test the strength of the conclusion(s) and assist the researcher by offering suggestions for further analysis or research
  • share and educate each other on the methodology for using DNA evidence to reach conclusions.

You can also use the template to provide a structure for a document to attach to a family tree or a blog post; or to document the process undertaken when confirming identities and relationships in a family tree.

Download a copy of the template here. If you wish to provide feedback on the template, please use the Contact form on the About page.

dna-case-study-template-17_12_23Download

More information

For more articles and information about using DNA in family history, head to the DNA in family history page and watch that page for upcoming free downloads.

For more of my articles on documenting your family history, go to the Document page.

Post updated 3 June 2024

Sources and resources

Ancestry Tags, Notes and Comments

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If you have a family tree on Ancestry you may find Tags, Notes and Comments features useful in planning and documenting your research.

What are Tags, Notes and Comments?

Tags, Notes and Comments are placed on the profiles of individuals in your family tree. Tags appear under the individual’s name at the top of the profile and are added by clicking on the pencil icon. Notes and Comments can be accessed under the Tools menu. If you have activated the Research Tools toolbar, you can access them from the menu that appears under the individual’s name on their profile.

Tags (white oval shapes), pencil icon next to them. Research Tools toolbar under the Tags.
Tools Menu in top right corner of a profile, opens the screen on the right.

Using Tags

Tags are basically labels that are placed on a profile to identify a characteristic of that person or highlight an aspect of your research into that person. Tags are useful visual indicators of information that you judge important.

For example, if you add a ‘Direct Ancestor’ tag to all the profiles on your direct line, as you navigate around your tree you can instantly see if the individual you are viewing is a direct ancestor.

You can also use a Tag as a filter when you search your tree and call up everyone in your tree with that tag. For example, I add a Custom Tag (see below) ‘Convict’, to the profiles of individuals in my tree that came to Australia as convicts.

When I want to research my convicts, I can bring up a list of all of them using that Tag. This list cannot be printed, but you can create and save an image, as I have done below.

List of people with my Custom Tag, ‘Convict’ (first 5 only, I have a lot of convicts!)

Other Tags that I find useful

I add the ‘DNA Match’ Tag to anyone in my tree who is a DNA match. Then I add the ‘Common DNA Ancestor’ Tag to the ancestor or ancestral couple who we are both descended from.

I also add the ‘DNA Connection’ Tag to each profile along the line from that match to our shared ancestor. This helps me trace the line of our connection. It also provides information for other DNA matches if they access my tree to determine how they may be related to me.

I use my Ancestry tree as a research tool. This means that there are individuals and information in the tree for which I do not yet have sufficient evidence. If other researchers want to copy individuals or information from my tree they should verify the information themselves. However, I like to be helpful and draw their attention to anything that is not yet verified or where I have doubts.

If the questionable information is about a particular event, I can put a statement or TBC in the description field of that event. However, if the entire individual is questionable then I can add the ‘Unverified’ Tag to the profile. This also helps my own research as it reminds me where the evidence is insufficient.

Standard Tags and Custom Tags

Standard Tags are those defined by Ancestry and are available for use on all family trees. Custom Tags are those that you define for a particular tree. If you want to use them on other trees, you need to define them for each one. (Ancestry Help article)

Searching a tree by Tags

You can search your tree for everyone with a particular Tag or a combination of multiple Tags. (See above Ancestry Help article for instructions)

Using Notes and Comments

Ancestry suggests that you use Notes and Comments to record information, stories, tasks and thoughts. They could also be used to plan your research and list research questions, hypotheses and research tasks.

Privacy

Notes are private and Comments are public. Only you and anyone that you invite to your tree as Editor can see your Notes.

If your tree is public, then anyone can see the Comments (except on profiles of living people). That means you can add draft conclusions or thoughts to your Notes without worrying who might see or copy them. You might prefer to do that, rather than adding unverified information to a profile.

Printing

While you can print both Notes and Comments when you print a profile from your tree, only the Notes are included if you download your tree as a GEDCOM file.

I ran a test on one of my trees with Notes and Comments, then imported the file into Legacy family tree. The Notes were successfully incorporated into the Notes section of the individual but the Comments were not. Similarly, Tags were not included when I downloaded the tree from Ancestry.

The fact that Notes can be printed with a profile and are included when you download a copy of your tree makes them a good tool for documenting your research.

However, the downside is that Notes can only be attached to a single individual and I believe that research should be planned at the family level or higher. If you were able to compile all the Notes for a family group that would help, but unfortunately you cannot.

In my view, Notes and Comments are useful tools, but they are not a decent alternative to a research plan.

More information

For more of my articles on documenting your family history, go to the Document page.

For more of my articles about analysing sources, go to the Analyse page.

For more of my articles and information about using DNA in family history, head to my DNA in family history page.

Post last updated 11 June 2024

Methodology, Sources and resources

Online family tree: Using Wikitree for DNA research

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Wikitree is an online family tree. Using Wikitree for DNA research can help you find DNA matches and trace their connection to you through common ancestors.

For a bit of background, you can read my article about why Wikitree is a useful tool in family history research.

Wikitree is an online collaborative family tree. Members do not have their own trees. Instead, they add their research to the ‘one tree’. The tree is formed by creating a profile for each person, then linking them to their parents, siblings, spouses and children.

Anyone can access the tree and use the information for free. If you register for an account (also free), then you can amend the tree.

Benefits of using Wikitree for DNA research

Wikitree has over 34 million people in the family tree. This means there are a lot of family connections that could help you identify how you are related to your DNA matches.

Finding DNA matches and common ancestors

Wikitree members who have had their DNA tested can add a notice to their own profile which states the DNA tests they have taken. Members can also add their test number from GEDmatch to their profile. You can use this to compare your own results to theirs (if you have uploaded to GEDmatch).

Depending on the type of test taken, Wikitree then connects that DNA test information to the profiles of the ancestors of the test taker in the tree.

For example, for an autosomal test, blood relatives out to eight degrees are marked. That’s up to sixth great grandparents and out to third cousins. Wikitree explains the process in this article, Help:DNA test connections.

If you open the profile of one of your ancestors and you see the names of DNA test takers under the heading ‘DNA Connections’ then you know that you have common ancestors. You can then trace your ancestral line back until you find those common ancestors.

For example, when I open the profile of my maternal grandmother, Ivy, I can see two people listed under DNA Connections. I then open the profile of her mother, Ida, and I still see them there. If I then open the profile of Ida’s mother, Christina, one of the names is still there but the other is not. That tells me that one is related to me on Ida’s maternal line and the other on her paternal line.

Finding DNA evidence to confirm relationships

Wikitree members can mark relationships as confirmed by DNA. This means that they have combined documentary evidence and DNA evidence to reach a conclusion about the biological relationship between two people.

Even if you have not been able to confirm that someone was the biological parent of another person, one of your DNA matches may have done so. You can use that information in your own research.

It’s also good to mark those that you have confirmed, as that helps others with their research.

Wikitree explains the confirmation process in this article, ‘Confirmed with DNA’.

There are quite strict protocols for confirming relationships on Wikitree, which is very reassuring.

The Wikitree guidelines also include formats for DNA citations. I have adopted the same format in my own research. The Wikitree article on DNA Confirmation provides the citation format. It also provides very useful guidance on which relationships can be marked as confirmed. I found that particularly helpful and will be using it when I mark people confirmed in my family trees. For example, the article states that if your DNA match is a second cousin, you can confirm relationships back to great grandparents.

More information

The full list of articles on the Wikitree website about using Wikitree for DNA.

For more of my articles and information about using DNA in family history, head to my DNA in family history page. Watch that page for upcoming free downloads.

For more of my articles on documenting your family history, go to the Document page.

Post last updated 15 June 2024

Methodology

Researching FFANs: How to Document a Broader Search

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The FFANs method expands your family history research beyond direct ancestors through a broader search that includes extended family, friends, associates and neighbours. This approach uncovers valuable information, but it also creates a documentation challenge. How do you organise research on people who aren’t your direct ancestors? Here’s how to create systems that keep your broader search accessible and useful.

This post was originally published in June 2022 and last updated on 15 July 2025

If you are not familiar with the FFANs method, you should read my article, Broaden Your Genealogy Research: How to Use the FFANs Method.

What Information Needs to be Documented?

First you must consider the type of information that needs to be documented. You research FFANs because that research may provide information which contributes to the history of someone in your family.

The key information to be documented is:

  • name of the FFAN
  • vital dates and locations (birth, marriage death)
  • name of the person in your family that they are connected to
  • nature of the connection
  • information obtained from researching the FFAN that is relevant to the person in your family, such as shared events
  • source citations for that information.

Focus Your Documentation Efforts

When researching FFANs, focus on documenting information that’s potentially relevant to your ancestors. You don’t need to research every detail about a FFAN’s life. Concentrate on the periods, locations, and events that may connect to your family.

You can always return to gather more detailed information about a FFAN later if your research questions change or if new evidence suggests other connections. Start with the basics that establish the relationship and any information that directly relates to your research needs.

Where Should You Document This Information?

Research Plans

Include FFANs in research plans. This helps you focus your research on specific research questions that are necessary to progress your research and identify which FFAN is most likely to provide the best information.

One option is to include FFANs in the research plan of the ancestor that they are connected to. For example, I create research plans in Excel and add extra worksheets for FFANs. I have one worksheet that lists all potentially relevant FFANs, then I add worksheets for more detailed research about those who have the potential to yield useful information.

Another option is to create separate research plans for each FFAN or group of FFANs. This option may work best when a FFAN has the potential to provide information about more than one of your ancestors.

Family Trees and Associated Documentation

Include extended family in your family tree, as this identifies their relationship to you.

Friends, associates and neighbours may not be related to you, but you can still add them to your family tree as unlinked individuals. You can also add their families, if that information may be relevant to your research.

Another option is to create separate family trees for FFANs, but this is often not the best approach. Family history software and online family trees have tools to help you with your research and these tools work better if the people are all in the same tree.

Having them all in the one tree also keeps all the information together, which minimises the risk that you will lose information or forget about some of the people that you were planning to research.

You should also extend your organising system for associated documentation to include FFANs. For example, I organise all my files by paternal and maternal sides, then by surname. I store documentation about FFANs under the surname that they are connected to.

How do You Link FFANs to Your Ancestors?

Regardless of which approach you take to research planning and family trees, you need a system to document who each FFAN belongs to. This helps you to use information about them to progress your research.

Using unique identifier numbers greatly assists this process. Family history software automatically adds a unique identifier number to each person. The numbers are used to distinguish between people of the same name and as a short reference to a person. If you do not use software, you can set up your own manual system.

You could create a table to provide cross-referencing between ancestors and their FFANs, as demonstrated below.

three column table cross-referencing family groups with FFANs
Example of a list that cross references research plans to FFANs using unique identifier numbers.

Another option is to attach custom tags to all of the FFANs of a particular ancestor. I find this a useful tool for active research, as you can search by the tag to compile a list.

custom tags in an Ancestry tree can be used to identify FFANs of an ancestor
Add a custom tag for FFANs of an ancestor in your Ancestry family tree. You can do something similar in family history software.

Recording Connections

Shared events:

If your ancestor and a FFAN had an event in common, sources about that FFAN may contain useful information about your ancestor.

  • Add the event to both profiles with a note that it was a shared event and include the unique identifier number of the other person.

Example:

I added each of the men who were executors of John Townson’s will to my family tree as unlinked individuals, and then I added their names and unique identifier numbers to the fact about the will on John’s profile. I can use this information to search my tree by their names or their identifier numbers. I also added information about their connection to John on the profiles of each FFAN, so that the link can be traced backwards. Read more on John Townson’s FFANs.

Same locations or similar experiences:

Your ancestor and a FFAN may have lived in the same location or had similar experiences, without necessarily participating in the same event. Sources about that FFAN may also contain useful information about your ancestor.

  • Add a ‘fact’ to both profiles with a note about the connection and include the unique identifier number of the other person.
Event entry from Legacy Family Tree software that mentions John Piper as a FFAN of John Townson, due to being in the same place at the same time
Example of an event that mentions a FFAN with a similar location and time period. From Legacy Family Tree software.

DNA Matches

DNA matches can be treated as FFANs, because the DNA results suggest that they are probably part of your extended family. DNA matches should be added to your family tree, if you have sufficient information and they are relevant to your research.

If you know, or think you know, the most recent common ancestor between yourself and your DNA match, you could include that DNA match in the research plan of that common ancestor. You could also list the DNA matches on the profile of that ancestor.

If you have not yet identified the most recent common ancestor, you might find it useful to have a research plan for a group of DNA matches who appear to be related to you in the same way or have a DNA research plan for each of your four grandparent lines. A single DNA research plan would also be feasible.

Make Your Broader Search Work for You

You need to take a systematic approach to document FFANs effectively, or all that effort will be wasted. Create clear systems for recording connections, use unique identifier numbers, and integrate them into your research plans. Then you’ll spend less time searching for the information and you’ll be able to put it to good use.

More tips

For more tips and discussion of the FFANs principle, you might like my book, The Good Genealogist.

For more of my articles on documenting your family history, go to the Document page.

About the Author

Danielle Lautrec is a genealogy educator, researcher, and author of The Good Genealogist. With qualifications in history, family history, and historical archaeology, she teaches for the Society of Australian Genealogists.

Maintenance

Customise your family tree chart

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Customising your family tree chart can help your research planning and improve the way that you communicate the results of your research.

There are many ways to customise your family tree chart. This article uses Legacy Family Tree software and Ancestry family tree charts to demonstrate the main techniques.

Set your direct line on your family tree chart

What is your direct line?

Your direct line is your direct ancestors, such as your parents, grandparents, great grandparents and so on. Your direct line does not include siblings or family who are related to you via siblings. It also does not include any step family.

Strictly speaking, you have more than one direct line as you have two parents. However, it is usually referred to in the singular.

It is your choice whether you choose to include non-biological relationships in this definition. For example, if someone was adopted they could have a direct biological line and a direct adopted line.

Benefits of marking your direct line

When researching, it is useful if you can instantly tell which people in your family tree chart are on your direct line. This makes it easier to navigate up and down your line, and focus your research when necessary.

In a Legacy family tree chart you can mark the entire direct line in one step by selecting the starting individual (usually yourself) and then choosing ‘Set Direct Line’ from the Tools tab. Legacy marks the names of people in your direct line in bold typeface.

Note that this only marks one direct line, so if you do have adoptions in the family you need to choose which line to mark.

In an Ancestry family tree chart, you set the direct line by marking each individual manually using a ‘tree tag’. The direct line tag is called ‘Direct Ancestor’ and it is under the group called ‘Relationship tags’.

list of relationship tags available on Ancestry.com for family trees

How are people in your family tree chart related to you?

Knowing how someone is related to you is another useful bit of information as you work on your family tree chart.

Ancestry adds that information automatically to individuals as you add them. With Legacy, you can switch it on by choosing ‘Set Relationships’ from the Tools tab.

Divide people in your family tree chart into your grandparent lines

Dividing your people in your family tree chart into groups based on your four grandparents is a great research tool. It helps with navigation, research planning, filing and sharing information with others.

Legacy uses the four-colour scheme and it can be applied by choosing ‘Set Ancestor Colours’ from the Tools tab. This adds a small block of colour on the individual’s screen and colour codes the box for each person in the pedigree chart. The colours can also be applied to a printed family tree chart such as the one below.

Ancestry does not have a specific system to group your family by grandparent. However, you could create four custom Tree Tags for this purpose.

Example of a fan chart format family tree

Identify research groups in your family tree chart

You may find it useful to create customised groups of your family members for research purposes, based on common characteristics or common research questions.

Examples of research groups:

  • convicts
  • everyone who migrated to Australia
  • people born in Ireland
  • parents not yet identified.

Legacy has both two systems of tagging custom groups. The tag system uses the numbers 1-9 which appear at the top of the individual’s screen. The hashtag system allows a seemingly limitless list of tags.

Ancestry has ‘MyTreeTags’ under the categories of DNA, life experience, relationship and research status, and you can also create custom tags. The tags appear below the person’s name on their screen.

Both Legacy and Ancestry allow you to search your family tree chart for everyone containing a particular tag and create a list. Legacy also allows you to print the list in PDF format or a CSV file. The latter is great for research planning, as the file can be opened and modified in Excel.

Note the status of research in your family tree chart

Noting the status of research on individual profiles in your family tree may help make your research more manageable. It can also help you focus on those individuals who need to be prioritised to progress your research.

Ancestry tree tags have the following pre-set tags: actively researching, brick wall, complete, hypothesis, unverified, verified.

Legacy does not have a specific system to note the status of research. You could use the tags or the To Do List for this purpose.

Even if you do not want to use most of these tags, the unverified tag could be extremely useful because it draws attention to the inconclusive nature of the information which affects the accuracy of your family tree.

Record DNA conclusions on your family tree chart

It is important to establish a system for recording DNA conclusions and both Legacy and Ancestry have tools to assist this process.

More information

For more of my articles on documenting your family history, go to the Document page.

For more of my articles and information about using DNA in family history, head to my DNA in family history page.

Post last updated 17 June 2024