Genetic Genealogy Videos for All Skill Levels: From Newbie to DNA Master One Video at a Time

 This post is one I originally wrote for the Fall 2020 issue of the Wake Genealogy Watch newsletter. The topics are still pretty fresh. I hope you find something useful here.  - Cyndi Deal

DNA for genealogy is a big topic and there are no shortcuts on the learning curve, but there is so much DNA education at our fingertips right now. With so many great genetic genealogy webinars available on line, why not sharpen your skill set?  (Bonus - All but two of these are free!) - CD

Beginner 

You Can Do DNA (series 2024), presenter - Diahan Southard.  (Updated and expanded to a series in 2024. Parts 1-4 are here, Part 5 can be viewed on YouTube)
New to DNA? Start here. This covers test types, test companies, testing strategies, best explanation of ethnicity estimates ever, and basic concepts in a very beginner friendly format. 

What Exactly is a Centimorgan? An Introduction to the Science of DNA Testing, presenter - Ran Snir.  Watch video
This is an overview of the science and terms you will encounter regularly in the study of genetic genealogy.
CentiMorgan, SNP, Segment, etc.

DNA is Dynamite - How to Ignite your Ancestral Research, presenter Michelle Leonard. Watch video
This is an overview of Y and Mito and good coverage of using Auto and X. It uses examples from several testing companies. Good overview of evaluating match trees and shared matches. 

DNA the Glue That Holds Families Together, presenter - Diahan Southard.  Watch video
Diahan tells the story of the discovery of her Mom's bio family. The work flow up the tree to a common ancestor and back down are well covered here. The process is the same for linking to your DNA matches, adopted or not.

Getting started with DNA, presenter - Debbie Kennett. Watch video
This video covers intro to Y, and Mitochondrial, with emphasis on Autosomal. It highlights the useful new "predictive tree" tools at the major companies.

Intermediate - Advanced

Adoption and Unknown Parentage ($), presenter - Michelle Leonard. Watch video
I am working on my 3rd viewing of this webinar. It is not to be missed. The workflow is basically the same whether you are working an adoptee, NPE, or DNA match with little to no tree. It covers match organization, age considerations, endogamy, segment data, contacting close family. There is a fee ($9/month or $45/year). This is very worth the fee.

 DNA For Your Family Knot, presenter - Jennifer Patterson Dondero. Watch video
Do you sometimes get confusing results with your DNA matches? Do your family lines cross in ways you don't expect? This video covers pedigree collapse and endogamy.

DNA Painter, presenter - Jonny Perl. Watch video
If you have your DNA at sites that share segment data and provide chromosome browsers, you can take advantage of this powerful segment mapping tool.

WATO, presenter - Jonny Perl. Watch video
Introduction and explanation of the What Are the Odds Tool at dnapainter.com. Use this tool to figure out where a mystery match fits into a tree. It includes a live demo of the tool.

Connecting the dots - Intro to Auto Clusters, presenter - Paul Woodbury. Watch video
This is a good introduction to genetic networks and the new Auto Cluster tool at My Heritage. This is a good first stop for working with any cluster tool. 

3 Genealogy DNA Case Studies and How I Solved Them ($), presenter - Roberta Estes. Watch video
There is no substitute for seeing the process in action. Use autosomal, Y and mitochondrial DNA to solve 3 genealogy puzzles. There is a fee ($9/month or $45/year). This is very worth the fee.

Autosomal DNA - a step-by-step approach to analysing your atDNA matches, presenter - Maurice Gleeson. Watch video
This is an older video but presents solid technique. The DNA SIG spent the summer of 2018 learning and practicing Maurice's techniques. It has served us well. 

$ - if you decide to spring for a Legacy Webinar Subscription, check out the Tech Zone short videos and the whole Foundations in DNA series by Blaine Bettinger.  - CD

Visit Wake County Genealogical Society's Website - Homepage | WCGS Events | Join WCGS | Publications | Wake Cemetery Survey Images | Society Surnames | Digital Resources | History Resources | More Links and Resources | Contact - info(at)wakecogen(dot)org

Wake Genealogy Watch - Winter Edition 2025, v8.2 - Live Now at our website

The Winter 2025 issue (Vol. 8, Issue 2) of our award-winning newsletter, Wake Genealogy Watch, is now available online for reading or download. Visit the WCGS website or click the link here: Wake Genealogy Watch, Winter 2025. 

This issue features:

• Genealogy New Year's Resolutions: Three engaging group activities to make 2025 your year of genealogy!
• Barbara McGeachy introduces an important record service for finding Union Soldiers’ pension records.
• Details about the Feb. 10 WCGS Meetup, including a tour of the NC Archives and State Library.
• A heartwarming story of a WCGS member reuniting a family with their lost Bible—read the nationally published account!
• Instructions for joining our new Facebook group. We’ve moved—don’t miss our updates!
• Tips from Olivia Raney Library on preserving local memorabilia.
• Meet Jessica Conklin, our newest Board Member.
• Lynne Deese highlights a local woman military veteran buried at Raleigh National Cemetery.
• A sneak peek at the new interface for Chronicling America.
• Introducing the "From Naming to Knowing" project, featuring names, records, and biographies of the enslaved builders of the NC State Capitol.
• Gain access to NC Cohabitation Records from the 1860’s, now available online.
• A full calendar of exciting events!

Photo Note: If you choose to read a printed version of this newsletter, some of the photos will be difficult to view due to size constraints. Please refer to the online edition where you can enlarge the photos to accommodate better viewing. 

Click this newsletter page link to view this and all past newsletter content. 

We welcome your feedback, input, and submissions for inclusion in future editions. Please address all concerns to newsletter@wakecogen.org.

Visit the WCGS Blog for more events, late breaking news, tutorials, updates, and other special posts.  

Visit Wake County Genealogical Society's Website - Homepage | WCGS Events | Join WCGS | Publications | Wake Cemetery Survey Images | Society Surnames | Digital Resources | History Resources | More Links and Resources | Contact - info(at)wakecogen(dot)org

Wake Genealogy Watch - Summer Edition 2024, v7.4 - Live Now at our website

The Summer 2024 Issue (Vol. 7 Issue 4) of our award-winning newsletter, Wake Genealogy Watch, is now available online for reading or download. You can visit the WCGS website  or access through this link -  Wake Genealogy Watch, Summer 2024.

  Features in this issue include:

• Our updated slate of officers for the WCGS Board of Directors
  
  
• Past president Carla Stancil reflects on the progress and challenges faced by our society during her tenure.
  
  
• Ed Morris, retired executive director of the Wake Forest Historical Museum, shares his vast knowledge of Major General Calvin Jones, M.D. of Wake Forest. You will be amazed at his many accomplishments and contributions to Wake County.
  
  
• Cynthia Gage made some very special discoveries about her ancestors using the resources at places of higher learning. She shares her tips with us.
  
  
• A clean up and preservation guide to help you know what to do and who to contact for help saving your aging family cemeteries in need of care.
  
  
• A new resource to help you get started researching the Wake Cemetery Survey Image records. Come check out our quick tips for successful searches.
  
  
• Details of our Summer 2024 Events Calendar.

Photo Note: If you choose to read a printed version of this newsletter, some of the photos will be difficult to view due to size constraints. Please refer to the online edition where you can enlarge the photos to accommodate better viewing. 

Click this newsletter page link to view this and all past newsletter content. 

We welcome your feedback, input, and submissions for inclusion in future editions. Please address all concerns to newsletter@wakecogen.org.

Visit the WCGS Blog for more events, late breaking news, tutorials, updates, and other special posts.  

Visit Wake County Genealogical Society's Website - Homepage | WCGS Events | Join WCGS | Publications | Wake Cemetery Survey Images |Digital Resources | History Resources | More Links and Resources | Wake Cemetery Survey c. 1978 online | Contact

Wake Genealogy Watch - Spring Edition 2024, v7.3 - Live Now at our website

The Spring 2024 Issue (Vol. 7, Issue 3) of our award-winning newsletter, Wake Genealogy Watch, is now available online for reading or download. You can visit the WCGS website  or access through this link - Wake Genealogy Watch, Spring 2024.

 

Features in this issue include:

• Read details of the recent unveiling ceremony for a new Historic Marker in Holly Springs.
• We are seeking a webmaster volunteer. Read the details and volunteer information here.
• Find RootsTech 2024 highlights including links to selected presentations, and the whole on demand schedule.
• Research tip – Finding Prisoners and other special populations in post-1900 Census Records
• Have fun exploring selected topics from the Wake Treasures Journal contents, now available to all. Featured collections are linked in this issue.
• Explore the Biofile image collection online at Allied Families. This vast collection comprises years of research on the Upchurch and their allied families in Wake County and their migrations elsewhere.
• Read about an AI image creation experiment using Bing Image Creator and other tools.
• Improve your photo preservation skills with this on demand video workshop from the Missouri State Archives.
• Learn about a very large donation of over 750 genealogy books that will benefit everyone with folks who migrated through Virginia, Maryland, and Delaware.

 Photo Note: If you choose to read a printed version of this newsletter, some of the photos will be difficult to view due to size constraints. Please refer to the online edition where you can enlarge the photos to accommodate better viewing.  Click this Newsletter link to view this and all past newsletter content.  

 We welcome your feedback, input, and submissions for inclusion in future editions.  Please address all input to newsletter@wakecogen.org.

Visit Wake County Genealogical Society's Website - Homepage | WCGS Events | Join WCGS | Publications | Wake Cemetery Survey Images |Digital Resources | History Resources | More Links and Resources | Contact

  

Quick and Easy Ways to Remember Cousinship

Reprinted from Wake Genealogy Watch, newsletter of the Wake County Genealogy Society, Summer 2019, v2.4.

I can figure cousinship fine when I am at my desk with all kinds of handy charts, but never when I am out and about. Here are two easy tips.—CD

Trick 1: Count the number of Greats and add 1.
Shared 4th great grands + 1 = 5th cousins.

Shared 5th great grands + 1 = 6th cousins.

Grand parents + 1 = 1st cousins. (0 grands to add!)

For a another tip see this Family History Daily post.

 

Trick 2:

Draw it out, as Roberta Estes did for her blog post on calculating cousins easily. See Roberta’s post here for more tips.

 

Visit Wake County Genealogical Society's Website - Homepage | WCGS Events | Join WCGS | Publications | Wake Cemetery Survey Images | Society Surnames | Digital Resources | History Resources | More Links and Resources | Contact

Wake Genealogy Watch newletter - Winter 2024 issue is live now!

Hello Wake researchers, 

The Winter 2024 Issue (Vol. 7 Issue 2) of our award-winning newsletter, Wake Genealogy Watch, is now available online for reading or download. You can visit the WCGS website  or access through this link -  Wake Genealogy Watch, Winter 2024

  Features in this issue include:

• A big change to our Wake Treasures Journal sharing policy that is sure to please members and new visitors alike!
  
  
• An in-depth article about creating a family history in scrapbook style from Christopher Hunt Robertson. Chirstopher has shared several of his engaging ancestor scrapbooks with us in the past.
  
  
• A feature article on the Shiloh Community near Morrisville. Shiloh started as a freedmen’s village in the 1830’s. One of our WCGS members has strong family ties to this community.
  
  
• Focus on a little known and often overlooked resource – Historic and Architectural Resources of Wake County, North Carolina (ca. 1770 – 1941).
  
  
• NCGS award recognition for one of our members.
  
  
• Information on the upcoming Wilson Library Improvement Project and how it will affect researchers.
  
  
• We note the passing of a tireless local history volunteer- Irene Olive Kittinger (1925 – 2023)
  
  
• Raleigh Senior TechEd News.
  
  
• Details of our Winter 2024 Events Calendar.
  
  

Photo Note: If you choose to read a printed version of this newsletter, some of the photos will be difficult to view due to size constraints. Please refer to the online edition where you can enlarge the photos to accommodate better viewing. 

Click this newsletter page link to view this and all past newsletter content. 

We welcome your feedback, input, and submissions for inclusion in future editions. Please address all concerns to newsletter@wakecogen.org.

Visit the WCGS Blog for more events, late breaking news, tutorials, updates, and other special posts.  

Sincerely,

Cyndi Deal
Newsletter Editor, Wake County Genealogical Society

 

Visit Wake County Genealogical Society's Website - 

Homepage | WCGS Events | Join WCGS | Publications | Wake Cemetery Survey Images |Digital Resources | History Resources | More Links and Resources | Contact

Wake Genealogy Watch - Fall Edition 2023, v7.1 - Live Now at our website

The Fall 2023 Issue (Vol. 7 Issue 1) of our award-winning newsletter, Wake Genealogy Watch, is now available online for reading or download. You can visit the WCGS website  or access through this link - Wake Genealogy Watch, Fall2023.

 Features included in this issue include:

• Several updates including news about our Homepage, Journal, and a new Board Position – Diversity & Inclusion Officer.
• The Reading Room features a review and link to an amazing family history book written by Brian Griffis. You will want to read The Life and Times of Lucius Griffis (1839 – 1918) to see what Brian accomplished with his strategy of searching way beyond the expected sources for his Wake County ancestor who lived through the Civil War and Reconstruction.
• Barbara McGeachy shares an important FamilySearch tip for location resources.
• Instructions to access the Upchurch Enrolled Family files online. These files hold reams of Wake County Genealogy content.
• A focus on the history and importance of mills in Wake County, including a link to a fascinating five-part thesis exploring what remains of mill culture in our area.
• Genealogy highlights and links to the Fall 2023 Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI),
• North Carolina Maps, a collaborative digitization project that offers online content and inspiration for your research.
• A recent Wakecogen Blog feature on maps that provides a different look at map use and development in our early history.
• Highlights from our experiences with the NGS SLAM Open House in May.
  
  

Photo Note: If you choose to read a printed version of this newsletter, some of the photos will be difficult to view due to size constraints. Please refer to the online edition where you can enlarge the photos to accommodate better viewing. 

Click this newsletter page link to view this and all past newsletter content. 

We welcome your feedback, input, and submissions for inclusion in future editions. Please address all concerns to newsletter@wakecogen.org.

Visit Wake County Genealogical Society's Website - Homepage | WCGS Events | Join WCGS | Publications | Wake Cemetery Survey Images | Society Surnames | Digital Resources | History Resources | More Links and Resources | Contact

Wake Genealogy Watch - Spring Edition 2023, v6.3 - Live Now at our website

The Spring 2023 Issue (Vol.6 Issue 3) of our award-winning newsletter, Wake Genealogy Watch, is now available online for reading or download. You can download the latest newsletter through this link – Wake Genealogy Watch, Spring 2023

Features in this issue include:

• RootsTech Roundup 2023: All the Tools, All the DNA, All the AI, All the Stories
• A review of our February Meet Up at Johnston County Heritage Center
• Brenda Carbon has shared a great case study exploring Ancestry’s new ethnicity SideView feature.
• Several Cemetery queries and cleanup projects in our area looking to make local connections
• Pointers to two really good blog posts that cover some basic yet fundamental concepts for working with Genetic Genealogy
• Our handy events calendar will help you save the dates, so you don't miss a single moment of WCGS excitement.

Photo Note: If you choose to read a printed version of this newsletter, some of the photos will be difficult to view due to size constraints. Please refer to the online edition where you can enlarge the photos to accommodate better viewing.

 

Click this newsletter page link to view this and all past newsletter content. 

We welcome your feedback, input, and submissions for inclusions in future editions. Please address all concerns to newsletter@wakecogen.org.

Visit the WCGS Blog for more events, late breaking news, tutorials, updates, and other special posts.

Visit Wake County Genealogical Society's Website - Homepage | WCGS Events | Join WCGS | Publications | Wake Cemetery Survey Images |Digital Resources | History Resources | More Links and Resources | Contact

WCGS - Wake Genealogy Watch, Winter 2023 - Newsletter now available

The Winter 2023 Issue (Vol.6 Issue 2) of our award-winning newsletter, Wake Genealogy Watch, is now available online for reading or download. You can visit the WCGS website  or access through this link - Wake Genealogy Watch, Winter 2023

Features included in this issue include:

• Details on a super OLLI class that will be taught by WCGS Member, Barbara McGeachy – Genealogy:  Starting with the Basics

• Links to a host of online resources that are outside the traditional research sites
• A super timeline/map visualization video packed with historical context for the American First Colonies (1565 – 1700)
• Family History Guides to each state that provide rich access to a world of records and research strategies from your pc or cell phone
• The latest Enslaved Persons research resources
• International research groups and blogs for Germany and France
• Wake County Civil War Pension File links and useful Wake County map links   
• Highlights from our December NC Government and History Library tour
• A Genetic Genealogy review of the latest tools to hit your match lists – AncestryDNA’s Parent SideView, My Heritage’s new match sorting options, and FTDNA’s new Discover tool and Time Tree. All exciting stuff!

• Our handy events calendar will help you save the dates, so you don't miss a single moment of WCGS excitement.

Photo Note: If you choose to read a printed version of this newsletter, some of the photos will be difficult to view due to size constraints. Please refer to the online edition where you can enlarge the photos to accommodate better viewing. 

Click this newsletter page link to view this and all past newsletter content. 

We welcome your feedback, input, and submissions for inclusions in future editions. Please address all concerns to newsletter@wakecogen.org.

Visit the WCGS Blog for more events, late breaking news, tutorials, updates, and other special posts.

  

Visit Wake County Genealogical Society's Website - Homepage | WCGS Events | Join WCGS | Publications | Wake Cemetery Survey Images |Digital Resources | History Resources | More Links and Resources | Contact

WCGS - Wake Genealogy Watch, Fall 2022 - Newsletter now available

The Fall 2022 Issue (Vol.6 Issue 1) of our award-winning newsletter, Wake Genealogy Watch, is now available online for reading or download. You can visit the WCGS website  or access through this link. – Wake Genealogy Watch, Fall 2022

  Features included in this issue include:

• Meet our new President in Training, Saundra Cropps.
• Multiple Hints to help you get the most from the Wakecogen Homepage.
• Techniques to reunite your “not my family” photos with their proper relatives.
• Explore four easy to master tools to identify your autosomal DNA matches.
• Read about early Jamestown ancestors in the GenealogyBank.com series – Jamestown Who’s Who by Melissa Berry.
• WCGS membership benefits update.
• Upcoming events and more.

Photo Note: If you choose to read a printed version of this newsletter, some of the photos will be difficult to view due to size constraints. Please refer to the online edition where you can enlarge the photos to accommodate better viewing. 

Click this newsletter page link to view this and all past newsletter content. 

We welcome your feedback, input, and submissions for inclusions in future editions. Please address all concerns to newsletter@wakecogen.org.

Visit us at the Wake County Genealogical Society - Homepage | WCGS Events | Join WCGS | Publications | Digital Resources | History Resources | More Links and Resources | Contact