LINDSTROM ANCESTRY and DNA

In 2002, I visited Avlingetorp Farm, southeast of my ancestral villages of Tulunda and Mörlunda in Kalmar Län, Sweden. I was told at that time that this farm was once a home to some of my kin. In 2013, I connected with autosomal DNA cousin Sheryl, whose ancestry was associated with that very farm. Autosomal DNA cousin Gert has joint ancestry with Sheryl and me. Exact ancestors have been elusive to find, but we may be close to an answer or a good guess. Gert has multiple ancestral ties to this area, and he has been able to substantially improve upon my knowledge of my own lineage.

This has been one of several of my success stories utilizing both DNA and traditional genealogical methods.  From the very beginning of analyzing connections with hundreds of atDNA cousins, it was apparent that many were of mutual Swedish descent. I am half Swedish. However, the sheer distance of atDNA kinships, and the difficulties in Swedish research (esp. lack of trans-generational surnames) were daunting challenges.

Testing company estimates of closeness of kinship can miss the mark a bit. A discussion of this: http://dna-explained.com/2013/10/21/why-are-my-predicted-cousin-relationships-wrong/  Sheryl and I have Identical by Descent shared segments on autosomes totaling 41.27 centiMorgans (cM) in length. 

Gert and I share a total of 43.85 cM. FTDNA estimates that Gert and I are “5^th-to-remote” cousins. It may be of interest that a computer simulation working from autosomal DNA recombination data estimates that while a person gets autosomal DNA input from virtually all 16 2^nd great-grandparents, only about half of the 32 ancestors at the 3^rd great-grandparents level show detectible atDNA. Very few ancestors contribute at the level of the 64 4^th great-grandparents. www.genetic-inference.co.uk/blog/2009/11/how-many-ancestors-share-our-dna/ What are the odds of detecting kinship with a 7^th cousin, i.e. with a Most Recent Common Ancestor at the level of 6^th great-grandparents?Gert has determined that my furthest back male-line known ancestor up the “Lindstrom” line was Joen Sunesson. This would be the guy, barring Non-Paternal Events, who would have had yDNA virtually identical to any of my male Lindstrom-surname cousins.  Lindstrom yDNA would be of great help to us, if only we had samples.Joen Sunesson married Karin Börjesdotter in 1706 in Mörlunda. These were my 6^th great-grandparents, 2 of up to 256 ancestors at that level. The 1706 date puts this ancestral line in Mörlunda quite early. There is little hope of finding written records prior to 1700.  My tree: http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/22002831/person/28064714159

Joen’s and Karin’s 2^nd great-grandson Jonas Peter Jönsson (1816-1892) was the builder of Lindelund House in Tulunda. Oral history has it that Jonas Peter was nearly ruined financially when he had co-signed for a brother on a loan, upon which the brother defaulted. We now know, thanks to Gert, that Jonas Peter had 3 brothers: Karl Johan (b. 1818); Daniel (b. 1824); and Lars Erik (b. 1832). Who was the culprit? If not for the impoverishment of Jonas Peter, would most of his kids have even gone to America?

I’ve sent my atDNA and xDNA raw data to www.gedmatch.com where my Kit # is F302249. Sheryl’s data at GEDmatch is under F129525. Sheryl & I have zero xDNA in common, consistent with our atDNA connection being up the Lindstrom line and not up the Beckman line. It is not yet clear which of my Swedish lines (east coast, or extreme south of Sweden) might account for a small percentage of Saami ancestry, detected on an ethnic admixture model at GEDmatch. My southern Sweden lines would be identifiable by atDNA, xDNA, and even one line via my mitochondrial DNA. But that is a story for a blog to be launched later.

Avlingetorp