Wheaton Wood

And the WINNER is:

Posted on March 23, 2013     Leave a Comment

In Wheaton Group B the winner is David Joe WHEATON! What do I mean winner you didn’t even know there was a contest?

Have a look here at our latest results:

https://gap.familytreedna.com/ydna-results-colorized.aspx

You can see rather clearly that kit 200230 David J. has the most seen (modal) value at every marker. These are most likely the values held by our common ancestor. What you can also see is that most markers are very stable and do not mutate at all. Those known to mutate more frequently are shown in red (burgundy depending on your browser) rather than a shade of blue. Sometimes these mutations are a sign that two folks are more closely related and sometimes not.

A case in point, at first glance the last two in Group B represent a WHEATON and a RAINES. They share a DYS391 = 12 whereas the majority show DYS391 = 11. You might think that this denotes a more recent common ancestor. But here is where additional markers become most helpful. They do not share any additional mutations that suggest a pattern, therefore I believe these are two more recent spontaneous mutations that DO NOT suggest a more recent connection.

In fact overall there are no clear cut patterns emerging other than that this group clearly  shares common ancestry which may suggest a most common Ancestor overall in the 500 years range. For the time being David Joe is the standard by which all others must be judged. I will need to update our 111 Marker Genetic Distance Chart with the addition of Jerry and Adam’s results. Also new member Paul Ritchie WHEATONs result shall be added to the 67 marker chart.

The old charts are available here  or at https://wheatonwood.wordpress.com/2012/12/28/why-numbers-matter/

Research Results Part One: Salem Massachusetts

Posted on March 13, 2013     1 Comment

This is the first of many posts about my research trip to Salt Lake City. I have lots of material to digest—no stunning finds and more mysteries to solve than when I started! I will be posting more information in parts and I have relevant information on the following

• Wheaton (various spellings) Loyalists who fled to Canada
• Wheatons  (various spellings) and Hancocks in Devon and Somerset parishes
• Howells in Wales
• Baptist foundations in Neath, Wales
• Early Salem, MA records

First off was a look at the microfilm copies of the Salem Town Records for 1636 where Robert Wheaton first appeared in 1636. Should be simple. I have photocopies of the published records with exact date and information. I have the photographed representation of the original record which appears in the Converse Genealogy. So place the microfilm on the reader and proceed to page.  Not there! So look at the transcription of said record yes there it is. In the transcript listed as the 16th of the 11th month:1636

Robt Wheato refused to be Inhabitant.”

I found what follows it in the transcription but it and what is supposed to proceed it were not on the microfilm. And I looked at the microfilm 3 times and went through several times in case it was out of place. I did however find the second and third instances of Robert appearing in the record. So not a complete loss.

In the Converse genealogy the date as shown as a reproduction of the original record shows the 6th day of the 11th month: 1636. So something is amiss. Also earlier notations as to “we have made a show of making him an inhabitant”  refer not to Robert Wheaton but rather to Edward Beachamp. And as explained in an earlier posting may have been for any number of reasons and was not an unusual occurrence in early Salem.

I am not convinced that what I was looking at were even the original records as the originals were written in the shorthand of Gov. Endecott.

So I have just got off the phone after talking to the Essex (now called Peabody Instiute) whose records are all boxed up and inaccessible for the next 1-2 years. They published the records in book format but could not tell me whether they or someone else holds the originals. So I called the Salem Room of the Salem Public Library known to house many early records and have given my problem to a reference librarian so we shall see what that turns up.

In an interesting side note what proceeds Robert Wheato in the transcription was the plight of Debora Holmes:

Debora Holmes refused land being a maid would be a bad president to keep hous alone.”

However the good men of Salem, or at least four of them, each granted her a bushel of corn. Let us not forget that a few years later the Salem Witch trials saw many women and a few men unjustly killed for alleged engagement in Witchcraft.

To be continued….

RESEARCH STRATEGY & UPDATES

Posted on March 4, 2013     1 Comment

I have not posted lately but that does not mean I haven’t been busy!

• Jean and I have been working on sorting out the 1790 US Census for Wheatons & Wheadons and have made some progress since the last attempt a couple of years ago
• Jean and I have also come up with a simplified 6 Generation Chart of descendants of Robert highlighting those males with offspring and those needing further research
• We have yet another Wheaton/Wheadon line pointing back to Devon with Robert Norris Wheadon’s latest results
• No match on the L1358 SNP yet. So it looks like this will be exclusive to Jerry’s lineage having happened somewhere along his line.
• Still waiting on a result for Jerry’s extension to 111 markers and Adam’s should be coming in shortly
• I continue to work on the Obadiah 2 Robert 1 Line in hope’s it will connect to James of New Brunswick and my husband’s Joseph more definitvely
• I tracked down a living descendant of Christopher and sent a letter only to have it returned “no mail receptacle” The phone number is no longer n service so dead end for  now. Anyone live near Barre, VT?
• We did not have any takers on the WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE Conference in London, but it was worth the try.
• And I have been preparing for a short research trip to SALT LAKE CITY

I have about 20 hours of research time at the Family Search Center in SLC. Here are my research areas/goals:

• Look at the original Salem, Boston and Rehoboth early Town Records on microfilm (not transcripts) for more clues to the Wheatons
• I have researched parishes in and around the following Devon areas: South Molton, Tiverton, Barnstaple, Lynton, Ilfracombe, Axminster AND Somerset areas: Cutcombe, Taunton, Chard and Crwekerne and will be looking at over 50 rolls of microfilms (as time permits) of early Parish registers for Wheatons, Wheadon Hancocks, Bowens and others (like Howell and Mallenby).
• Of course I would dearly love finding Thomas Wheadon (Group C) or Robert Wheaton‘s baptism (Group B) but my intention is as much to eliminate places where they aren’t as much as find where they are.
• I also will be working my way backward from South Molton and Robert Hancock. (Group B’s only DNA connection in England to date)
• And picking up stray Wheatons in the hopes they may solve a few mysteries here and there.

So wish me luck! I may not come back with much but I hope to cross lots of places off my list!

 

The gift that keeps on Giving

Posted on February 20, 2013     Leave a Comment

I was wrong! The new $39–12 marker DNA test from FTDNA is the new Regular price. This is a good way to test for cheap. Upgrades can always be ordered later.

Wettons

Posted on February 13, 2013     Leave a Comment

Jean…here you go

Surname Summary Data for WETTON

Frequency Comparisons
	Total	Rank	Frequency %	Per million people
Great Britain
United Kingdom (current)	1053	5047	0.002	23
United Kingdom (1881 census)	642	5609	0.002	21
Change since 1881	+411	+562	0	+2
Other Countries
United States	164	101654	less than 0.001	1
Australia	90	15566	0.001	6
Notes Total is the total number of people with that surname. Rank is the position in the list of names ordered by total (eg, a rank of 1 means that it’s the most common name, and a rank of 10 means it’s the tenth most common, etc). Frequency is the percentage of people with that surname. Per million people is the number of people with that surname per million of the population.

How many Wheatons are we talking about?

Posted on February 12, 2013     1 Comment

Jean and I have been working on data on the first 6 generations of Robert Wheaton descendants and all the 1790 Census data and that got me thinking (always dangerous). A very interesting book by Debbie Kennett published last year called “The Surnames Handbook” led me to a website for surname research thought you might like this. Similar searches can be done for all spelling variations and other names you are interested in so check it out. Unfortunately it doesn’t have Canadian data. So with Canada included we are likely over 10,000 strong!

http://www.americansurnames.us

http://britishsurnames.co.uk

Surname Summary Data for WHEATON

Frequency Comparisons
	Total	Rank	Frequency %	Per million people
Great Britain
United Kingdom (current)	770	6440	0.002	17
United Kingdom (1881 census)	616	5774	0.002	21
Change since 1881	+154	-666	0	-4
Other Countries
United States	8662	3758	0.003	32
Australia	404	3908	0.002	25
Notes Total is the total number of people with that surname. Rank is the position in the list of names ordered by total (eg, a rank of 1 means that it’s the most common name, and a rank of 10 means it’s the tenth most common, etc). Frequency is the percentage of people with that surname. Per million people is the number of people with that surname per million of the population. All of these are approximate figures, and the current figures especially so. The 1881 census figures are correct for what was recorded on the census, but we don’t really know how accurate it was. At least, though the 1881 figures won’t change, as it’s a snapshot of a point in time. The current figures, by contrast, are variable according to births, deaths, migration and marriages, so the values shown here are only a best approximation to whatever was the case when the underlying data was collated and will not be the same as whatever the values are right now. American Surname Summary Data for WHEATON Frequency Comparisons Total Rank Frequency % Per million people United States United States (Current snapshot) 8,662 3758 0.003 32 United States (1880 census) 2,686 2271 0.005 54 Change since 1880 +5976 -1487 -0.002 -22

Group B How can they all be related?

Posted on February 7, 2013     Leave a Comment

We have 5 surnames in Group B that seem to be in some cases worlds apart. How can they be related? I am not saying how exactly but I hope this helps.  They are WHEATON, HOWELLS, MALLENBY, RAINES and HANCOCK. Working backwards from the non WHEATON lines with the most recent ancestry of each first.

HOWELLS

 John ³ HOWELLS (Benjamin ^2, John ¹⁾ ) b. 1858 Stockton upon Tees, Durham, England. Came to us. 1887 to USA

He is the son of

Benjamin ² HOWELLS who was born in b. 1835/8 Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales

1851 Census Bedwellty, Monmothshire, Wales (lived on School Row)

occ. Labourer & Iron Works

m. Elizabeth EVANS 1 Mar 1858 in Tredegar; she b. 1840 Monmouthshire, Wales she d. 13 Dec 1894 Stockon, Durham

1861 Census Middlesbrough, Durham (Goshford St.)

occ. Puddler

1871 Census Stockton, Durham age 33

He is the son of

John³ HOWELLS b. 1784-91 Neath, Glamorganshire, Wales

m 1st Margaret EDWARDS 3 Dec 1821 Mynyddislwyn St. Tudor, Glamorgan, she b. 1801

m 2nd Anne (DAVIES) 2nd Qtr 1850 at Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorganshire she b. 1802 Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorgan, Wales

1841 Census Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorganshire (lived on Rai Harryr Blawd)

1851 Census Bedwellty, Monmothshire, Wales (lived on School Row)

occ. Iron Baller

MALLENBY

Thomas Todd³ MALLENBY, b. 23 December 1913, Lying in Hospital, Newcastle, Northumberland; d. 1974, Canada.

Son of

Thomas Todd² MALLENBY (James¹) was born Bet. January – March 1887 in Newcastle, Northumberland, and died 12 July 1917. He married Ann O’BRIEN formerly HUTCHINSONOctober 1913 in Newcastle Upon Tyne, Northumberland. She was born Abt. 1893, and died.

1891 21 Byron Terrace, Elswick Northumberland MELLABY

Living with father James, mother shown as Jno? and siblings James, John, Ann and Robert

1901 Not found

1911 Not found

Marriage: October 1913, Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland

1913 24 Carr Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumbland (birth of son)

Military service: WWI Northumberland Fusiliers Private No 28478

Occupation: 1913 General Labourer

James¹ MALLENBY was born Bet. January – March 1847 and died in Not found. He married Ann Elizabeth TODDBet. October – December 1868 in Newcastle Upon Tyne District, Northumberland. She was born Bet. October – December 1850 in Newcastle upon Tyne District, Northumberland (possible birth), and died Bet. April – June 1890 in Newcastle Upon Tyne District, Northumberland age 42 (possible death, age discrepancy)

To find birth “James MALLENBY born 1840/1850” entered with “variants” ticked for surname. Only one came up for a James MELLANBY born March quarter 1847 Stockton District, Durham

On 1891 census age suggests year of birth as 1845 and place is shown as Newcastle, Northumberland

On 1861 census age suggests year of birth as 1847 and place is shown as Sedgefield, Durham

On 1851 census age suggests year of birth as 1846 and place is shown as Sedgefield, Durham

1851 Farmhouse No.2, Garmondsway West, Stockton, Durham as MELLONBY

With parents James and Isabella and siblings George and William T

Visiting was Hannah CARR (18) Formerly Housemaid at an Inn born Bicker Hill,

Northumberland. Lodging with them was John RAINE (35) Ag Lab born Embleton Row,

Durham.

1861 5 Wm Street, Gateshead, Durham as MALLENBY

With parents James and Isabella and siblings George, William, Eliza, Hannah and Isabella

1871 20 Railway Street, Elswick, Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland as MELLONBY

born Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland

With wife Ann E and children William T and James

1881 30 Railway Street, Elswick, Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland as MALLENBY

born Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland

With wife Ann and children John, Thomas, Ann and Robert

1891 21 Byron Terrace, Elswick, Northumberland as MELLABY

born Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland

With wife Ann and children James, John, Ann, Robert and Thomas

1901 21 Byron Terrace, Elswick, Northumberland as a widower as MELLANBY

born Middleham, Yorkshire

Living with him was a servant

1911 Not found

Occupation: 1861 Blacksmith; 1871 Rivetter; 1881 Boiler Smith; 1891 Boiler work; 1901 Engineer, Boiler Maker

 

RAINES

John Wesley⁵ RAINES (Lawrence^4,3, Harry², John Henry¹) b 1812 Anderson Dist, SC.

gg-grandson of John Henry Raines b 1685 Westbury, Wiltshire (check location on map)

 

OR this

John RAINES (REINES) b. 1826 In Lambston, Pembrokeshire, Wales

1851 census Llangynwyd, Glamorgan occ. Iron Puddler

1861 census Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorgan occ Puddler

 

HANCOCKS and WHEATONS

Share locations in North DEVON from the 1300’s to present.

Hancocks, Wheatons, Raines, and Howells are all found in early 1600’s-1700’s Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, Wales (no Mallenbys). In the 1800’s Raines, Mallenby and Howells are found in Durham and Northumberland. So the hot spot is North Devon, north Wiltshire and Southern Wales in the 1600-1700s. In the 1800’s Durham/Northumberland, England. I believe this is the general outline for how all the Group B men descend from a common ancestor. Likely that common ancestor was from either from one or other side of the Bristol Channel that separates South Western England from South Western Wales. For hundreds if not thousands of years the people on either side of the channel actively traded and moved back and forth.  So what seemed quite impossible now can make some semblance of sense. Please check out the map here. I have added all the locations mentioned above.

 

Sometimes you just get lucky! (Heads up New Brunswick Wheatons)

Posted on February 3, 2013     Leave a Comment

As some of you know I have been trying to connect my husband to Robert Wheaton for FORTY years. Two years ago I connected them through DNA, but still the distance between Joseph Wheaton (his direct ancestor) ‘of N. Jersey’  who married in 1758 in Schnectady, NY to Margarita Mebie and Robert Wheaton the immigrant is less than 100 years. Robert’s sons were born between 1645-1661, assuming Joseph was born between 1730-1740.

So how hard can it be to close a 70-95 year gap? Well up until a few days ago 40 years hard! That brick wall is the reason for all the Wheaton material I have collected over the years and for the DNA project.

Then on a whim a few days ago I decided to do a search on the New England Genealogical site for a Joseph Wheaton 1730-1750. Well what happened next was sifting through some results only to discover some previously unknown information on Robert’s son Obadiah. Back to Joseph in a moment. Obadiah is one whose line for which I have been actively looking for descendants…..here’s what I wrote to Jean on Jan 25th 2013:

Here’s another question or conundrum. Obadiah 2 Robert 1 has:

• Obadiah 3  b. 1683 or 1691 He marries but we know nothing more
• Joseph 3   b. 1696 Nothing more
• Samuel 3  b. 1701 Nothing more

So what do you think is the likelihood that some of the unattached families connect to one or more of these? I have no clue as to where to look for descendants of Obadiah as they seem to have just vanished. Any ideas?”

So imagine my surprise that less than a week later Obadiah 2 would pop up on a search for Joseph!

So in some church records for Boston I find information on two of Obadiah’s sons: Obadiah 3 and Joseph 3. Joseph 3 records his adult baptism and his marriage to Elizabeth House  17 Aug 1726. Nothing more on this family (could they have had a son named Joseph? Perhaps?) But let’s look at Obadiah³:

Obadiah³ WHEATON Obadiah² Robert¹ b. 9 November 1685, or 19 November 1693 Milton, MA; d. Unknown; m. Jemima SNELLING, 6 June 1722, Boston, MA; she b. 22 March 1693/94, Boston, MA; d. Unknown.

Obadiah was admitted to the North Church, Boston, MA 10 Dec 1727. His wife was admitted 24 Jul 1726.

Children of Obadiah WHEATON and Jemima SNELLING all bpt at the North Church, Boston:

i.   Obediah⁴ bp May 12, 1723 North Church, Boston, MA
ii.  James⁴ bp Oct 4 , 1724 North Church, Boston, MA
iii. Jemima⁴ bp Oct 16, 1726 North Church, Boston, MA

iv.  Jerusha⁴ bp Nov 24, 1728 (looks like he died as later child named Jerusha) North Church, Boston, MA

v.  Benjamin⁴ bp May 3 1730 North Church, Boston, MA
vi. Jerusha⁴ bp. Jan 16 1731/2 North Church, Boston, MA
vii. Joseph⁴ bp June 8 1735 North Church, Boston, MA

Okay heads up!

WHEATON, Obadiah, of Boston.  Went to Halifax in 1776; in 1778 he was proscribed and banished.  A Loyalist of the name Obadiah WHEATON died in New Brunswick, where he had become a resident many years ago. Source: Biographical sketches of loyalists of the American Revolution….Volume 2 by Lorenzo SABINE pg 417

Now it is not clear whether the Obadiah who was a Loyalist was Obadiah³ or Obadiah⁴. What if James⁴ is the James of New Brunswick listed as bc 1738 and Joseph⁴ is my dear husband’s long lost Joseph? Since I have repeatedly scoured the records looking for a James or Joseph that would match and nothing appeard I believe this is a VERY REAL possibility to account for these two missing WHEATONS. Our previous thought was they may have been from Benjamin² Robert¹ who had sons Samuel, Benjamin, David and Daniel. However none had sons or grandsons named Joseph or James whereas these descendants of Obadiah ² Robert¹  did. So for now I am tentatively suggesting that the New Brunswick Wheatons and my husband’s Joseph may be descended from Obadiah ².  The other possibility for which we have no further information is Benjamin 3 of Benjamin² Robert¹ The other children of Benjamin are accounted for and do not have a James that fits bc 1738 or a Willam (WHETON) bc 1740.

I share this story because one never

knows when and where critical pieces to

the puzzle will be found!

The next day I was able to make some tentative connections between the MALLENBY, HOWELLS, HANCOCK and possibly WHEATON and RAINES. More on that in my next post.

 

 

Updates and Analysis: Statistics

Posted on January 31, 2013     Leave a Comment

First a thank you for Jerry’s contribution to our general fund which along with my own will make the sponsorship of a kit at the WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE convention in London Possible.  This kit is free to the test subject if there should be a Wheaton/Wheadon/Wetton willing to test on the spot and they are willing to fill out a family tree chart. I am always looking for extra funds to help extend markers or test new subjects who cannot afford it. You can contribute here via PAYPAL or credit card.

Here’s a video all about Statistics and why they are so important and fascinating. I know you are saying “Statistics are boring!” Not so! I think you’ll enjoy this and there’s even statistics on which counties in England have the highest illegitimacy rate.

http://www.gapminder.org/videos/the-joy-of-stats/

I didn’t always like Statistics but I did get an “A” in my college class so I guess that reflects my inner geekness 😉

So we have some interesting New results and I am going to try to pick them apart so that you understand what they say, what they don’t say and why all these numbers and stats matter.

First off is our latest results for Charles A Wheaton with a paper trail back to Exter, Devon in the 1500’s. He did a 12 marker test that we hoped would show his connection to one of our existing groups. Lets look at those 12 markers as compared to the others in Group D1 & D2. Those in red are where they differ.

13-24-14-10-11-15-12-12-14– 13-14-29

Now ordinarily a 9/12 match would not be considered a match at all. However the latest results for Paul Ritchie Wheaton are instructive. Paul is a descendant of Robert (group B) thorough Robert’s son Ephraim as is Bonnie’s son Ralph. However from there the diverge with Paul being descended from Ephraim’s son Caleb 3 and Ralph from Ephraim’s son James 3. Okay let’s compare their first 12 markers which are 10/12

Ralph’s markers are the modal (average) for Group B Paul Ritchie’s are the second set.

14-24-16-11-12-14-12-12-12-13-13-29

14-24-15-11-11-14-12-12-12-13-13-29

So here we have a proven relationship that holds at 67 markers and looks like a non-match at 12. So given that Charles A Wheaton’s common ancestor with others in Group C might be in the 1400-1500’s it is still possible this is a Match. The only way to know is to extend the markers. This is often necessary with 12 marker matches or even what looks like a non-match.

There’s more we can learn just looking at two markers in this case the 5th and 6th markers. Here are those with the Frequency percentages for each pair. (yeah stats!)

Charles  11-15   7%

Ralph    12-14   3.7%

Paul      11-14  29.24%

So even though Paul’s values are the most frequent overall they are off modal for Group B. What this suggests is hundred’s of years ago  Robert Wheaton’s predecessors had a mutation from 11-14 to 12-14. Paul’s line more recently had a reversion (back mutation) back to the original value.

The point is that stats are useful but not always conclusive. The more data the stronger can be our inferences. Have a look at our results page here which includes not only the FTDNA results but all others. You can see how patterns are emerging particularly in Group B in part because we now have 15 results for this group.

Let’s look at another set of off modal markers in Group B.

These are for Adam WHEATON, John HOWELL and Wesley RAINES. They all show the off modal value of 12 at the 4th marker rather than the modal 11. This “suggests” they may have a more recent common ancestor as this marker is not one that mutates frequently.

14-24-16-12-12-14-12-12-12-13-13-29

And so it goes. We have lots of data but need more. Always hoping for upgrades from 12 to 37 markers or more and more test subjects 😉

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SPELLIN’ BE WARE! And a bit of News.

Posted on January 28, 2013     Leave a Comment

Wheaton, Wheeton, Whetene, Wheten, Wheaten, Weeton, Weaton, Wetton, Whetton, Wheadon, Whedon, Wheedon, Wheden, Wheaden, Weedon, Weadon…..

We all get hung up on spelling. I should have learned my lesson long ago…..forty years ago to be more precise, when I learned that a branch of the Thomas Wheadon family of Branford, CT changed the spelling of their name to Wheaton. So those of you in the US who see a Wheaton Van Lines Moving Truck, those are really Wheadons. Or the actor Will Wheaton he’s also a Wheadon. However Wheaton College of Norton, MA or the town of Wheaton, IL can be rightfully ascribed to the descendants of Robert.

But did you know one of the first references to Robert Wheaton of Rehoboth, MA was in the early records of Salem where his name was spelled Wheadon?

Or Jean’s 25 year search for her husband’s Wheaton line, DNA connected him to the Wettons of Staffordshire with many spelling variations along the way

Then there is Susan’s discovery of Upper and Lower Wheaton now known as Upper and Lower Whiddon in Devon.

The fact of the matter is that early spelling of surnames until perhaps the last 100 years was anything but consistent. Pronunciation, literacy, convention and the whim of the recorder all seem to enter into the equation. In the example of Upper and Lower Whiddon it’s likely this was changed to be more “consistent” with the “knighted” family of Whiddons from nearby Chagford. And for all we know the spelling may have switched back and forth several times.

As a reminder to myself and all of you: ignore alternate spellings at your own peril: a change in spelling does not, a change in family make. Or the corollary just because they have the same name it doesn’t mean they are related!

NEWS
Still waiting for the last two panels for Paul of Nova Scotia origins, but he is definitely of the Robert Wheaton group but her threw us a couple of new mutations just to spice things up! These mutations happen occasionally and randomly. They can help us to identify who is more closely related to whom. I’ll have more on his match when the remaining markers are back.

The latest test results for Charles Wheaton of Australia who tracks back to a very early 1500’s line in Exeter, Devon do not initially match any of the other Wheaton lines. So our hopes of tying more Wheaton lines in Devon are again confounded by yet another Wheaton Line! I have placed him in D2 for now just so you can see what a 9/12 marker match looks like. This may be one one of those cases where extending markers makes a match or that it falls apart completely. 12 markers is sometimes enough to prove a match and other times it just tantalizes us with possibilities. One of his marker values is quite rare at 2% of R1bs so he has only two matches and they are of other surnames. This would be a nice signature for his line. two of the other markers that don’t match any of our existing groups are on faster mutating markers so I can not rule out that they are indeed related.

In other exciting news I have heard from a descendant of Robert’s son Samuel!!!! And I have made contact with a descendant of Christopher, alleged son of Robert. So I remain hopeful that two of my wishes for this year may come true! This leaves Robert’s son Obadiah whose son Obadiah had 3 sons who seem to have vanished into thin air. We have nothing more on them or possible descendants. So they could have moved to Canada like many of the Wheaton/Wheadon families did or like one Jean and I were looking at recently they may have succumbed to a tragedy. In one Wheaton family the father and all 5 children died the same year. It is important to remember all the odds our forbearers had to overcome for us to be here today…..