Shirley Association Genealogical Research Website

In an email today, Fannie tells me her brother did the DNA testing through Family Tree DNA, the same company we use. Of course they did not sign up under the Shirley Project as they didn't know they had a connection to the Shirleys. Their results came back and they match the Shirleys in the E3b Haplogroup perfectly on 25 markers and several others who did the 37 marker testing.

Another email tells me...I just spoke with Bennett Greenspan and he asked me to tell you that my father's surname (and therefore my brother's surname) is NOT Barnes. My father was born in 1907 and was reared by a Barnes woman but we never knew what his real surname was. He died without us knowing anything about him. Bennett is asking me to hunt through the census for 1880/90 through 1910 for any Shirleys in the Georgia area. Bennett says that our DNA and some of the Shirleys in the E3b group is very, very rare and too close to be meaningless.

Now that we know their DNA results and a little of their history. This is a black family of Shirleys who desire to know where they fit in with the Shirleys. This was rather shocking to them as they had no idea there was a white ancestor in their past. Does anyone have any help to offer this family? Please email Bettyshirley@comcast.net and I will forward your message and give you direct contact, with Fannie's permission.

CAN YOU SEE WHY DNA IS SO WORTHWHILE? IT CAN HELP WHEN THE PAPER TRAIL CAN TAKE YOU NO FURTHER IN YOUR RESEARCH.