(Last updated 22 Feb 2024)
The DNA matches of Wanda (granddaughter of Andrew Mannon) allows us to work
out the relative DNA match strengths to various lines and test connections.
Using only Wanda's DNA matches we can determine that Andrew Mannon (1842)
descendants have a strong DNA connection to William Manning descendants.
What is Andrew Mannon's relationship to
William Mannon (1809)?
The WATO (What Are The Odds) tool at DNAPainter
The
average to William Manning (c.1809) is 45cm. The average to Nancy Mannon
Claxton (c.1817) is 32cm. If Nancy was a full sibling to (or even
mother of) to Andrew Mannon the matches would be larger and much more numerous
than the matches to William Manning.
The two largest DNA clusters found so far are matches to William Manning (1809)
and Elizabeth [Clark]. This writer could find no record that indicates
Elizabeth was also called Matilda so that name will not be used.
Given that Elizabeth
[Clark] and Andrew Mannon were both
living with Sarah Mannon (assumed mother) in 1850 it's reasonable to assume they were siblings
but this has yet to be proven definitively. The fact that the William
Manning matches are STILL stronger and more numerous than the Elizabeth [Clark]
suggests either Elizabeth was a half sibling/cousin to Andrew Mannon and/or William Manning was a
full uncle or father. This disparity kind of rules out Elizabeth being a
FULL sister of Andrew Mannon at least with the matches we have.
The problem with making William Manning the father
is that the Mannon Y-DNA resolves to Eldridge which would mean William's own father
was an Eldridge. That probably would happened in Knox County, Kentucky
about 1808. This can be easily proven or disproven if a male-line descendant can
be found and takes a Y-DNA test.
The other problem is that it
would mean that while William was having children with his wife Elizabeth he
would also be having relations with Sarah Mannon who was living next door or
very close by.
The DNA matches of four descendants have been
looked at and they do not have the same large Eldridge cluster that Sarah Mannon
descendants have. They DO seem to have the same Foster/Mullins cluster
that Sarah Mannon descendants have indicating at least a maternal connection
between William Manning and Sarah Mannon. The divorce file for Andrew &
Polly Manning indicates (according to witness testimony) that her son (assumed
William) was fathered by Gabriel Vaughn and not Andrew Mannon. If true
that means William Manning and Sarah Mannon only have a maternal connection, not
paternal. This also puts into question Sarah's own father who may be
someone other than Andrew Manning SR.
Apparently not.
This has yet to be proven. The problem is that even though Andrew
Mannon was living with Sarah Mannon (1810) and his assumed sisters Mary "Polly"
and Elizabeth in 1850 we can't locate Sarah Mannon on the 1840 Census. We
DO have Sarah Manning aged 20-29 on the 1830 census as a single woman living
next to George Hatfield. In 1840 we then have a Sally [Sarah] Grimes aged 20-29
living next to George Hatfield. Are Sarah Mannon and Sally [Sarah] Grimes
the same person. The age ranges in both census are 20-29 but if Sarah was
indeed born 1810 (per 1850 Census) this just means whenever the census taker
arrived in 1830 she was just over 20 and in 1840 she was just less than 30 so
the ages groups work fine.
If Sarah was not the mother of Elizabeth
[Clark] and Andrew Mannon then she may have been an aunt who adopted them.
Note that in the 1840 census Sally Grimes had no children while Sarah Mannon
would have had 2 daughters in 1840.
Since Nancy Claxton (c. 1817) is
certainly excluded as an alternative mother of Elizabeth [Clark] and Andrew
Mannon this leaves Rebecca Mannon (c. 1815). Unfortunately there are no
DNA matches to Rebecca's assumed other children Mary and Peyton and that family
moved to Hancock County by 1850 with the William Manning family.
The
current assumption by this writer is that Sarah Mannon simply never officially
married. Her assumed parents Andrew Mannon and Mary Foster separated right
after their marriage and had children by other consorts. Her own assumed
daughter Elizabeth never officially married John Clark and all her children went
by her surname not his.
This writer could find no DNA evidence from
descendants that she was a Grimes, Lee or Daniel. Some direct and shared
matches do indicate a possible Napier connection. This is interesting
because on the 1840 Federal Census (KY, Harlan) we have Moses Eldridge, Stephen
Lee (1800) and Pearson Daniel (1801/1805) all on the same page. Stephen Lee
married Joicy Napier and Pearson Daniel married Frances Napier. On the 1850
Census (TN, Claiborne) we have Sarah Mannon living next to Andrew and Margaret
Lee (Daniel) Lee and Margaret appears to have been an older sister of Pearson
Daniel. If Sarah was related to the Napiers then simply visiting relatives in
Harlan County would put her in proximity to Moses Eldridge (or his nephews).
Wanda's DNA matches to Lee descendants are mainly from Stephen Lee and Joicy Napier.
Sarah's Mitochondrial
haplogroup is X2b per a female-line descendant's DNA test at 23andMe.
We must get a Y-DNA test on a male-line descendant of William Manning (1809). This should prove the father of William Manning whether it was a Mannon, Claxton, Vaughn, Eldridge or other.
