With Gedmatch you can take advantage of some of their advanced DNA
analysis and matching tools for free. Gedmatch maintains almost 2
million DNA kits submitted by users of Ancestry, 23 & Me, FTDNA, My
Heritage and other older DNA tests. More detailed analysis is
available for a tiny subscription of $10 a month or you could have a
relative share their account login.
Gedmatch kits are open
kits meaning anyone can view anyone else's DNA matches and segment data to any
other person which makes it very easy to do DNA segment triangulation. Below is screen shot of
everything available.
Here is an example of what the
Segment Search can provide which is a nice graphical arrangement of
matches based on the actual segment positions on the chromosomes. Ancestry
does NOT provide any such data. People who share similar placed
segments usually have a common ancestor and assuming they are both on the
paternal or maternal side of the chromosome.
This example
below shows 4 people who share similar segments on my chromosome 1 at base-pair positions 110 to 150 million. I have added an extra column
for my notes. These four people are descendants of Lydia Barnes or
her assumed father Zachariah Barnes. This segment therefore probably
represents Barnes DNA. This likely triangulation helps verify the new
research that suggested Lydia Barnes Burris might be connected to the much
older Zachariah Barnes. So what began first as a hypothesis based on
nothing more than proximity became a verification based on DNA. Extensive
"blind" autosomal matches between many more descendants also supports the
connection. It's possible the other people who match at the same
position are also connected. This shows the power of being able to view
matches arranged by actual segment data. (User names have been
masked)
The segment data can also be saved as a simple spreadsheet
in CSV format minus the color bars. In a spreadsheet you can
manually add people from 23 & Me, FTDNA, My Heritage (who have not
uploaded to Gedmatch themselves) because they actually give matching
segment data. After adding notes to known matches recognized from
the other sites you start seeing where matches from a common ancestor are
clustered on which chromosomes.
