(All quotes are cited from pages linked from the AncestryDNA Regions and Journeys FAQ page) AncestryDNA recently made an update to its algorithm for determining ethnicity estimates. According to its website, AncestryDNA “calculates your ancestral regions by comparing your DNA to a reference panel made up of DNA samples from more than 185,000 people representingContinueContinue reading “How to Navigate the 2025 AncestryDNA Update”
Tag Archives: ancestry
Digging for Roots: Who Was Marcus Garvey, and Why Was He Pardoned?
Former President of the United States of America Joe Biden pardoned Marcus Garvey, Jr. before vacating the White House on January 20, 2025. Who was Marcus Garvey, and why did he need to be pardoned?
7 Items on My Genealogy To Do List for 2025
Roadtrip! There is only so much you can do online, and it’s really time for me to get my hands dirty, up close and personally, in the courthouses, cemeteries, and churches again. I would like to visit Austin, Texas; Homer, Louisiana; multiple parishes in southwest Louisiana; and Kanawha County, West Virginia. I would also like toContinueContinue reading “7 Items on My Genealogy To Do List for 2025”
Genealogy by City Directories Explained
Many of you know that when you use certain online databases, you are given hints about other records that feature your ancestor or research subject. I’m embarrassed to say that I generally ignored the city directory hints in favor of, say, census or military records. Now, using a city’s directory as a resource seems like a noContinueContinue reading “Genealogy by City Directories Explained”
A Reflection on the God of DNA
Seemingly simple, infinitesimally small, but grand and powerful…It is a miniature material used in the construction of a human being, much like a ladder is used in the construction of certain building project, except it is curved and twisted with a name that few people can pronounce or spell – deoxyribonucleic acid. Its two sideContinueContinue reading “A Reflection on the God of DNA”
Old Food is Soul Food
For years, I have been preoccupied with my health and the food and exercise decisions I make to support the changes I’m trying to make (e.g., losing weight). When I think about the grandmother who raised me, I don’t remember her talking about any of that stuff. She was a stout woman with strong legsContinueContinue reading “Old Food is Soul Food”
The Genealogy Griot 