Family History Software
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How to Use

DNA test results
Family Tree DNA listing of all Norton test results.
Sample Peigree Chart

We have a DNA signature for the Norville/Nortons. This includes families of CT, NY, KY as well as England.

How DNA can help sort out your family history.

I'm Scott Norton, the co-ordinator of the Norton DNA Project. This is not a business. We exist only to help people with their family history.

The DNA we measure is passed from father to son. So your DNA (if you are a male) will test the same as your GGGGGGrandfather. This also means that all the male decendants from a single ancestor will test the same.

• If you're not sure which Norton you are related to in your line, we can probably sort that out. An example is the Norton family of Marion, SC. There were 2 different family histories mixed together and 3 other families who didn't think were connected. We were able to sort it all out with DNA and help push back their history to England.
• If you've reached a brick wall, we can possibly link you up with another Norton that has better paper records. An example of this is my own family that couldn't go further than Virginia. We matched another family that linked us to England back to the 1500's.
• If you just want to know more about your family, DNA will often tell you a great deal about where you come from.
• If you have no idea of where your Norton family fits in, we can probably link you up. As we get more and more tests, we are building a database that will eventually allow any Norton family to identify where they belong.
• A DNA test keeps on working forever. Every new test sheds light on all the other tests because we learn a little more.

Order a DNA test

If you are a male and have the Norton surname, or if you know anyone who does, we hope you will consider participating in this Y-DNA testing project and/or telling others about this website. A DNA test is as simple as rubbing a cotton swab in your cheek. We strongly recommend Family Tree DNA to order a test for several reasons. 1) We get a big discount. 2) They have the largest database. 3) They provide tools for analysis that you can't get anywhere else.

Order a DNA test here. Order a Norton DNA Test
We suggest a 25 of 37 marker test
You have questions, we have answers. email snorton@nortonfamily.net

DNA Answers
1 DNA Tutorial
2 What will this test show?
3 Who should be tested?
4 How do I get tested?
5 How much does it cost?
6 Then what do I do?
7 What kind of test?
8 What testing agency?
9 Definitions & Info
10 DNA Links

1. What will this test show?
If you are blocked with your family line, you might consider a DNA test to establish a "signature" for others to match. A signature means we have 2 tests from different branches of a family that match. Since all of the males in a family have the same Y-DNA markers we know what your family line looks like.

As more and more tests come in, you learn more about your line and eventually we extend your research. This has happened many times now. So if you are blocked in your research, you should consider a DNA test. It's a great investment because it continues to provide new info year after year.

These DNA tests don't reveal genetic defects, they only look at a certain set of markers passed father to son. In any event we do not reveal who has been tested unless requested.

2. Who should be tested?
The Y-chromosome is only passed father to son. The only person who can test is a direct male decendant of the ancestor you are researching. Inheritance Chart showing how it all works

3. How do I get tested?
All it takes is a q-tip rubbed inside your cheek for a sample. There's no blood involved.

4. How much does it cost?
There are several different kinds of tests.

• 12 marker test $99
  This test is barely adequate for serious research, but it's often good enough to link you to a known family. People who get this test often upgrade to a 25 or 37 marker test later. To do this you just request an upgrade and pay an extra fee. If this is all you can afford, I would go with this test. Order tests here
• 25 marker test $148
  This is the best results for the money. It allows us greater resolution to identify your relationship to another line. Order tests here
• 37 marker test $167
  This is a great test with great resolution. If you can afford it, it will pay dividends far into the future. Order tests here
  
  
• Native American Test
  People often want to test for Native American heritage. You can't determine Native American from a Y-DNA test since it isn't passed by the Y chromosomes we measure. But there is a special test. Order tests here
  

5. Then what do I do?
Take the test and report the results to Scott Norton at snorton@nortonfamily.net with what family history you have so we can help others to match.

6. What testing agency do you use?
We have a discount at FamiltyTree DNA, but results from any of the main testing labs should be comparable.

One of the best reasons for using FTdna is their tools for analying the results. None of the other labs have the range of tools that FTdna provides.

A final reason for using FTdna is that they are the largest DNA lab devoted to Family History DNA. They are the lab National Geographic is using for their 100,000 person world wide DNA project. Access to this database and FTdna makes them a natural. I've been the co-ordinator for the Norton DNA Project for 6 years and still feel that FTdna is the best choice.

More Info and definitions

It is necessary to have at least two participants and preferably three, from each documented and verified line in order to prove a group.

The Y-chromosome signatures change very slowly over time and the pattern is usually stable over hundreds of years. It is not expected to change more than once every 500 years, but for some unknown and unexpected reason, a mutation can occur without notice in any generation. Male relatives who have an uninterrupted male-male link between them will share the same, or very similar Y-chromosome signatures.

The Y-line is particularly useful when a connection between different branches of a family, perhaps with the same surname, is suspected but cannot be proven from written records. Using the Y-line, by comparing the Y-chromosome signatures, provides the answer.

A generation for genealogical purposes is usually considered to be 30 years, whereas a generation for DNA purposes is usually considered to be about 20 years.

There are some reasons that can cause a Y-line to be a non-match with a participants' previous genealogical paper research and/or family tradition. These can include incorrect paper genealogy research; adoption; rape; or female infidelity.

Family Tree DNA currently analyzes 12 different genetic sites to construct a Y-chromosome signature. Family Tree DNA is associated with Dr. Michael Hammer of the University of Arizona for the Y-chromosome DNA testing. He is a highly respected geneticist who has done extensive research on the Y-chromosome Kohanim Project regarding Jewish priests, and continues to actively pursue surname research. Dr. Hammer and Family Tree DNA are now testing with 25 DNA markers.

Dr. Hammer uses the published six markers in the public domain. They are noted under their respective locus number and are designated by "DYS" followed by its number designation on the Y-chromosome. The loci with a "DYS" followed by an asterisk (*) are unpublished DYS markers and are noted by "scores" set up by Dr. Hammer. When Dr. Hammer releases these loci markers into the public domain, which will be in the very near future, the scores for the unpublished loci will be updated on this site to reflect their true number of repeats. Locus #3, reported by Dr. Hammer as DYS 394, is more commonly called DYS 19.

Dr. Michael Hammer, Ph.D., Geneticist, is an associate research scientist in the Division of Biotechnolgy at the University of Arizona with joint appointments in the Anthropolgy Department and the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. Since 1991, he has been Director of the Laboratory of Molecular Systematics and Evolution (LMSE), a molecular biology core facility that provides training and other DNA services at the University of Arizona. He recieved his Ph.D. in Genetcis at the University of California at Berkely in 1984. He then spent six years as a post-doctoral fellow, first at Princeton University and then at Harvard Univeristy where he began studies to develop the non-recombining portion of the human Y chromosome (NRY) as a genealogical tool. In the last several years, his research group and collaborators have published a series of articles reporting results of studies of NRY variation in human populations. These studies have demonstrated the utility of different classes of Y chromosome markers for both long-term eveolutionary studies and studies of closely related human populations. Dr. Hammer was one of the co-authors of the first paper showing that present-day Kohanim are descended from a single male ancestor (possibly the Biblical figure, Aaron). His current research focuses on the origin of Jewish communities and their migrations during and after the Diaspora.

Definitions:

Alleles--One of the different forms of a gene of DNA sequence that can exist at a single locus. Alternatively, one of several alternate forms of a gene occupying a particular location on a chromosome.

Chromosome--Is composed of DNA, which itself is composed of four (4) nucleotides: A (adenine); T (thymine); C (cytosine); and G (guanine); Chromosome = thread-shaped structure occurring in cell nucleus, which transmits hereditary characteristics.

DNA--Deoxyribonucleic Acid.

DYS--D = DNA: Y = Chromosome; S = (STR) Single Tandem Repeats; The DYS numbering scheme (e.g. DYS388, DYS 390) for the Y-STR haplotype loci is controlled and administered by an international standards body called HUGO, Human Gene Nomenclature Committee based at the University College, London.

These results compare individuals to see how closely or distantly they may have shared a common ancestor. The estimated rate of mutational change is estimated to be approximately one change per 500 generations for these loci (the locations on the Y chromosome). Since our test uses 12 different loci, it is reasonable to expect a change to occur every 40 or so generations; however, these changes can take place at any time.

Gene--The fundamental and functional unit of heredity.

Haplotype--Refers to a single or unique set of chromosomes. A set of closely linked alleles (genes or DNA polymorphisms) inherited as a unit. Different combinations of polymorphisms are known as haplotypes.

Haplogroup--Haplogroups are groupings of individuals with the same genetic characteristic such as restriction enzyme recognition sites or deletions at the same location on the DNA.

Kohanim Project--See the website located at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/israel/familycohanim.html. Also as well, see Dr. Michael Hammer above.

Loci--The position that a given gene occupies on a chromosome. (Plural)

Locus--A specific location on a chromosome. (Single)

MH--Modal Haplotype = Any person who matches exactly the alleles found to be most common among the descendants of a person. A person who matches 11 alleles whiile being only one off in only one (1) loci, will be considered to be in the haplogroup, rather than in the family haplotype.

MLE--The Most Likely Estimate of when the MRCA between two people lived.

Modal--The value at which an absolute or maximum occurs in the frequency distribution of the variant.

MRCA--The Most Recent Common Ancestor between two people.

Mutation--Small changes during the DNA copying process during transfer from father to son.

STR--Short Tandem Repeats = A VNTR (see below) in which the repeated sequence is from one (1) to five (5) base pairs.

Y-chromosome--is passed down from generation to generation only through the male line; from father to son, father to son, etc.

YNTR--Variable Number Tandem Repeats. A defined region of DNA containing multiple copies of short sequences of bases, which are repeated a number of times, the number of repeats varying among individuals in the population.