April 11, 2007
In 2006, the first of Harden’s descendants Y-DNA was tested. Participant #56587, Harden’s 4th great grandson through son James, did not match any of the 50 or so Owen/s males participating in the Owen Y-DNA Project. He did, however, closely match two men with the last name Henry, one man with the last name Bailey, and a man with the last name Allen. This meant that an Owens had not been tested yet that was closely related to participant #56587 but that he shares a common ancestor with the Henry, Bailey, and Allen males sometime in the past. Participant #56587 also had the SNPs or "Deep Clade test" done which goes deeper into different Haplogroups. He is a R1b1c. This means our family came from Western Europe or the British Isles.
Haplogroup R1b1c is the most common haplogroup in European populations. It is believed to have expanded throughout Europe as humans re-colonized after the last glacial maximum 10-12 thousand years ago. This lineage is also the haplogroup containing the Atlantic modal haplotype.
The second of Harden’s descendants is tested, participant #73567, another 4th great grandson but this one is descended through Harden’s son William. Participant #73567 closely match #56587 with a few mutations. A mutation is a slight change in a particular marker. Some markers mutate faster than others (the faster mutating markers are designated in red at the top of the comparison chart). Mutations are noted in the comparison chart with highlighted yellow blocks. Mutations happen. We consulted with a geneticist and after he reviewed the results he stated #56587 and #73567 do share Harden Owens as a common ancestor.
The third descendant of Harden is tested in early 2007. Participant #79338 is a 3rd great grandson of Harden through his son William. His results closely match the two previous descendants.
The forth descendant tested was participant #80080. He is a 3rd great grandson of Harden through his son James. His results closely matched all other descendants of Harden Owens.
We now have established the Y-DNA of Harden Owens.
We then located a descendant of Reese Owens (b cir 1800). Reese is believed to be the brother of Harden and was apprenticed out with him in the 1810 Russell County, VA Court Order. If they share the same father their Y-DNA will match. Participant #81522 tested in early 2007 and when the results were returned they did not match any of the previously tested descendants of Harden. Participant #81522 has a haplogroup of G2.
Haplogroup G is relatively uncommon (about 2.5% of tested Europeans) and not well understood. It is believed to have originated in Central Asia, then to have spread to the Middle East and then to have become widespread in Europe during the Neolithic. The G2 subclade is found occasionally among Scandinavians.
It is interesting that participant #81522s Y-DNA matches another Owens. A descendant of James Owens, born cir 1763 that married Elizabeth Marrs. If my memory is correct, I believe there were Owens and Marrs families that were found in the valley of Virginia around Montgomery or Wythe counties in the latter part of the 1700s. What this tells us is that either Reese and Harden did not share the same father or there was an undocumented adoption sometime between Reese and the birth of #81522.
Our task now is to locate other Owens males whos families were possibly located in Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina and/or Tennessee in the 1700s and recruit them for testing. We would also like to locate another descendant of Reese Owens and a descendant of Nicholas Owens to be tested.
And last but not least, I’m sure some are wondering……Why do all the descendants of Harden Owens match these other males with the last names of Henry, Bailey, and Allen? I’m not a DNA expert by any means but I’ll attempt to explain with my limited knowledge. Y-DNA may remain unchanged for many, many years. We could possibly have shared a common ancestor several hundred years ago, even before surnames were used. Surnames were adopted in different countries at different times. For England, "The major period of the formation of English heredity surnames was 1250-1450" (Hey, David, Family Names and Family History, Hambledon & London, London, 2000 ISBN 1-85285-255-0).
Or, there could have been an illegitimate child born and the child took the mother’s maiden name or adopted father’s last name. We compare genealogies with these other participants and try to determine if the families were located near each other at any given time. One case in point is the Henry males that match us. They do not match any of the other males in the Henry Project. Their earliest known ancestor was G.W. Clifton Henry b cir 1834. He is found in the 1850 Cocke County Tennessee Census living with Mary Henry b cir 1817(his mom) with no male Head of Household. There were Owens families in the area during the time of Clifton’s birth and later. And as you know, one of the branches of the Owens family that is later found in Russell County was from Tennessee. Jacob, John W., Hiram, and David Owens that are found in the 1850 Russell County Census were all born in Tennessee. If a male in this branch of the Owens family was the father of Clifton Henry, their Y-DNA should match ours. We would like to locate a male descendant from this branch of the Owens family that is willing to participate in the project. This is how DNA will help us break down the brick wall we have been up against for many years while attempting to identify the parents of Harden Owens.
In 2006, the first of Harden’s descendants Y-DNA was tested. Participant #56587, Harden’s 4th great grandson through son James, did not match any of the 50 or so Owen/s males participating in the Owen Y-DNA Project. He did, however, closely match two men with the last name Henry, one man with the last name Bailey, and a man with the last name Allen. This meant that an Owens had not been tested yet that was closely related to participant #56587 but that he shares a common ancestor with the Henry, Bailey, and Allen males sometime in the past. Participant #56587 also had the SNPs or "Deep Clade test" done which goes deeper into different Haplogroups. He is a R1b1c. This means our family came from Western Europe or the British Isles.
Haplogroup R1b1c is the most common haplogroup in European populations. It is believed to have expanded throughout Europe as humans re-colonized after the last glacial maximum 10-12 thousand years ago. This lineage is also the haplogroup containing the Atlantic modal haplotype.
The second of Harden’s descendants is tested, participant #73567, another 4th great grandson but this one is descended through Harden’s son William. Participant #73567 closely match #56587 with a few mutations. A mutation is a slight change in a particular marker. Some markers mutate faster than others (the faster mutating markers are designated in red at the top of the comparison chart). Mutations are noted in the comparison chart with highlighted yellow blocks. Mutations happen. We consulted with a geneticist and after he reviewed the results he stated #56587 and #73567 do share Harden Owens as a common ancestor.
The third descendant of Harden is tested in early 2007. Participant #79338 is a 3rd great grandson of Harden through his son William. His results closely match the two previous descendants.
The forth descendant tested was participant #80080. He is a 3rd great grandson of Harden through his son James. His results closely matched all other descendants of Harden Owens.
We now have established the Y-DNA of Harden Owens.
We then located a descendant of Reese Owens (b cir 1800). Reese is believed to be the brother of Harden and was apprenticed out with him in the 1810 Russell County, VA Court Order. If they share the same father their Y-DNA will match. Participant #81522 tested in early 2007 and when the results were returned they did not match any of the previously tested descendants of Harden. Participant #81522 has a haplogroup of G2.
Haplogroup G is relatively uncommon (about 2.5% of tested Europeans) and not well understood. It is believed to have originated in Central Asia, then to have spread to the Middle East and then to have become widespread in Europe during the Neolithic. The G2 subclade is found occasionally among Scandinavians.
It is interesting that participant #81522s Y-DNA matches another Owens. A descendant of James Owens, born cir 1763 that married Elizabeth Marrs. If my memory is correct, I believe there were Owens and Marrs families that were found in the valley of Virginia around Montgomery or Wythe counties in the latter part of the 1700s. What this tells us is that either Reese and Harden did not share the same father or there was an undocumented adoption sometime between Reese and the birth of #81522.
Our task now is to locate other Owens males whos families were possibly located in Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina and/or Tennessee in the 1700s and recruit them for testing. We would also like to locate another descendant of Reese Owens and a descendant of Nicholas Owens to be tested.
And last but not least, I’m sure some are wondering……Why do all the descendants of Harden Owens match these other males with the last names of Henry, Bailey, and Allen? I’m not a DNA expert by any means but I’ll attempt to explain with my limited knowledge. Y-DNA may remain unchanged for many, many years. We could possibly have shared a common ancestor several hundred years ago, even before surnames were used. Surnames were adopted in different countries at different times. For England, "The major period of the formation of English heredity surnames was 1250-1450" (Hey, David, Family Names and Family History, Hambledon & London, London, 2000 ISBN 1-85285-255-0).
Or, there could have been an illegitimate child born and the child took the mother’s maiden name or adopted father’s last name. We compare genealogies with these other participants and try to determine if the families were located near each other at any given time. One case in point is the Henry males that match us. They do not match any of the other males in the Henry Project. Their earliest known ancestor was G.W. Clifton Henry b cir 1834. He is found in the 1850 Cocke County Tennessee Census living with Mary Henry b cir 1817(his mom) with no male Head of Household. There were Owens families in the area during the time of Clifton’s birth and later. And as you know, one of the branches of the Owens family that is later found in Russell County was from Tennessee. Jacob, John W., Hiram, and David Owens that are found in the 1850 Russell County Census were all born in Tennessee. If a male in this branch of the Owens family was the father of Clifton Henry, their Y-DNA should match ours. We would like to locate a male descendant from this branch of the Owens family that is willing to participate in the project. This is how DNA will help us break down the brick wall we have been up against for many years while attempting to identify the parents of Harden Owens.
News and Updates
James Owens and Family cir 1898
James Owens born Mar 17, 1849
Grandson of Harden Owens
James Owens born Mar 17, 1849
Grandson of Harden Owens
Mary Ann Arrington Owens (1861-1920)
Wife of Harden's grandson Almarine Owens
Wife of Harden's grandson Almarine Owens
Sally Ann Stanley Owens born November 18, 1872
Wife of Harden's great grandson Brice Madison Owens
Wife of Harden's great grandson Brice Madison Owens
June 17, 2007
Recent test results have proved to be very interesting. Participant # 81522, a descendant of Reese Owens, has just been notified by Family Tree DNA of another match. He is a 24/25 match with participant # 86681 who is also an Owens. I have not been in touch with #86681as of yet to inquire about his lineage. This means that participant #81522 has 2 close matches with Owens men in the Family Tree DNA Owen Project. The other match is participant # N6985, which is a 12/12 match with #81522 and list his earliest known Owens ancestor as James Owens b 1763 in VA that married Elizabeth Marrs. These Owens and Marrs families came down through the valley of VA and were found in the Wythe/Tazewell county area in the late 1700s. The Reese Owens descendant along with his 2 matches have been added to my Y-DNA Results page.
The descendants of Harden Owens do not have any Owens matches in the FTDNA data base. Our only close matches are with men from the Henry, Bailey and Allen families. I believe at this point there is a possiblity that Harden was not fathered by an Owens. This would explain the fact that William Owens asked that his 2 children be returned to him by the Russell County Court and not all 4 Owens children that were originally apprenticed out. Did he marry a young lady around 1800 that had 2 small children by another man (Harden being one of them) and these children took his last name?
But......we can't put the cart before the horse here. It is still early in the game. Recruitment is the key. The answers are out there......our task is to find them. This includes locating male descendants of the Henry, Allen, Bailey as well as Owens families with ties to the area of southwest Virginia from 1770 through 1830s.
Descendants of Nicholas Owens.....where are you?
Recent test results have proved to be very interesting. Participant # 81522, a descendant of Reese Owens, has just been notified by Family Tree DNA of another match. He is a 24/25 match with participant # 86681 who is also an Owens. I have not been in touch with #86681as of yet to inquire about his lineage. This means that participant #81522 has 2 close matches with Owens men in the Family Tree DNA Owen Project. The other match is participant # N6985, which is a 12/12 match with #81522 and list his earliest known Owens ancestor as James Owens b 1763 in VA that married Elizabeth Marrs. These Owens and Marrs families came down through the valley of VA and were found in the Wythe/Tazewell county area in the late 1700s. The Reese Owens descendant along with his 2 matches have been added to my Y-DNA Results page.
The descendants of Harden Owens do not have any Owens matches in the FTDNA data base. Our only close matches are with men from the Henry, Bailey and Allen families. I believe at this point there is a possiblity that Harden was not fathered by an Owens. This would explain the fact that William Owens asked that his 2 children be returned to him by the Russell County Court and not all 4 Owens children that were originally apprenticed out. Did he marry a young lady around 1800 that had 2 small children by another man (Harden being one of them) and these children took his last name?
But......we can't put the cart before the horse here. It is still early in the game. Recruitment is the key. The answers are out there......our task is to find them. This includes locating male descendants of the Henry, Allen, Bailey as well as Owens families with ties to the area of southwest Virginia from 1770 through 1830s.
Descendants of Nicholas Owens.....where are you?
November 28, 2007
Results are in for the Henry family 67 marker upgrade.
Henry family participant #43612 matches the Owens family participant #56587 66 out of 67 markers.
Results are in for the Henry family 67 marker upgrade.
Henry family participant #43612 matches the Owens family participant #56587 66 out of 67 markers.
December 8, 2007
As you know from the November 28th update, the Owens and Henry participants that upgraded to the 67-marker test are a very close match. I have contacted a person that is very knowledgeable in the DNA field and contacted FTDNA and asked for their thoughts on a common ancestor for these two guys. I have determined that it is a very gray area. FTDNA's Most Recent Common Ancestor Report states there is an 84% chance they share a common ancestor within the past 6 to 10 generations (approx. 200 years); a 99.7% chance they share a common ancestor within the past 18 generations (approx. 360 years); and a 100% chance they share a common ancestor within the past 26 generations (approx. 520 years). But this is all pure speculation. Take for instance the comparison between #56587 and #73567 using this same report. They share Harden Owens as a common ancestor six generation’s back. This is well documented and was known prior to testing. Although, if you use the same Most Recent Common Ancestor Report as above to predict their common ancestor, there is less than a 46% chance they share a common ancestor within the past 10 generations. The problem lies in the mutation prediction rate. Within our Owens group (4 participants) we can see 3 mutations that have occurred in the past 160 years. The experts say, on average, one mutation will occur every 250 generations or so (kerchner.com). And just 5 years ago, their estimates were as high as 500 generations. I think they, the scientist, have a ways to go before this type of report is useful.
The bottom line is.... Good old fashion paperwork and documentation is what is needed!
As you know from the November 28th update, the Owens and Henry participants that upgraded to the 67-marker test are a very close match. I have contacted a person that is very knowledgeable in the DNA field and contacted FTDNA and asked for their thoughts on a common ancestor for these two guys. I have determined that it is a very gray area. FTDNA's Most Recent Common Ancestor Report states there is an 84% chance they share a common ancestor within the past 6 to 10 generations (approx. 200 years); a 99.7% chance they share a common ancestor within the past 18 generations (approx. 360 years); and a 100% chance they share a common ancestor within the past 26 generations (approx. 520 years). But this is all pure speculation. Take for instance the comparison between #56587 and #73567 using this same report. They share Harden Owens as a common ancestor six generation’s back. This is well documented and was known prior to testing. Although, if you use the same Most Recent Common Ancestor Report as above to predict their common ancestor, there is less than a 46% chance they share a common ancestor within the past 10 generations. The problem lies in the mutation prediction rate. Within our Owens group (4 participants) we can see 3 mutations that have occurred in the past 160 years. The experts say, on average, one mutation will occur every 250 generations or so (kerchner.com). And just 5 years ago, their estimates were as high as 500 generations. I think they, the scientist, have a ways to go before this type of report is useful.
The bottom line is.... Good old fashion paperwork and documentation is what is needed!
March 2, 2008
We have a new Y-DNA match! Participant #105979 is reported to be a descendant of Zachariah Allen b. cir 1720 in NC through his son Robert Allen. But the Allen's have a similar situation to the Owens bunch. Two other Allen males have tested who also state they are descendants of Zachariah Allen through another son, John Allen. These other two Allen males match each other but do not match participant #105979. They are trying to locate a descendant of Zachariah's other son, Joseph Allen, in hopes that another test will help sort things out. We (Owens') can relate. Speaking of that, one of our fellow researchers has located a male descendant of Nicholas Owens. The descendant has agreed to testing and the kit has been ordered. The researcher paid for this test. Many, many thanks. If anyone wishes to contribute funds towards the costs of future test, please email me by selecting the "Contact" button on the home page.
We have a new Y-DNA match! Participant #105979 is reported to be a descendant of Zachariah Allen b. cir 1720 in NC through his son Robert Allen. But the Allen's have a similar situation to the Owens bunch. Two other Allen males have tested who also state they are descendants of Zachariah Allen through another son, John Allen. These other two Allen males match each other but do not match participant #105979. They are trying to locate a descendant of Zachariah's other son, Joseph Allen, in hopes that another test will help sort things out. We (Owens') can relate. Speaking of that, one of our fellow researchers has located a male descendant of Nicholas Owens. The descendant has agreed to testing and the kit has been ordered. The researcher paid for this test. Many, many thanks. If anyone wishes to contribute funds towards the costs of future test, please email me by selecting the "Contact" button on the home page.
April 20, 2008
The 12 marker results are in for a male that was believed to be a descendant of Nicholas Owens, the possible sibling of Harden Owens. Participant # 115836 markers indicate he is in the R1a haplogroup, which means he does not share a common ancestor with either Harden or Reese. There is a possibility another male from this line will test in the future to attempt to confirm this.
The 12 marker results are in for a male that was believed to be a descendant of Nicholas Owens, the possible sibling of Harden Owens. Participant # 115836 markers indicate he is in the R1a haplogroup, which means he does not share a common ancestor with either Harden or Reese. There is a possibility another male from this line will test in the future to attempt to confirm this.
June 9, 2008
A few months ago, we located a male believed to be the descendant of John Owens (b cir 1701). John Owens was an "Indian trader" at Fort Pit and he married the daughter of Chief Tanacharisson, a Seneca Chief. Some have reported that Nancy Owens that married William Owens (b 1750) was the great-grand daughter of this John Owens and since many have said that William and Nancy were cousins, and the parents of Harden Owens, we thought it was worth the test. We received the results of this descendant (#119665) and found that he does not match the Harden descendants or the G2a group of Owens' that were found in the area of what is nowTazewell Co, VA in the late 1700s. Participant #119665 does have many Owens matches and can be found in Group 20 of the FTDNA Owen Y-DNA Project.
A few months ago, we located a male believed to be the descendant of John Owens (b cir 1701). John Owens was an "Indian trader" at Fort Pit and he married the daughter of Chief Tanacharisson, a Seneca Chief. Some have reported that Nancy Owens that married William Owens (b 1750) was the great-grand daughter of this John Owens and since many have said that William and Nancy were cousins, and the parents of Harden Owens, we thought it was worth the test. We received the results of this descendant (#119665) and found that he does not match the Harden descendants or the G2a group of Owens' that were found in the area of what is nowTazewell Co, VA in the late 1700s. Participant #119665 does have many Owens matches and can be found in Group 20 of the FTDNA Owen Y-DNA Project.
August 2, 2008
Another descendant of Zachariah Allen ( b cir 1730) has tested and is a match with our Harden Owens line. His markers have been posted on our "DNA Results" page. The participant's markers can also be found using MXZF6 on Ysearch.com
Another descendant of Zachariah Allen ( b cir 1730) has tested and is a match with our Harden Owens line. His markers have been posted on our "DNA Results" page. The participant's markers can also be found using MXZF6 on Ysearch.com
September 24,2008
A descendant of the Bailey line from Tazewell County area has tested. The test arrived today at FTDNA and we should have the results in approximately 6 to 8 weeks. My theory for testing this line is based on the fact that we have a Bailey match but his family has never been in the VA area as far as we can determine. But we do believe this Bailey line and our Owens line (through the Reese descendant and his match) were living in the same area, near what is now Tazewell County, VA, during the late 1700s. Many thanks to the donors that funded this test (the people did not wish to be identified). By the way, our coffers are now empty. If anyone would like to contribute towards the cost of future test, and assist us in our quest for the parents of Harden, please contact me via the main page.
A descendant of the Bailey line from Tazewell County area has tested. The test arrived today at FTDNA and we should have the results in approximately 6 to 8 weeks. My theory for testing this line is based on the fact that we have a Bailey match but his family has never been in the VA area as far as we can determine. But we do believe this Bailey line and our Owens line (through the Reese descendant and his match) were living in the same area, near what is now Tazewell County, VA, during the late 1700s. Many thanks to the donors that funded this test (the people did not wish to be identified). By the way, our coffers are now empty. If anyone would like to contribute towards the cost of future test, and assist us in our quest for the parents of Harden, please contact me via the main page.
November 7, 2008
The results are in for the Bailey descendant listed above. His haplogroup is I2b1 (#130413), therefore he does not match us.
The results are in for the Bailey descendant listed above. His haplogroup is I2b1 (#130413), therefore he does not match us.
September 24, 2009
Earlier this year, two graves were found in the area of what is believed to be the old home place of Andrew Owens in Buchanan Co, VA. Early accounts of the death of Harden Owens stated he was living with his son Andrew when he passed away cir 1887 and was buried on this property. There are two field stones at this location with what appears to be HO on one and DO on the other.
Earlier this year, two graves were found in the area of what is believed to be the old home place of Andrew Owens in Buchanan Co, VA. Early accounts of the death of Harden Owens stated he was living with his son Andrew when he passed away cir 1887 and was buried on this property. There are two field stones at this location with what appears to be HO on one and DO on the other.
