We received the results of my father’s 44 marker DNA test from Ancestry.com.  I am sorry to say, we remain unenlightened about the origins of our “Scott” family.  Probably the right person hasn’t done a DNA test yet, so here is where we stand:

• Our “close matches” on Ancestry are more than 15 generations ago, and only 1 (22 generations divided from us) bears the Scott Surname.
• Though things start out looking right on the Scott Family Tree DNA Project, nothing is yet to pan out because we differ on at least 4 markers from everyone, sometimes more.
• No luck on Ysearch either.

To sum up, there’s a lot more to understand about DNA than I think some services lead you to believe.  This error in thinking/presentation caused a frenzy of excitement for one week after the results came in.  Ancestry determined our “closest match” within 150 years to be a family named Saunders.  I contacted the Saunders who live in England and found out their line were mariners from Dover.  Hooray!  We decided Joseph must be an illegitimacy from their line, or perhaps lived under an assumed name.  We spent a week mouthing “Saunders” and thinking how much we liked the last name “Scott” better.

Once we calmed down (on both sides of the Atlantic) we realized that Mr. Saunders had taken a 33 marker test AND a 44 marker test…and Ancestry had connected my father’s 44 marker test to Mr. Saunder’s 33 marker test.  At 44 markers we don’t match at all.  What a waste of time!

But we remain “Scotts” until proven otherwise.  That’s something.