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I've thought of it, but a) we don't have a large family at all and most have passed away, and b) my husband gives me grief when I talk about doing DNA because he's, well, paranoid. LOL.
BTW...doesn't DNA testing depend on other family members also submitting their DNA?
Honestly, your best hope of unlocking her mystery is doing an ancestry DNA test. It is on sale for $59. If you buy on amazon you get free prime shipping.
Yes, it depends on whether your mothers family has tested, you won't know that unless you buy a kit. I suggest you buy one, when it's done post back, we'll tell you how to save the DNA file to upload free to my heritage which is world wide, if your mothers family were immigrants, you may have decent matches there.
Ancestry has the largest DNA database. My heritage (which is a free upload) is the best for matches all over the world.
Both of my parents were immigrants in 57. Surprised to have matches on my mothers parents lines in the US. I was told no one else immigrated which was wrong, both of my grandparents siblings immigrated.
DNA will not be $59 again until sometime next year if you don't buy one today.
When your kit is done processing, post back, we will tell you what to do with DNA matches to sort between your mother and father. If you know your fathers side, once you mark them as paternal, the rest are all your mothers side. It's a new tool ancestry has.
Have you tried the state of NY records department?
Or see if court records are open.
Consider also a person may be thought to have been born in a place they were not. I see this often when "Grandma is from X" so she's thought to have been born there when she was actually born in an adjoining state or province.
Good luck.
New York City records are separate, under the City's jurisdiction, and are not held by NY State.
Appreciate all the comments. I'm having my sister take one more look at any of my Mother's documentation that she may still have on hand. NY wants a death cert but I'm not sure she has that, either (if she has the BC then I don't need to send away and pay for one.....or be told one can't be located?)
Gonna consider that DNA kit!
I've thought of it, but a) we don't have a large family at all and most have passed away, and b) my husband gives me grief when I talk about doing DNA because he's, well, paranoid. LOL.
BTW...doesn't DNA testing depend on other family members also submitting their DNA?
Maybe you will match up with one of her siblings or siblings children.
I was able to find my cousins birth family via DNA. I sent his in and got several matches.
It absolutely does. But you'll still have to do some work to pick it all apart.
My Anglo side is well represented in the DNA connections of Ancestry; 40,000 of them.
Almost all of whom are distant cousins (5th-8th etc) but many already have trees.
I was also approached by a 3rd cousin -another adoptee- with useful info & help.
The hundred or so closer cousins have gotten me as far back as the early 1800 G-G-G grandparents.
This gets me down to the Sixteen Family Names, some 2nd cousins, even one 1st cousin
... but the particular culprit among them remains a mystery.
My Spanish side (out of Cuba) is not as well represented in the DNA connections; 6,000 or so.
ONE second cousin who has since died leaving two uninformed daughters and a few others from their immediate family (=no add'l leads).
The next jump is to 4th C and it's all in Spanish. I'll need help to dig into Post Castro Cuban records
and also in The Canary Islands and Spain. Not there yet.
Appreciate all the comments. I'm having my sister take one more look at any of my Mother's documentation that she may still have on hand. NY wants a death cert but I'm not sure she has that, either (if she has the BC then I don't need to send away and pay for one.....or be told one can't be located?) Gonna consider that DNA kit!
The DNA kit can be a gold mine to figure out her mystery. It's your best shot.
Your sister should also do one because your parents did not give you the same pieces of DNA. You may have more matches to your fathers side while she may have more to your mothers side; it depends on what family has tested.
Looks at the Jane and John Doe cases being solved by DNA matches. You just never know.
Don't put the cart before the horse. If you can obtain her BC naming her birth parents then that could be sufficient, you won't need a DNA test. Not everyone gets lucky with DNA tests. Depends what you're searching for. But it is always better to lay the groundwork of collecting and searching for as many documents and records as possible before jumping into a DNA test. The more information you gather ahead of time, the easier it will be to interpret your DNA results. That includes information about your father's side, which will help you distinguish from relatives on your mother's side.
Also, don't forget to search family trees in Ancestry. Since your mother is deceased, she may be in someone's family tree, although the accuracy of family trees is highly variable.
Don't put the cart before the horse. If you can obtain her BC naming her birth parents then that could be sufficient, you won't need a DNA test. Not everyone gets lucky with DNA tests. Depends what you're searching for. But it is always better to lay the groundwork of collecting and searching for as many documents and records as possible before jumping into a DNA test. The more information you gather ahead of time, the easier it will be to interpret your DNA results. That includes information about your father's side, which will help you distinguish from relatives on your mother's side.
I just pulled out my father's Florida death certificate to see if his parents' are named. Yes, my father's parents are listed on his death certificate. My great-grandfather's NYC death certificate names his parents as well.
So I would get a death certificate first.
NYC is very fuss about requiring a death certificate before issuing a birth certificate.
My sister did DNA testing and didn't find out anything.
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