Amy & Kirk will wed in 2017. They had something in
common even before they met: Joint ancestry. It is nearly certain that their
Most Recent Common Ancestors (MRCAs) were Robert Rutherford (born 1663) &
Margaret Vawter. The generational reach is too great for autosomal DNA (atDNA)
to confirm this hypothesized common ancestry with confidence, but we have some
interesting Rutherford DNA matches to both Amy & Kirk. At www.gedmatch.com
Amy’s kit number is T257850 for atDNA. Kirk’s kit number is T945852. For those
with access, the common ancestors appear in Amy’s Bierman-Rowe tree at:
http://person.ancestry.com/tree/87311365/person/40573355863/facts
Robert Rutherford’s probable yDNA cannot connect him to
Rutherford of Scotland, as there was reportedly a Non-Paternity event during
Colonial America whereby our Rutherford/Retherford line of interest may have
been one of several which acquired Moffatt yDNA. Search for “Moffatt” at
www.hunthill.4t.com/custom2.html
Robert’s grandson William Rutherford (b. 1727) married
Ursula Parrish. Their son Julius (b. 1757) & his wife Rhoda were the
ancestors of Kirk, his sister, Kirk’s daughter, & various cousins. Julius’
brother Archibald was the ancestor of Kirk’s atDNA match Stephen. Julius’ &
Archibald’s brother Thomas was the reported ancestor of RutherfordCPA, whose
yDNA is a match to that of Lyn, a known cousin of Kirk & crew. Julius’ son
Michael Retherford & his wife Matilda were Most Recent Common Ancestors for
Kirk & George G., but the atDNA match picture is complicated by a second
set of MRCAs: O’Bryant-Clark. Kirk &
George have a total of 91.4 centiMorgans of shared chromosomal segments,
loading on 5 segments. It seems likely that there is some input from both sets
of MRCAs.
We are fortunate to have acquired (from Salt Lake City via
the wife of George) an extensive account of the Revolutionary War activities of
Julius Rutherford. Julius’ brother Archibald was also was in that war. Both
have files in the DAR database, as do some of their other brothers. Julius &
Archibald Rutherford are also on a roster of those present at Valley Forge:
http://valleyforgemusterroll.org/
Kirk’s ancestor William Rutherford (b. 1727), father of
Julius, had a first cousin Reuben Rutherford (b. 1760). Reuben was Amy’s 6th
great-grandfather & was the guy whose family wound up in Pike County
Kentucky, scene of much of Amy’s ancestral activity. Reuben’s son Joseph
Rutherford married Permillia Keesee: These were MRCAs for Amy & John,
A012825 at GEDmatch. John’s GEDCOM file is available for viewing at GEDmatch.
Amy’s & John’s small atDNA match is complicated by a second set of MRCAs:
Adron Runyon & Mary Ann May.
Serepta Rutherford (daughter of Joseph & Permillia)
married William Jefferson May (son of Adron & Mary Ann). They were Amy’s
4th great-grandparents. We have a photo of Serepta & her husband, viewable
at http://person.ancestry.com/tree/87311365/person/40572398044/facts
Their son Adron May (b. 1857) married Martha Jane Smith:
These were the MRCAs for Amy & Sherry W., Kit # A441496, whose atDNA match
with Amy shows multiple & sizable shared chromosomal segments. Adron’s
& Martha’s daughter Sally May married Elijah Saunders, & these were the
MRCAs for Amy & Darlene, our Facebook correspondent.
