Number 2 in a series on DNA by Nancy A. Nolette, VFA #1702
As a young girl growing up I remember my father’s reverence for his elders. He always treated them with respect and honor. He developed an in depth knowledge of our family’s oral history from these older generation relatives. Fortunately for the past 30 years I had him document his memory of them. Some of his family tales seemed outlandish to me yet I have not judged and accepted his present day versions.
In 1976 Alex Haley published his book, “Roots—A Saga of an American Family.” It was an overnight success causing a 1977 ABC television mini-series based on his book. I remember being glued to the television each week as Alex Haley’s family history was revealed from Kunta Kinte (1750-1822), Kizzy, Fiddler, Chicken George to present day. In 1979 a sequel followed with Haley’s visit to the African home of Kunta Kinte. The History Channel aired a remake of the original mini-series in 2016. The story of Haley’s African ancestry series inspired a broad interest in genealogy and family history.
More recently several television series have become popular with genealogy research. The first one that I recall viewing was, “Who do you think you are?” It was presented initially on NBC then was replayed in later years on the cable channel TLC. Sometimes you can catch reruns on this cable channel. The focus was on celebrities who now discovered an unknown line of their ancestry with the assistance of historians and ancestry experts. With the resurgence of genealogy now, this series will return soon with new personalities.
Another television show on the BYU channel is “Generations Project.” This program uncovers the hidden identities in a family’s past. Their focus is for the individuals to know who they are today based on where their ancestors came from. The participants embark on a journey that immerses them into their family’s past with unknown relatives and places. The “Generations Project” was limited to a series of 10 stories and was discontinued yet has become a weekly rerun on this channel.
“Roots Less Travelled” is a half hour presentation geared for teenagers. Two family members from different generations participate to solve a mystery in their family tree. They investigate rumors and discover notable moments in history and locations. It is shown on Saturdays by the NBC television channel.
PBS presents “Finding Your Roots” with host and historian Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. Dr. Gates explores the ancestry of influential persons from diverse backgrounds. This feature has been on television for 6 seasons. Recently added at the conclusion of the genealogy discussion, the individual’s DNA that was collected earlier identifies who also shares it with them.
Another NBC Saturday morning show is “A New Leaf.” This program follows ordinary individuals on their self-discovery using family history, genealogy and sometimes DNA analysis to fill in the missing blanks. Along the way viewers will learn about different cultures discovered by the guest about their family heritage having an understanding of their family history in making important positive life changes.
“Railroad Ties” is a short series sponsored by Ancestry.com. The current episodes take a personal look at how understanding our family’s past can influence not just who we are, but how we see ourselves. Historian Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr. shows the dynamic impact our history has had on identity, family and legacy.
A TLC cable channel program, “Long Lost Family” follows the stories of people who have experienced long term separation from family members and are seeking to be reunited with them. After fruitless searching, birth parents can reconnect with their biological children who were put up for adoption years ago. Most often separated siblings are searching for one another. The hosts have a special connection to these people as they are both adoptees who have embarked on their own journeys to discover their biological families. Often DNA is needed as a starting point in this search and can validate their genealogy results.
A recent ABC program is the “Genetic Detective” hosted by CeCe Moore. She has had a diverse career and then years ago ventured into genealogy for family and friends. When DNA sequencing became popular, she studied Family Tree DNA and how it applied to finding unknown biological parents for adoptees. Her expertise has morphed into valuable research skills and techniques.
Today CeCe partners with police departments who have reached a dead end in solving cold case homicides yet have crime scene DNA available. She uses related DNA to search for genealogical family members by comparing and eliminating them by parentage, generation, sex, age and physical location with the crime scene suspect’s DNA. CeCe’s says her greatest “bump” in the process is a descendant of an adoptee or divorced parent causing her to relook deeper into the ancestral lineage. Once the police receive her genetic and genealogy clues, they must use their investigative techniques to validate her conclusions.
Plan to watch these televised programs, search for them with your on-demand channels, try the premium television providers or do online searches to discover how genealogy and DNA can find missing relatives and confirm family lineages.
“We are the sum total of our ancestors…you have the potential of their accumulated sense of possibilities.”
This series continues . . .