Fletcher Family Research Bulletin

A Surname Newsletter for
All Lines, All Localities

¨¨¨¨

edited by Marilyn Bridge Brown

The FFRB began publication in 1988 as a not-for-profit clearinghouse for anyone researching the surname Fletcher, regardless of lineage, locality, or time period. The FFRB was published each March, June, September, and December for twenty-one years, 1988 through 2008. Back issues are still available. See “How to Order” in the lefthand menu.

Fletcher DNA Project

Major Genetic Lines

Fletcher Links

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You may request a free .pdf file of a 2008 issue by emailing the editor at genealogy@fletcher.net.

More about the Bulletin

Each issue of the FFRB was packed with news and research on Fletcher ancestors, including biographies, family histories, Bible records, family group sheets, military records, extracts from source materials and reference books, both new and old, immigration records, photographs, and more.

In 1996 the FFRB earned an Honorable Mention for Service to Readers/Excellence in Design in a newsletter contest sponsored by the Ellen Payne Odom Genealogy Library of Moultrie, Georgia.

Marilyn Bridge Brown, Editor, 627 Polk 412, Mena, Arkansas 71953

genealogy@fletcher.net

As printed in the March 2003 issue of Fletcher Family Research Bulletin:

The Fletcher DNA Project

Most of you are probably aware of the latest tool available to genealogists: DNA testing. DNA analysis has already been used to investigate historical mysteries such as the Jefferson-Hemings controversy and has also been an invaluable tool for identifying missing American servicemen and other disaster victims.

While still in its infancy, the field has now become available to family historians. Many one-name groups in America and Britain have already obtained some surprising and challenging results from analyzing the DNA of selected constituents.

Isn’t it time for Fletchers to put this new tool to use? Yes!

The FFRB is pleased to announce that the Fletcher DNA Surname Project is now officially underway.

Sponsored by the Fletcher Family Research Bulletin, the Project will be coordinated through Family Tree DNA, a Houston-based firm which specializes in DNA project management for genealogists.

FFRB editor Marilyn Brown will serve as Project administrator, assisted by Gordon Fletcher of Kenilworth, NJ and Timothy Peterman of Kansas City. Other committee members may be added as the Project progresses.

What benefits can this project provide?

DNA analysis has the potential to:

¨ determine if two people are related

¨ find out if others with your surname are related

¨ determine if two people descend from the same ancestor

¨ provide an approximate time frame for the common ancestor

¨ confirm a family tree

¨ find others to whom you are related

¨ determine a possible point of origin for your surname

¨ prove or disprove a research theory

¨ determine if other surnames are variants of your surname

¨ provide clues or solve brick walls

¨ identify a location for further research

¨ verify ancestors’ migration

¨ provide clues about ethnic origin

What are our own goals and objectives?

Our long-term goal is to identify and group the various progeny of specific Fletcher immigrants to America. This will be accomplished by building a Y-chromosome DNA database of males with the surname Fletcher. As we work toward this goal, some of our more immediate objectives will be:

¨ To find out if Robert Fletcher of Concord, Massachusetts, really did descend from the Fletchers of Cumberland County, England, as the Cumbrian Pedigrees indicate.

¨ To clarify which VA-TN-NC Fletcher lines descend from William Fletcher of Essex Co. VA.

¨ To verify descendants of such other early Fletcher immigrants as William Fletcher of Accomack Co. VA and John Fletcher of Chester Co. PA.

¨ To help sort out the tangled Fletcher lines in locations such as the Virginia counties of Lee, Fauquier and Culpepper; the Pennsylvania counties of Adams and Westmoreland; and the Ohio counties of Clermont and Gallia.

As the project grows, several Fletcher DNA subsets will be established, and the number of major Fletcher lines in America—now standing at twenty-three on the FFRB website—will shrink.

What kind of test will be used?

Although several different types of tests are available, the FFRB project will use the male Y-chromosome 12-marker test. DNA samples are obtained through a simple and painless inner cheek scrubbing, similar to brushing one’s teeth. Test kits are mailed to participants, then returned to the Houston firm, where a code number is assigned before the kit is shipped to the University of Arizona labs which process and analyze the DNA. These steps insure that no unauthorized person can match your name against your results. The test is for genealogy purposes only, and these results will be kept as private and confidential as each individual desires. The test will never be used for paternity, alimony or other legal purposes.

Where do we begin?

To get the project rolling, the FFRB has reserved six Y-DNA test kits in order to qualify for the group discount price of $99 each. Committee member Gordon Fletcher, a descendant of Robert Fletcher’s son William, has already purchased one of these and has the distinction of being the first participant in this DNA study.

As our first objective, the other five test kits will be assigned to individual Fletcher men whose DNA can help prove whether or not Robert Fletcher descended from the Cumberland County, England, Fletchers. These volunteers must have a well-proven Fletcher pedigree and also be willing to share one-half of the $99 cost ($49.50) with the editor, as well as cover shipping costs for their own individual test ($2 in U.S. or $4 international).

Fletcher men from lines other than Robert of Concord are free to request a text kit at any time, but it is hoped that Fletcher family groups will work closely together so as not to duplicate efforts. The DNA advisory committee can help you establish objectives and choose among available candidates.

What’s next?

In addition to helping fund these first tests for her own Fletcher line, the FFRB editor will continue to support the project financially by offering fifteen percent rebates on all other $99 Y-DNA tests purchased for the Fletcher DNA Surname Project by FFRB subscribers.

How can you help the Project?

¨ For males with the Fletcher surname (and no known non-paternity events such as adoption or infidelity), purchase a DNA test kit at www.familytreedna.com. You might consider asking your own family members to help you cover the cost. And don’t forget to contact the editor for your fifteen percent rebate ($15.00).

¨ For females, consider contributing toward the cost of a test for a male relative who carries the Fletcher name, either as a full sponsor or a co-sponsor.

¨ For all Fletcher researchers, regardless of gender or surname, talk to others in your own Fletcher line and form a sub-committee to identify a project objective, choose candidates and solicit contributions toward the cost.

How can you purchase a test kit?

Go to www.familytreedna.com, search on the surname Fletcher, then place your order at the Fletcher group rates.

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Fletcher Links

An Ancient Scottish Clan: The Fletchers of Glenorchy

http://spaceless.com/fletcher/

A Fletcher Lineage

By Theresa Fletcher Barnes

www.afletcherlineage.com

Fletcher Family Genealogy Online

A bibliography of Fletcher books and manuscripts, many of them scanned and searchable. This is the website of DNA participant Patrick W. Fletcher.

http://fletcherfamily.info/