UPDATE: We have a winner! The father of the baby born January 22, 1963, in Los Angeles was Raymond Wallace HOOKER (1936-2000).

DNA can sometimes prove what no document can prove, and autosomal DNA is proving that Elizabeth HUFFORD who was born in 1851 in Carroll County, Indiana, has a previously unknown great-great granddaughter who was born in January 1963 in Los Angeles, California.

Elizabeth Hufford was the daughter of Andrew, who was the son of Abraham, who was the son of Casper, who was the son of Christian Hoffarth b. 1716.

Elizabeth was my great-great grandmother. She was a straight-laced German Baptist Brethren farm girl who married a Catholic man who was a veteran of the Civil War. She, her husband, and their nine children are pictured on page 81 of the 1909 HUFFORD FAMILY HISTORY.

Of all of my ancestral lines, it is the HUFFORD line that I have worked the hardest and the longest for 30 years. And of my eight sets of great-great grandparents, it is Elizabeth HUFFORD and George HOOKER‘s descendants whom I have worked most at tracking.

In 2014, I first stepped into the world of tying DNA to documentary genealogical research. Most of my work has involved autosomal DNA testing, and, for me, all of it on the HUFFORDs has involved autosomal DNA testing. These are direct-to-consumer spit tests that cost about $100 per test kit. The results and the accuracy are almost unbelievable, but it is all legit and for-real.

On October 17, 2017, a new match showed for me at ancestry.com:
“30.0 centimorgans (cM) shared across 3 DNA segments.”
That is not much, but it was enough for me to click one button: “SHARED MATCHES.” That click made clear that this is another HUFFORD descendant.

Immediately I saw that this woman shares DNA with four of my 2nd cousins once-removed, with one of my 3rd cousins, and with several more-distant HUFFORD cousins. Even at first glance, my assumption was that the woman descended from Elizabeth Hufford and George Hooker. (NOTE: How did I know that it was a woman? Because DNA does not lie and is not delusional.)

I sent her a message: “Hi! We’re both HUFFORD descendants. I’m from Elizabeth on page 81 of the Hufford book, and it looks as if you are also from Elizabeth. What’s your line? I’d like to add you to my tree.” The answer came back that she did not know her father; the truth of who her father was had been hidden from her, and her mother had died in 1988. I said, “Well, I know who your great-great-grandparents were. I’ll do my best to help you figure out who your birth father was.”

And that is what this blog post is about — trying to figure out who is this woman’s biological father and how the suspects were able to be narrowed down.

These were the certainties as the search began for my newly found cousin’s father:
(1) Her date of birth: 22-Jan-1963
(2) Her place of birth: Los Angeles, CA
(3) Her mother’s date of birth: 7-Jul-1936
(4) Her mother’s home at time of conception: East Los Angeles/Montebello area
(5) She definitely was not a hospital-switch: Her autosomal DNA test and the autosomal test of a son her mother birthed in 1964 show that the two share 1,436 centimorgans of DNA: absolutely NOT full-siblings, but absolutely the same mother.

Question: “Who’s her daddy?”

MAJOR UPDATE! 23-Nov-2017, Thanksgiving Day:
In addition to sharing DNA with a massive number of identified HUFFORD, CRIPE, and McMASTER descendants, and having two large shares with ID’d descendants of George Hooker and Elizabeth Hufford’s son James Burton Hooker, my newly found cousin also shares DNA (107 centimorgans) with a woman who descends from the grandfather of Thelma Margretta Dorene Hutchinson. Who was Thelma Hutchinson? Thelma was the wife of Lawrence Hooker, who was the son of James Burton Hooker (son of George Hooker and Elizabeth Hufford). Lawrence and Thelma had two sons who reached maturity. Nine months before my newly found cousin was born in Los Angeles near Montebello, both of Lawrence and Thelma’s sons were living in the Montebello, California, area. One was 26 and divorced; the other was 23 and married. Without DNA from a descendant of one of those two men, it’s unknown which one deserved the cigar. 

To start solving the puzzle, I needed good information about the descendants of Elizabeth HUFFORD and her husband George HUFFORD. Second, I needed DNA from several of those descendants. All of the DNA information came from one of the three companies that sell direct-to-consumer autosomal DNA testing: ancestry.com, 23andMe.com, or familyTreeDNA.com. Most of the information was found at ancestry.com; some was found at gedMatch.com, a free website where people who have tested with one of the three testing companies can upload their raw date to be compared with raw data uploaded by others.

As I began working the information, it quickly was apparent that the woman’s DNA also showed that she is a McMASTER descendant. Two of Elizabeth HUFFORD’s sons married McMASTER women (who were 1st cousins). So, after filling in and working the descendants of Elizabeth HUFFORD, I had to do the same for the McMasters. The two lists below are long and detailed. The first is the most detailed and the most nearly complete: It shows all known descendants of Elizabeth HUFFORD and George HOOKER through their great-great-grandchildren. Where my newly found cousin has a DNA match with one of Elizabeth Hufford and George Hooker’s descendants, that information is behind the name. First names of the living are omitted; however, if you are family or a competent genealogist, you can figure out who the living people are.

Descendants of George HOOKER & Elizabeth HUFFORD:
1– George HOOKER (1844-1921)
sp-Elizabeth HUFFORD (1851-1929)
…..2– Sarah Catherine HOOKER (1871-1952) (m. BEARD)
……….3– John Moore BEARD (1891-1979)
……….3– Marvin Earl BEARD (1893-1972)
……………4– Russell Edward BEARD (1915-2006)
………………..5– Living BEARD female (1943-) (m. 1st GOCHENOUR; m. 2nd GOOD)
………………..5– Living BEARD female (1949-) (m. STRANG)
……………4– Glen Earl “Dutch” BEARD (1917-1947)
………………..5– Living BEARD male (1945-)
………………..5– Living BEARD male (1947-)
……………4– Robert Jesse BEARD (1920-2010)
………………..5– Living BEARD male (1946-)
………………..5– Living BEARD male (1948-) (Shares 67 cM.)
………………..5– Living BEARD female (1952-)
………………..5– Living BEARD female (1956-) (m. HOSFIELD)
……………4– Roberta Fern BEARD (1920-2003) (m. SHEPARD)
………………..5– Living SHEPARD male (1944-)
………………..5– Living SHEPARD female (1947-) (m. WOLF)
………………..5– Living SHEPARD female (1952-) (m. NEAL)
……….3– George Irvin BEARD (1897-1965)
……………4– Miles Griffith BEARD (1918-2006)
………………..5– Alice Marie BEARD (1950-) (Shares 30 cM.)
………………..5– Living BEARD male (1955-)
………………..5– Living BEARD male (1954-)
………………..5– Living BEARD male (1959-)
……………4– Max Irvin BEARD (1920-1988)
………………..5– Mary Frances BEARD (1944-2009) (m. STEVENS)
………………..5– Living BEARD male (1948-)
……………4– Bruce Williard BEARD (1921-1990)
………………..5– Living BEARD female (1951-)
………………..5– Living BEARD female (1954-) (m. MILLER)
………………..5– Living BEARD male (1959-)
………………..5– Living BEARD male (1968-)
……….3– Edith Eve BEARD (1902-1978) (m. GRIFFITH)
……………4– Living GRIFFITH (1943-)
………………..5– Living GRIFFITH male (1966-)
………………..5– Living GRIFFITH male (1968-)
………………..5– Living GRIFFITH female (1974-) (m. REELSEN)
…..2– Mary Elizabeth HOOKER (1873-1963) (m. HAZLETT)
……….3– Essie Fern HAZLETT (1893-1981) (m. SHEARER)
……………4– Evelyn Janet SHEARER (1921-2003) (m. SHANK)
………………..5– Richard Paul SHANK (1949-2014)
……………4– Living SHEARER (1925; alive in 2003) (m. KEEN)
………………..5– Living KEEN female (1954-)  (m. 1st BYLER; m. 2nd HOWERTON) (Shares 40 cM.)
……….3– Glenn HAZLETT (1894-bef 1910)
…..2– Rosa Ellen HOOKER (1874-1962) (m. HURLEY)
……….3– Ruth Perrin HURLEY (1893-1967) (m. KRAMER)
……………4– Mary Katherine KRAMER (1918-2008) (m. BECKETT)
………………..5– Robert Byron BECKETT, Jr. (1942-2016)
………………..5– Living BECKETT male (1947-)
………………..5– Living BECKETT male (1950-)
……….3– Mabel Elizabeth HURLEY (1904-1965) (m. RUCH)
……………4– Rose Mary RUCH (1925-2011) (m. HARRISON)
………………..5– Living HARRISON female (1946-) (m. BYRKETT)
………………..5– James Dale HARRISON (1949-2012)
………………..5– Living HARRISON male (1958-) (Shares 34 cM.)
…………………….6– Living HARRISON female (1988-) (m. CATRAMBONE) (Shares 31 cM.)
………………..5– Living HARRISON female (1964) (m. GRICE)
……………4– Ruth Mary RUCH (1927-2013) (m. KUIPERS)
………………..5– Living KUIPERS female (1947-) (m. EBY)
………………..5– Robert Alan KUIPERS (1951-1972)
………………..5– Living KUIPERS female (1953-) (m. 1st MANNES; m. 2nd BAAS)
………………..5– Living KUIPERS female (1960-) (m. MOLENAAR)
……………4– Richard Hurley RUCH (1930-2016)
………………..5– Living RUCH male (1949-)
…………………….6– Living RUCH male (Shares 6.9 cM.)
………………..5– Christina Mary RUCH (1952-2000) (m. SLIGH)
………………..5– Living RUCH male (1953-)
………………..5– Living RUCH male (1959-) (Shares 20.5 cM.)
………………..5– Matthew John RUCH (1970-1979)
…..2– George Washington HOOKER (1877-1947) (m. Amanda McMASTER)
……….3– Robert J. HOOKER (1905-1977)
……………4– Elsie Irene HOOKER (1922-1973) (m. GOLCHUK)
……………4– Gladys May HOOKER (1924-2015) (m. MELVIN)
………………..5– Living MELVIN female (m. GORUK)
………………..5– Living MELVIN male (abt 1951-)
………………..5– Living MELVIN male
………………..5– Living MELVIN male
………………..5– Living MELVIN female
………………..5– Living MELVIN male
………………..5– Living MELVIN female (m. HORECHKA)
……………4– Clifford J. HOOKER (1925-1981)
……………4– Living HOOKER female (abt 1940-) (m. BODGER)
………………..5– Living BODGER male (1954-)
………………..5– Allen Lee BODGER (1956-1993)
………………..5– Living BODGER male (1957-)
………………..5– Catherine Ardeen BODGER (1958-2002) (m. 1st STORALE; m. 2nd QUIROZ)
……………4– William George “Bill” HOOKER (1941-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (1961-)
………………5– Living HOOKER female (1962) (m. SPICER) (Shares 41 cM.)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (1965-)
……….3– Dora Rosella HOOKER (1908-1984) (m. JACKSON)
……………4– Living JACKSON male (1941-) (Shares 114 cM.)
………………..5– Living JACKSON female (1965-)
………………..5– Living JACKSON male (1967-)
……………4– David Charles JACKSON (1942-1944)
……………4– Living JACKSON female (1944-) (m. RAEBURN)
………………..5– Living RAEBURN male (1969-)
………………..5– Living RAEBURN male (1971-)
………………..5– Living RAEBURN male (1973-)
……………4– Stephen David JACKSON (1946-2005)
………………..5– Living JACKSON female (m. BEBEE)
……………4– Living JACKSON male (1950-)
……….3– James Benjamin HOOKER (1910-1984)
……………4– Donald James HOOKER (1938-1938)
……………4– James Murray HOOKER (1941-2016)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (1977-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (1980-)
……………4– Living HOOKER female (1943-) (m. BODNAR)
………………..5– Living BODNAR male (1972-)
………………..5– Living BODNAR male (twin) (1975-)
………………..5– Living BODNAR female (twin) (1975-)
……………4– Living HOOKER male (1946-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (1987-)
……….3– Douglas Berdet “Bud” HOOKER (1914-1957)
……………4– Helen TOPPING (1937-2007) (m. WHIFFIN) (b. Margaret Eliza. MERCY)
………………..5– Andrew Scott Gordon WHIFFIN (1962-1984)
………………..5– Living WHIFFIN female (1963-) (m. PINCKSTON) (Shares 83 cM.)
………………..5– Living WHIFFIN male (1967-)
………………..5– Living WHIFFIN male (1970-)
……………4– Living HOOKER male (1941-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER female
………………..5– Living HOOKER female (m. MONTAGUE)
………………..5– Living HOOKER female
……………4– Lloyd Douglas HOOKER (1943-2009)
………………..5– Living HOOKER female (abt 1972) (m. MOORE)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (aft 1972)
……………4– Living HOOKER female (1949-) (m. REIMAN) (Shares 46 cM.)
………………..5– Living  male SWENSON (1965-)
………………..5– Living  male REIMAN (1968-)
……………4– Roger John HOOKER (1953-1955)
……………4– William Richard “Rick” HOOKER (1958-1976)
……….3– Herbert Henry HOOKER (1920-1967)
……………4– Living HOOKER male (aft 1945-)
…..2– William Edward HOOKER (1879-1950)
……….3– Estella Leona HOOKER (1904-)
……….3– William Edward HOOKER (1927-1999)
……………4– Living HOOKER female (1953-) (m. GADDIS)
………………..5– Living GADDIS female (1972-) (m. HEATH)
………………..5– Living GADDIS male (1973-)
……………4– Living HOOKER male (1954-) (Shares 258 cM.)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (1986-) (Shares 99 cM.)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (1989-) (Shares 90 cM.)
……………4– Living HOOKER female (1957-) (m. 1st WALIA; m. 2nd LARSON)
………………..5– Living WALIA female (1981-)
………………..5– Living WALIA female (1985-)
………………..5– Living WALIA female (1987-)
…..2– Theodore John Wesley HOOKER (1882-1957)
…..2– James Burton HOOKER (1884-1955) (m. Adeline McMASTER)
……….3– Mabel Elizabeth HOOKER (1910-1910)
……….3– Lawrence James HOOKER (1911-2001) (m. Thelma HUTCHINSON) 
……………4– Elwood Wayne HOOKER (1934-1937)
……………4– Raymond Wallace HOOKER (1936-2000)
………………..5– Living HOOKER/McNABB female (1960-) (m. RELPH)
…………………….6– Living RELPH male (1984-)
…………………….6– Living RELPH male (1991-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (1963-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (1967-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (1970-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER female (1972-)
……………4– Doris May HOOKER (1939-1980)
……………4– Edward Keith HOOKER (1940-2017)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (1960-)
…………………….6– Living HOOKER female (abt 2003-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER female (1963-) (Shares 1,070 cM; largest share)
…………………….6– Living GRAY female (1988-) (Shares 551 cM.)
……….3– Ruth Sybil HOOKER (1914-1979) (m. 1st GANTON; m. 3rd HARDIN)
……………4– Joyce Maureen GANTON (1932-1949)
……………4– Fay L. GANTON (1933-2014) (m. MIERA)
………………..5– Living MIERA male (1962-) (Shares 152 cM.)
…………………….6– Living MIERA male (1988-) (Shares 129 cM.)
…………………….6– Living MIERA male (1993-) (Shares 23.4 cM.)
…………………….6– Living MIERA female (1995-) (Shares 60 cM.)
……………4– Gwendolyn Joan GANTON (1938-1987) (m. THOMAS)
………………..5– Living THOMAS female (1956-) (m. JOHNSON)
………………..5– Living THOMAS male (1957-)
………………..5– Living THOMAS female (1963-) (m. m. HAYES)
………………..5– Living THOMAS female (1964-) (m. BRUSS) (Shares 217 cM.)
………………..5– Living THOMAS female (1967-)
………………..5– Living THOMAS female (1973-) (m. TAORMINA)
……………4– Sharon GANTON (1940-1988) (m. 1st SMITH; m. 2nd HART)
………………..5– Living SMITH male (aft 1960-)
………………..5– Living SMITH female (aft 1960-) (m. MEITHER)
………………..5– Living SMITH female (aft 1960-bef 2017) (m. KNITSCH)
………………..5– Living HART female (aft 1970-)
………………..5– Living HART female (aft 1970-)
………………..5– Living HART female (aft 1970-) (m. MOORE)
……………4– Living GANTON male (1942-) (Shares 574 cM)
………………..5– Gary Steven GANTON, Jr. (1968-2000)
…………………….6– Living GANTON female (1987-) (Shares 72 cM)
………………..5– Living GANTON male (1970-)
………………..5– Living GANTON female (1975-) (m. 1st SNODGRASS; m. 2nd WILLIAMS)
……….3– George Edward HOOKER (1915-1936)
……….3– Glen Burton HOOKER (1922-2010)
……………4– Henry HOOKER (abt 1950-)
……………4– Donald Guy HOOKER (1953-2009)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (1975-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER female (1982-) (m. MacLEAN)
………………..5– Living HOOKER female (1986-)
……………4– Tina Louise HOOKER (abt 1958-1989) (m. WRIGHT)
……………4– Living HOOKER male (1962-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (abt 1985-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER female (2004-)
……………4– Glenda Rose HOOKER (1964-2008) (m. 1st JECK; m. 2nd MOLENDYK)
………………..5– Living JECK male (1982-)
………………..5– Living JECK female (1984-) (m. LITTLECHILD)
………………..5– Living JECK female (1987-) (m. WALLIS)
……………4– Living HOOKER male (1970-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (abt 1991-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER female (1994-)
……….3– Marion Margaret HOOKER (1924-2002) (m. CHAMBERS)
……………4– Living JACKSON female (1945-) (m. 1st DICK; m. 2nd MORROW)
………………..5– Living DICK male
………………..5– Living MORROW female
……………4– Living CHAMBERS female (1947-) (m. GELLNER)
………………..5– Living CHAMBERS male
………………..5– Living GELLNER female (m. SOMERVILLE)
………………..5– Living GELLNER male
……………4– Living CHAMBERS female (1948-) (m. 1st GOSS; m. 2nd MUENCH; m. 3rd BORROWS)
………………..5–
………………..5– Living GOSS female (1968-) (m. 1st SARGENT; m. 2nd HAWKINS) (Shares 309 cM.)
………………..5– Tyson Lorrie MUENCH (1976-2009)
……………4– Living CHAMBERS female (1955-) (m. HILL)
………………..5– Living HILL male (abt 1980-)
………………..5– Living HILL female (m. CAVALIERE)
……….3– Elizabeth Rose “Betty” HOOKER (1925-) (m. 1st WINTERS; m. 2nd KERR)
……………4– Living WINTERS male (abt 1947-)
………………..5– Living WINTERS male
……………4– Murray H. “Mo” WINTERS (abt 1949-bef 2016)
………………..5– Living WINTERS female
……………4– Karen WINTERS (abt 1951-bef 2016)
………………..5– Living female
……………4– Living WINTERS female (abt 1952-)
………………..5– Living child
………………..5– Living child
……….3– Living HOOKER male (1927-)
……………4– Living HOOKER female
……………4– Kenneth Wayne HOOKER (1959-1993)
……….3– Clifford Arthur HOOKER (1930-1947)
……….3– Clarence C. “Catsy” HOOKER (1932-1993)
……………4– Living HOOKER male (aft 1954-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (abt 1985-)
……………4– Clarice Adeline HOOKER (aft 1954-1999)
……………4– Living HOOKER female (abt 1957-) (m. LEA)
………………..5– Living LEA female (aft 1987-)
………………..5– Living LEA male (aft 1991-)
……………4– Living HOOKER female (abt 1959-) (m. SPELLER)
………………..5– Living SPELLER female (abt 1995-)
……………4– Living MORRIS male (abt 1962-)
………………..5– Living MORRIS male (1990-) (Shares 139 cM)
……………4– Living HOOKER female (abt 1965-)
……….3– Theodore Wentworth “Teddy” HOOKER (1936-1937)
…..2– Dora Leona HOOKER, R.N. (1886-1974) (m. MALONEY)
……….3– Challence Auburn MALONEY (1922-1968)
……………4– Living MALONEY female (1951-)
……………4– Living MALONEY female (1954-) (m. MAUSHUND)
………………..5– Living MAUSHUND female (1978-) (m. MORICE)
………………..5– Living MAUSHUND female (1983-) (m. COCHRAN)
……….3– Sarah Catherine MALONEY (1926-1993) (m. GENSEMER)
……………4– Living GENSEMER male (1952-)
………………..5– Living GENSEMER male (1988-)
………………..5– Living GENSEMER female (1990-)
……………4– Living GENSEMER female (1956-) (m. FINK) (Shares 146 cM.)
………………..5– Living FINK female (1987-)
……….3– George F. MALONEY (1927-2005)
……………4– Living MALONEY male (1952-)
………………..5– Living MALONEY male (1985-)
………………..5– Living MALONEY female (1987-)
……………4– Living MALONEY male (1954-)
………………..5– Living MALONEY female (1985-)
………………..5– Living MALONEY female (1987-)
………………..5– Living MALONEY female (1988-)
…..2– Challence Oscar “C.O.” HOOKER (1889-1957)
……….3– Thomas George HOOKER (1922-2006)
……………4– Living HOOKER female (1954-) (m. HASKINS)
………………..5– Living HASKINS male (1981-)
………………..5– Living HASKINS male (1983-)
……………4– Living HOOKER male (1955-) (Shares 172 cM.)
………………..5– Living HOOKER female (1982-) (m. LARSON)
………………..5– Living HOOKER female (1985-) (m. GLINIANY)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (1987-)
……………4– Living HOOKER female (1958-) (m. GALZKI)
………………..5– Living GALZKI male (1983-)
………………..5– Living GALZKI male (1985-) (Shares 119 cM.)
………………..5– Living GALZKI female (1988-) (m. DILEY)
……………4– Living HOOKER female (1962-) (m. DUNN)
………………..5– Living DUNN female (1992-)
………………..5– Living DUNN male (1997-)
………………..5– Living DUNN female (1999-)
……….3– Theodore Challence HOOKER, M.D. (1924-2008)
……………4– Living HOOKER male (1950-) (Shares 156 cM.)
………………..5– Living HOOKER female (1987-)
………………..5– Living HOOKER male (1990-)
……………4– Living HOOKER female (1953-) (m. CASEBOLT)
………………..5– Living CASEBOLT female (1984-) (m. CUGA)
………………..5– Living CASEBOLT male (1989-)
……………4– Living HOOKER female (1964-) (m. O’DAY)
………………..5– Living O’DAY male (1997-)
………………..5– Living O’DAY male (2000-)
……….3– Joan Elizabeth HOOKER (1936-2010) (m. NEUMANN)
……………4– Living NEUMANN male (1959) (Shares 218 cM.)
………………..5– Living NEUMANN female (1990-)
………………..5– Living NEUMANN male (1992-)
……………4– Living NEUMANN male (1960-)
………………..5– Living NEUMANN male (1995-)
………………..5– Living NEUMANN female (1997-)
……………4– Living NEUMANN male (1961-)
………………..5– Living NEUMANN male (1999-)
………………..5– Living NEUMANN male (2005-)
……………4– Living NEUMANN female (1964-) (m. NEESON)
………………..5– Living NEESON male (1992-)
………………..5– Living NEESON female (1994-)
………………..5– Living NEESON female (1999-)

In addition to the shares with descendants of Elizabeth Hufford and George Hooker, the newly found cousin also has the following shares with a large number of descendants of Elizabeth’s ancestors and with one descendant of George’s ancestors:
60 cM: three-greats-grandson of David CRIPE and Jane F. DANIELS (maternal grandparents of Elizabeth HUFFORD). Descent is from that couple’s daughter Lucy’s daughter Lydia’s daughter Eve Lucille’s son John’s son.
57 cM: two-greats-granddaughter of David CRIPE and Jane F. DANIELS (maternal grandparents of Elizabeth HUFFORD). Descent is from that couple’s daughter Lucy’s daughter Lydia’s daughter Eve who was born in 1898.
48 cM: three-greats-granddaughter of Andrew HUFFORD and Sarah CRIPE (parents of Elizabeth HUFFORD). Descent is from that couple’s son John’s daughter Edna’s daughter Clara’s daughter Jane’s daughter.
41 cM: two-greats-granddaughter of David CRIPE and Jane F. DANIELS (maternal grandparents of Elizabeth HUFFORD). Descent is from that couple’s daughter Lucy’s daughter Lydia’s daughter Eve Lucille’s daughter who was born in 1923.
33 cM: two-greats-granddaughter of Andrew HUFFORD and Sarah CRIPE (parents of Elizabeth HUFFORD). Descent is from that couple’s son David’s son Walter’s son Robert’s daughter.
31 cM: two-greats-grandson of John HOCKERTS and Margaretha HAMMES (parents of George HOOKER). Descent is from that couple’s son Theodore’s son Clarence’s son Charles’ son who was born in 1945.
30 cM: two-greats-granddaughter of Andrew HUFFORD and Sarah CRIPE (parents of Elizabeth HUFFORD). Descent is from that couple’s son John’s daughter Edna’s daughter Lucile’s daughter who was born in 1944.
29 cM: two-greats-granddaughter of Andrew HUFFORD and Sarah CRIPE (parents of Elizabeth HUFFORD). Descent is from that couple’s son John’s daughter Ruth’s daughter Patricia’s daughter.
26 cM: two-greats-grandson of Andrew HUFFORD and Sarah CRIPE (parents of Elizabeth HUFFORD). Descent is from that couple’s son John’s daughter Edna’s daughter Lucile’s son.

There are many, many other identified HUFFORD descendants who share autosomal DNA with my newly found cousin.

That she is a HUFFORD descendant is undeniable, and the large matches with descendants of Elizabeth HUFFORD and George HOOKER (584 cM, 309 cM, 218 cM, 217 cM) make it undeniable that she descends from them. A share of 425 cM is typically a 1st cousin once-removed. A share of 212 cM is typically a 2nd cousin or a 1st cousin twice-removed.

The chart below is copied from the International Society of Genetic Genealogy’s site. It provides information about how much DNA would be shared between various relatives if every genetic mix and re-mix were exact. The mixes and re-mixes, of course, are not exact, and the farther away the relationship is from parent and child, the more the numbers can vary.

Next it was necessary to do some work on McMASTER descendants. I won’t present a full list of descendants as I have for Elizabeth HUFFORD’s descendant, but I shall include enough information to allow for some understanding of relationships. Let’s begin with the fact that two sons of Elizabeth HUFFORD and George HOOKER married McMaster women who were 1st cousins:
(1) In 1904, in Turtle Mountain, Manitoba, Elizabeth and George’s son George Washington Hooker married Amanda McMaster, granddaughter of Reynolds McMASTER (1817-1896) and Amanda PERRY (1829-1883).
(2) Sometime before 1909, likely in Ward County, North Dakota, Elizabeth and George’s son James Burton Hooker married Adeline McMaster, granddaughter of Reynolds McMASTER and Amanda PERRY.
Amanda’s father (Ira, b. 1858) and Adeline’s father (Edward, b. 1855) were brothers, as shown on the descendants list below:

Descendants of Reynolds McMASTER & Amanda PERRY:
1– Reynolds McMASTER (1817-1896)
sp-Amanda E. PERRY (1829-1823)
…..2– Edward McMASTER (1855-1931)
……….3– George McMASTER (1886-)
……………4– John Thomas McMASTER (1925-2005)
………………..5– Living McMASTER female (1954-) (m. MILLER)
…………………….6– Living MILLER female (Shares 123 cM.)
……………4– Isabel Elizabeth McMASTER (1933-2017) (m. BOZEMAN) (Shares 447 cM.)
………………..5– Living BOZEMAN female (1954-) (m. 2nd HOLM) (Shares 255 cM.)
…………………….6– Living HOLM female (Shares 137 cM.)
………………..5– Living BOZEMAN female (1964-) (m. 2nd EVANS) (Shares 137 cM.)
……….3– Adeline McMASTER (1892-1979) (m. James Burton HOOKER)
……………4– Lawrence James HOOKER (1911-2001)
………………..5– Raymond Wallace HOOKER (1936-2000)
………………..5– Edward Keith HOOKER (1940-2017)
…………………….6– Living HOOKER female (1963-) (Shares 1,070 cM.)
……………4– Ruth Sybil HOOKER (1914-1979) (m. 1st HARDIN; m. 2nd GANTON)
………………..5– Gwendolyn Joan GANTON (1938-1987) (m. THOMAS)
…………………….6– Living THOMAS female (1964-) (Shares 217 cM.)
………………..5– Living GANTON male (1942) (Shares 584 cM.)
……………4– Marion Margaret HOOKER (1924-2002) (m. CHAMBERS)
………………..5– Living CHAMBERS female (abt 1949-) (m. MUENCH)
…………………….6– Living GOSS female (1968-) (Shares 309 cM.)
……………4– Living HOOKER female (1925-) (m. 1st WINTERS; m. 2nd KERR)
……………4– Living HOOKER male (1927-)
…..2– Ira McMASTER (1858-1926)
……….3– Andrew McMASTER (1880-1951) (m. George Washington HOOKER)
…………..4– Helen Margaret McMASTER (1902-1973) (m. O’DONNELL)
………………..5– Gerald Andrew “Jerry” O’DONNELL (1931-2011)
…………………….6– Living O’DONNELL male (aft 1954-) (Shares 72 cM.)
…………………….6– Living O’DONNELL female (aft 1954-) (Shares 102 cM.)
……….3– Amanda McMASTER (1887-1963) (m. George Washington HOOKER)
……………4– Douglas Berdet “Bud” HOOKER (1914-1957)
………………..5– Helen TOPPING (1937-2007) (m. WHIFFIN) (born Margaret MERCY)
…………………….6– Living WHIFFIN female (1963-) (m. PINCKSTON) (Shares 83 cM.)
………………..5– Living HOOKER female (1949-) (Shares 46 cM.)
……….3– Charles Abner McMASTER (1895-1961)
……………4– Charles Dean McMASTER (1927-1981)
………………..5– Living KLASSEN male (1955-) (Shares 66 cM.)
………………..5– Living McMASTER female (aft 1961-) (m. TANKERSLEY)
…………………….6– Living TANKERSLEY male (1984-) (Shares 25 cM.)

The DNA says that, absolutely, my newly found cousin descends from Elizabeth HUFFORD and George HOOKER. The DNA also says that my newly found cousin must descend from a pairing of one of Elizabeth and George’s descendants with one of Reynolds McMaster and Amanda Perry’s descendants.

But wait! There is more DNA information:
The woman also has a 47 centimorgan match with a two-greats-granddaughter of John STEWART (1814-1889) and Margaret McDOUGALL (1811-1897) (thru their son Daniel’s son Duncan), and she also has a 25.9 centimorgan match with a three-greats-grandson of John STEWART and Margaret McDOUGALL (thru their son Daniel’s son William). Who were John Stewart and Margaret McDougall? They were the maternal grandparents of Adeline McMaster, Mrs. James Burton Hooker.

In other words, the DNA says that the woman descends from James Burton Hooker and Adeline McMaster. And the reality of biology says that the biological father of the woman is a male who was old enough to sire a child in early 1962, and that he was in the area of Los Angeles, California, in early 1962.

The next step was to sort thru my cousin’s DNA matches — match by match. I was hunting for a match who does not share with her maternal half-brother, and who also does not share with the 584-centimorgan match who is a grandson of James B. Hooker, and who also does not share with the 447-centimorgan McMaster-only match (Isabel McMaster).

And then I found it:
She has a 107-centimorgan match who shares with only five other people. One is the son of my newly-found cousin; one is obviously the daughter of the 107-cM match, and three are much smaller matches with no other shares and no useful trees.

The 107-cM match has a tree, but it’s not the best, and some names are hidden. With perseverance, I figured out the hidden names and started mining for info in various corners of the internet. The 107-cM match’s tree had a HUTCHINSON grandmother: Alma Fern Hutchinson, b. 1907; m. 1925 in Prince George, British Columbia, d. 1984, Prince George, British Columbia, Canada. Right surname. Right time frame. Right place. Shared DNA.

With more hunting, I found that Alma had a sister named Violet May Hutchinson, who married on 18-May-1938 in Sinclair Mills, British Columbia, “at the home of “Mr. Hooker.” BC Vital Statistics #39-09-459832; #30695B. The only “Mr. Hooker” with a house in Sinclair Mills in 1938 was James Burton Hooker, father of Lawrence Hooker. Sinclair Mills is a small place; even in 2010, there were only 19 households in the place. And, some more looking found that Violet May Hutchinson named her first-born daughter “Thelma Dorene.” Violet May Hutchinson was born in 1918; Thelma Dorene Hutchinson was born in 1916. Both grew up in Prince George, British Columbia.

So, right surname, right time frame, right small rural place, marriage in the private house of James B. Hooker (Thelma Hutchinson’s father-in-law), and a baby who appears to have been named after Thelma Hutchinson (Mrs. Lawrence Hooker). All that plus 107 centimorgans of shared DNA. That’s just too much for “coincidence.”

But I could not find the match on the trees, even as I worked to extend the tree of this 107-cM match. Finally I figured out what was hiding: From “The Province” newspaper, Vancouver, British Columbia; February 8, 1934; page 13:

The wedding announcement for Lawrence HOOKER and Thelma HUTCHINSON clearly named Thelma as “the second daughter of Mr. and Mrs. E. F. Hutchinson.” Previously, I had mistakenly assigned Thelma as the daughter of E.F. Hutchinson’s paternal half-brother. The wedding announcement made clear who was Thelma’s father.

Descendants of Albert HUTCHINSON:
1– Albert HUTCHINSON (1848-1904)
sp-Lydia E. COLLINS (1854-1875) (1st wife of Albert HUTCHINSON)
…..2– Ernest Frank HUTCHINSON (1872-1941)
……….3– Alma Fern HUTCHINSON (1907-1984) (m. McDOUGALL)
……………4– Living McDOUGALL female (b. abt 1940) (m. ZAMNIUK)
………………..5– Living ZAMNIUK female (b. abt 1967) (Shares 107 cM.)
……….3– Morell HUTCHINSON (1910-)
……….3– Melville HUTCHINSON (1913-)
……….3– Edward HUTCHINSON (1915-)
……….3– Thelma Dorene “Dolly” HUTCHINSON (1916-1986) (m. Lawrence HOOKER)
……………4– Raymond Wallace HOOKER (1936-2000)
……………4– Edward Keith HOOKER (1940-2017)
………………..5– Living HOOKER female (1963-) (Shares 1,070 cM.)
……….3– Violet May HUTCHINSON (1918-1991) (m. SANDE)
…..2– Edgar Benjamin HUTCHINSON (1875-1952)
On January 20, 1875, Albert Hutchinson’s wife Lydia COLLINS died.
On May 4, 1878, Albert Hutchinson married Alberta Alice ESTEY:
sp-Alberta Alice ESTEY (1860-1929) (2nd wife of Albert HUTCHINSON)
…..2– Byron D. HUTCHINSON (1879-)
…..2– Beecher HUTCHINSON (1881-)
…..2– Maud A. HUTCHINSON (1882-)
…..2– Frank Leroy HUTCHINSON (1885-1967)
…..2– Frances Luella HUTCHINSON (1887-)
…..2– Raymond Theodore HUTCHINSON (1891-)
…..2– Randolph Albert HUTCHINSON (1893-)
…..2– Anna Theresa HUTCHINSON (1895-1955)
…..2– Lena M. HUTCHINSON (1898-)

The fact that my newly found cousin shares DNA with someone who descends from Alma Fern HUTCHINSON, the sister of Thelma Hutchinson (Mrs. Lawrence Hooker), makes clear where my new-found cousin fits in the HOOKER/HUFFORD house: She fits as a granddaughter of Lawrence James HOOKER (1911-2001) and Thelma Dorene HUTCHINSON (1916-1986), parents of Raymond and Edward. The final proof was DNA from Edward’s daughter, which proved that Edward’s daughter and my newly found cousin are first cousins, meaning that the father of my newly found cousin was Raymond.

610 S. 11th St., Tacoma, Washington.

That address reached across 107 years to prove a HUFFORD descendant.

Page 61 of the 1909 HUFFORD FAMILY HISTORY has information about Hannah HUFFORD, born 4-Oct-1845 in Indiana.  (Hannah was the daughter of John Hufford b. 1814, who was the son of Abraham b. 1788, who was the son of Casper b. 1762, who was the son of immigrant Christian b. 1716.)  Hannah married John ROOT and had six children.  After Hannah died in 1877, John, their surviving five children, and John’s new wife moved to Osawkie, Jefferson Co., Kansas, where they are found on the 1880 census.

Here is Hannah’s findagrave page:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=42408308

Hannah Hufford and John Root’s 2^nd child was Elizabeth ROOT, b. 1864. Information for Elizabeth is on page 61 of the 1909 book.  It says exactly this:

No. 2. ELIZABETH ROOT.
Born January 28, 1864, near Rossville, Ind.
Husband, SAMUEL FISHER.
Married February 27, 1882.
Occupation, farmer.
Church, Advent.
FAMILY.
1. Clarence.
2. Ida.
Children married. No records.
Tacoma, Wash., 610 S. 11th St.

The “No. 2” before Elizabeth’s name referred to her being the 2nd child of her parents.

In 1870, Elizabeth was with her parents and siblings in Clinton Co., Indiana.

In 1880, Elizabeth was with her father, siblings, step-mother, and step-sisters in Osawkie, Jefferson Co., Kansas.

On February 27, 1882, there was a marriage between Elizabeth ROOT and Samuel FISHEL in Holt Co., Missouri.  Note that the surname was FisheL, not FisheR. The “r” is a goof made by the man who put together the HUFFORD FAMILY HISTORY.

On March 1. 1895, 26-year-old Elizabeth FISHEL (b. Indiana) was in Ozawkie, Jefferson Co., Kansas, with 10-yr-old John C. FISHEL (b. Missouri) and 7-yr-old Ida FISHEL (b. Kansas). No husband was present.

In May 1910, John Clarence FISHEL, age 27, b. Kansas, applied for a job with the Northern Pacific Railway Company. He listed his address as 610 S. 11^th, Tacoma, Washington. He listed his mother as “Mrs. Bittie SWING,” of 610 S. 11th St., Tacoma.”  He said he was married and that his wife lived at the same address.

Take note: That is the same address as listed in the 1909 HUFFORD FAMILY HISTORY for Elizabeth ROOT.

The 1910 census of Tacoma, Pierce Co., Washington, lists “Elizabeth SWING,” age 44, b. Pennsylvania, as head of household with 25-yr-old “J.C. FISHEL” (b. Missouri) and 21-yr-old “Elizabeth FISHEL” (b. Wisconsin, parents b. Wisconsin). That listing itself has errors, and the indexing of the listing also has errors.  You must look at the original, to see “J.C.” And, you must look at the original and do some thinking to realize that “J.C.” and the 21-yr-old Elizabeth were husband and wife; both were noted as married, and each reported having been married for two years. Also, altho 21-yr-old Elizabeth is noted as “daughter” rather than “daughter-in-law,” that would make so sense because both of her parents were reported as born in Wisconsin.  J.C. was working as a “trainman” for the railroad. The address appears to be immediately next to Eleventh St.; perhaps they had moved around the corner, or (more likely) the census taker made another error with the listing.

As to what happened to Elizabeth after that 1910 census listing, I’ve yet to solve that puzzle.  However, the exact address match between the 1909 book and the May 1910 job application for John Clarence Fishel proves that the woman on the 1910 census was Elizabeth Root, b. 1864 near Rossville, Indiana.

Elizabeth’s daughter Ida married Millard Elmer ROWAN and had seven children: Floyd E., Clarence H., Dorothy Elizabeth, Herbert B., Claude C., Juanita Doris, and Elmer. Ida died January 17, 1938, in Skagit Co., Washington, under her married name “Ida ROWAN.”

Elizabeth’s son John is harder to track. John’s wife of 1910 is on the 1920 census in Nekoosa, Wood Co., Wisconsin, with their daughter (Gladys I. Fishel, b. abt 1912, in Oregon) and with her parents and brother. Because of that, we learn that John’s wife Elizabeth was Elizabeth Joslin DAY, b. 1888, the daughter of Robert DAY and Sophia Ann JOSLIN. Elizabeth’s Wisconsin birth record gives her exact birth date; that birth date reveals that Elizabeth died October 30, 1954, in Orange Co., California, under the married name Elizabeth J. HART. With that, we can find her on the 1930 and 1940 census with husband #2 William HART in Orange Co., California. With her in 1930 was daughter Gladys Irene (a Hufford descendant), married to Frederick STORY, along with Gladys’ daughter Betty Lou STORY, born in 1929 in California.

After John’s marriage to Elizabeth Day fell apart, there is no definite match that I have found for him. There are claims that he moved to California and had another two children, but the signatures between the two men do not match. However, that 610 S. 11th St. address allows us to determine the last name of Elizabeth’s husband – Fishel, rather than Fisher – and it allows us to find the seven children of Elizabeth’s daughter Ida and one child of Elizabeth’s son John.

Elizabeth’s husband Samuel FISHEL was the brother of Elizabeth’s sister Sarah’s husband Frank. The two brothers — Samuel and Frank — were with their parents in Osawkie, Jefferson Co., Kansas, in 1870. This likely is the findagrave page for Elizabeth’s husband Samuel:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=34875480

NOTA BENE:
As difficult as it can be to track some of these old dead folks, one of the problems is defeating incorrect information that is the result of sloppy “researchers” following “green leafs” offered up by ancestry.com. Then, once one fool adds the incorrect information to his/her tree at ancestry, that inaccuracy so often is accepted and repeated by other lazy “researchers” and fools. [Please insert a big “sigh” here.] As a consequence, several are claiming that Elizabeth ROOT (b. 28-Jan-1864 near Rossville, Clinton Co., IN, dau. of John K. ROOT and Hannah HUFFORD, with info on page 61 of the 1909 HUFFORD FAMILY HISTORY) is the same woman who died in 1939 and was buried in Prospect Hill Cemetery, York Co., Pennsylvania. No! That is 100% wrong, as shown by the death certificate for the woman who died in 1939 in Pennsylvania. The woman who died in 1939 in York Co., Pennsylvania, was born Elizabeth WARNER, in York Co., Pennsylvania, the daughter of John WARNER and Catharine GREEN. She married James W. FISHEL.

PAGE NOTE: Elizabeth Root (daughter of Hannah Hufford) is on page 61 of the 1909 HUFFORD FAMILY HISTORY.

Halloween is a good time to tell the story of Barbara Hufford, born 1860 in Rossville, Clinton County, Indiana. Barbara was the daughter of John (b. 1814), son of Abraham Sr. (b. 1788), son of Casper (b. 1762), son of Christian the immigrant. Barbara, her husband, and their children are on page 63 of the 1909 HUFFORD FAMILY HISTORY. She is with her parents and siblings on page 52 of the book.

Barbara married John DEAL when she was 19; she birthed seven children. She died at 31, in 1888, with six children surviving. Her son Manford was seven-and-a-half years old when Barbara died.

In 1971, Barbara’s son Manford was 86 years old and living in Traverse City, Michigan. His wife had died the year before. He made a return trip to his childhood hometown – Pyrmont, Carroll County, Indiana. Manford’s son Francis Ronald was with him. Manford visited with a few old cousins, saw a childhood friend, and walked some of the same roads he had walked as a child.

A few weeks after he returned to Traverse City, he told his son a story, and his son wrote it down. Here is the story that Barbara’s son told, 79 years after Barbara died:

“Now I’ll tell you a ghost story that happened when I was about seven years old, and I ain’t nary told a soul all these years except a little while back, after my brother Irvin passed on [three years prior, in 1968]. I asked a preacher if such a thing could have happened, and he said it most certainly could.

“Well, the day of my mother’s funeral we’d been busy with lookin’ out for friends and family that had come in, y’know, and the girls were late getting at the chores. I always went down to the barn at milking time and helped out what I could. They always throwed hay down through a place in the floor of the loft to feed the cows, and there was always some hay left over, so when they got to milking, I’d curl up on the hay and go to sleep. One of the girls waked me up, and said since they were going to be later than usual that night, I’d better beat it up to the house and get to bed before it got any darker.

“There was a path that led from the barn up to the road and across the road. It went up on a little rise like and then sloped from there up to the house. When I crossed the road, I saw someone standing on the rise. I was pretty tired, and it didn’t seem out of the way at all when I reached the top of the rise and found my mother waiting for me. She walked to the house with me and followed me upstairs where I always slept. She waited until I’d gotten undressed and into bed. She tucked me in and said, ‘I’ll just look in on Laura,’ (she was the baby then, you know) ‘and see that she’s all right.’ She came back in a little bit and said, ‘Now we mustn’t tell John or Irvin anything about this,’ and I never did neither. I never told nobody all these years ’til they were both gone.”

Barbara had a twin sister; it’s unknown whether her sister was an identical twin. However, what IS known is that her twin sister had died in February 1888, more than four years before Barbara died.

Barbara and her husband, the Rev. John Edwin DEAL (1854-1939), were German Baptist Brethren (Dunkard).

They had seven children:
Irvin, b. Sep. 1880; d. 1968
Ada May, b. Apr. 1882; d. Aug. 1910
Mary C., b. July 1883
Manford J., b. Apr. 1885; d. Jan. 1976
Harry, b. Feb. 1887; d. May 1888
Elva Ellen, b. July 1889
Laura, b. Jan. 1892

PAGE NOTE: Barbara Hufford is listed on page 63 of the 1909 HUFFORD FAMILY HISTORY.

Over the years of my HUFFORD research, some have asked, “But are YOU a Hufford descendant?”

The answer, of course, is yes.

My most recent ancestor who was born with the HUFFORD name is Elizabeth Hufford who was born June 25, 1851, in Carroll Co., Indiana.  She is pictured with her husband and children on page 81 of the 1909 HUFFORD FAMILY HISTORY.

Elizabeth is front and center. Left front, with his cane, is Elizabeth’s husband, George Hooker. On George’s lap is their son Challence (born in 1889). Right front is daughter Dora (born in 1886). Standing, from left to right are Theodore (b. 1882), Sarah Catharine (b. 1871), George (b. 1877), Rosa (b. 1874), William (b. 1879), Mary Elizabeth (b. 1873), and James (b. 1882). The family dog is lying on the ground in front of them.

I am one of Elizabeth Hufford’s great-great-granddaughters.

Elizabeth was a strait-laced, German Baptist Brethren farm girl who married a Catholic man who had served in the Civil War.  Together, they had nine children and raised all to adulthood.

She lived out her life in Clay Township, Carroll Co., Indiana, part of the corn belt that crosses the middle of Indiana.  She was in Carroll Co. for all but a few years of her life.  In 1899, after her husband had lost everything when a flood washed away his logging business, they moved with their sons to Minot, Ward Co., North Dakota, and began again. Before 1910, Elizabeth and George returned to Carroll Co., but their sons remained in North Dakota.

Elizabeth and George were married for fifty years and seven months, until he died in 1921, and they argued about religion until the day that he died. In private, their argument must have ceased: They had nine children, with the first child born 11 months after they married and the ninth child born when Elizabeth was 38.

Always, Elizabeth’s attitudes were German Baptist.  Always, her husband’s attitudes were Roman Catholic. One time their sons were in the attic of their house playing cards. Elizabeth was scandalized that her sons were playing cards, and she complained to George that their boys were “sinning.”  George answered, “But they’re doing it quietly.”

By the laws of the Catholic church of that time, as soon as George married Elizabeth, he was excommunicated as a Catholic.

Here’s Elizabeth’s line: Elizabeth b. 1851 > Andrew b. 1827 > Abraham b. 1788 > Casper b. > Christian b. 1716 in Schwaigern, Germany.

The photo below shows Elizabeth with her husband, after many years of marriage.  Her head covering is typical of Brethren women.