Tag Archives: DNA

New “Who’s the daddy?” puzzle

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I’m working a new “Who’s the daddy?” puzzle. The puzzle began in August 2025 when a new, small match popped at ancestryDOTcom.

Let’s call the new match “XX.” She and I share only 9 cM of DNA, an amount so small that, normally, it would not be worth a look.

However, ancestryDOTcom’s computer brain says that our shared ancestry is on my father’s side, and a quick “See Shared Matches” showed that XX and I share 22 identified Hufford/Cripe descendants, and that XX has very large shares with two of those identified Hufford/Cripe descendants:
One 859 cM share, and one 382 cM share.

The two shares are 1st cousins to one another. They are granddaughters of Floyd E. HUFFORD, b. 15 Jun 1892, Milford, Iroquois, Illinois; d. 28 Sep 1981, Hoopeston, Vermilion, Illinois. Floyd was son of Samuel Benjamin HUFFORD (1864-1949), who was son of Andrew HUFFORD (1827-1881) and his wife, Sarah Catharine CRIPE (1833-1907). Andrew HUFFORD b. 1827 is on page 80 of the 1909 HUFFORD FAMILY HISTORY. Andrew was the son of Abraham HUFFORD (1788-1859), who was the son of Casper HOFFERT (1762-1825), who was the son of Christian HOFFART (1716-1788).

The DNA makes clear that, like me, XX is a HUFFORD/CRIPE descendant. I wrote to her:

“You and I share 9 cM of DNA. Because of the several shares we have in common, I can tell that you descend from Andrew HUFFORD (1827-1881) and his wife, Sarah Catharine CRIPE (1833-1907). Your closest HUFFORD/CRIPE relative is an 859 cM match, a women born in 1937, in Illinois. Do you know how you fit in as a HUFFORD descendant? Or, would you like some help solving a puzzle? Would love to hear from you. I’ve been working HUFFORD descendants for 40 years.”

Her answer came seven months later, May 2026:

“Hello. I am not sure how I am related. I never knew who my father was.”

XX is 60 years old and would like to know the name of her biological father.

And so it began.

In August 2026, XX reached out to a great-granddaughter of Floyd, having found her in facebook-world. The woman she reached out to has agreed to do an autosomal DNA test, and I’ve postal mailed to her a test-kit that I had on a shelf. Now we wait.

Whatever the new info will be will help with the puzzle, but it may not itself be definitive.

Below is the list of Floyd E. Hufford descendants known thus far. The surname in all-capital letters means that the person has been proven by autosomal DNA.

This is what a DNA puzzle looks like as it is being solved:

1. Floyd E. HUFFORD: b. 15 Jun 1892, Milford, Iroquois, Illinois; d. 28 Sep 1981, Hoopeston, Vermilion, IL.
….. 2. Carl Louis HUFFORD: b. 10 Apr 1915, Stockland, Iroquois, IL; d. 28 Feb 2000, Merritt Island, Brevard, FL.
………. 3. Linda Hufford: b. abt 1944, NJ. (Presumed dead w/o issue.)
………. 3. [living female] HUFFORD: b. 3 Mar 1963.
………. **(NOTE: Shares 382 cM w/ XX.)
…………… 4. [living male] Repanshek: b. 15 Apr 1990, Cocoa, Brevard, FL.
…………… 4. [living female] REPANSHEK: b. 21 Jun 1995, FL.
…………… **(NOTE: Shares 177 cM w/ XX.)
….. 2. Mary Elizabeth HUFFORD: b. 3 Aug 1917, Hoopeston, Vermilion, IL; d. 3 Jun 1969, Inyo County, CA.
………. 3. [living female] HAFNER: b. 1 Mar 1937, IL.
………. **(NOTE: Shares 859 cM w/ XX.)
…………… 4. Robert Wayne PHEBUS: b. 23 Apr 1959, Danville, Vermilion, IL; d. 5 May 2021.
……………….. 5. [living male] Phebus: b. 12 Mar 1982.
……………….. 5. [living female] PHEBUS: b. Jul 1983.
……………….. **(NOTE: Shares 245 cM w/ XX.)
……………………. 6. [living male] PASILLAS:
……………………. **(NOTE: Shares 62 cM w/ XX.)
……………….. 5. [living male] Phebus: b. 2 Dec 1993.
……………….. 5. [living male] Phebus
…………… 4. [living male] Phebus: b. 17 Nov 1960, IL.
…………… 4. [living female] Phebus: b. 18 Feb 1962, IL.
…………… 4. [living female] PHEBUS: b. 7 Oct 1963, IL.
……………….. 5. [living female] BAYS: b. 24 Apr 1982, IL.
……………….. **(NOTE: Shares 142 cM w/ XX.)
……………….. 5. [living female] Taylor
………. 3. Jack Edgar Hafner: b. 19 May 1938, IL; d. 19 Feb 2020, Danville, Vermilion, IL.
…………… 4. [living male] Hafner: b. 13 Jun 1960, IL.
…………… 4. [living female] Hafner: b. 12 Sep 1968.
………. 3. Carl Floyd Hafner: b. 9 Jan 1946, Danville, Vermilion, IL; d. 5 Jan 2020, Monroe, Union, NC.
…………… 4. [living female] Hafner: b. 1968.
…………… **(NOTE: Awaiting DNA test results.)
…………… 4. [living female] Hafner: b. 27 Feb 1980.
………. 3. [living female] Hafner: b. Jan 1950, IL.
….. 2. Byron Orland HUFFORD: b. 9 Feb 1919, Milford, Iroquois, IL; d. 8 Sep 1995, Rossville, Vermilion, IL.
………. 3. Larry Lee Hufford: b. 3 May 1938, Danville, Vermilion, IL; d. 30 Sep 1944, Danville, Vermilion, IL.
………. 3. Sheila Ann Hufford: b. 22 Jan 1940, Danville, Vermilion, IL; d. 17 Mar 2026, Medford, Jackson, OR.
…………… 4. [living male] Reece: b. 8 Dec 1956, Fairbury, Livingston, IL.
…………… 4. [living female] Reece: b. 1 Oct 1959.
…………… 4. [living male] Reece: b. 24 May 1961.
…………… 4. [living female] Reece: b. 17 Dec 1962.
………. 3. Ronald Joseph Hufford: b. 1 Jun 1941, Hoopeston, Vermilion, IL; d. 4 Feb 1999, Collinsville, Madison, IL.
…………… 4. Jeffery Alan Hufford: b. 19 Sep 1960, Danville, Vermilion, IL; d. 24 Jun 2022, Danville, Vermilion, IL.
………………… 5. [living female] Hufford: b. Jul 1984.
……………………. 6. [living female] Pribble
………. 3. Danny Gale Hufford: b. 19 Sep 1942, Danville, Vermilion, IL; d. 26 OCT 2005, Zephyrhills, Pasco, FL.
…………… 4. [living male] Hufford: b. aft 1979.
……………….. 5. Paige M. Hufford: b. 3 Apr 2001, Indianapolis, Marion, IN; d. 2 Dec 2016, Danville, Vermilion, IL.
…………… 4. [living male] Hufford: b. aft 1979.
…………… 4. [living male] Hufford
………. 3. [living female] HUFFORD: b. 26 Feb 1944, Hoopeston, Vermilion, IL.
…………… 4. [living female] Wimberly: b. 16 Feb 1975.
…………… 4. [living female] Wimberly: b. aft 1976.
…………… 4. [living female] WIMBERLY
……………….. 5. Matthew WIMBERLY
……………….. **(NOTE: Shares 41 cM w/ XX.)
………. 3. Richard Paul Rick HUFFORD: b. 25 Dec 1946, Hoopeston, Vermilion, IL; deceased.
…………… 4. [living female] Hufford: b. 31 Mar 1966.
…………… 4. [living male] Hufford: b. 30 Jun 1967, Vermilion County, IL.
……………….. 5. [living female] Hufford: b. 5 Mar 1991.
……………….. 5. [living male] Hufford
…………… 4. [living female] HUFFORD: b. 8 Nov 1970.
……………….. 5. [living female] KEY b. 21 Jun 1992.
……………….. **(NOTE: Shares 133 cM w/ XX.)
……………….. 5. [living female] Key: b. 20 Dec 1993.
………. 3. [living female] Hufford b. abt 1947 in Hoopeston, Vermilion, IL.
………. 3. [living male] HUFFORD: b. 14 Aug 1948, Hoopeston, Vermilion, IL.
…………… 4. [living female] Hufford: b. 19 Aug 1974.
…………… 4. [living male] Hufford: b. 10 Oct 1975.
…………… 4. [living femae] Hufford: b. 24 Aug 1980.
…………… 4. [living male] HUMISTON: b. 28 Dec 1970, Fayetteville, Cumberland, NC. (Given up for adoption.)
………. 3. [living male] Hufford, Jr.

For reference, check here for relationship predictions based on shared DNA:
DNA Painter: The Shared cM Project 4.0 tool v4

UPDATE!
Less than 18 hours after I posted this, the answer arrived. According to a sibling test done by PaternityLabDOTcom, based in Houston, Texas, the father of XX is Carl Floyd HAFNER, (1946-2020), who was the son of Mary Elizabeth HUFFORD (1917-1969).

The test was not an autosomal DNA test such as I am familiar with. Rather, the test looked at STR markers (Short Tandem Repeat markers) and determined that the probability that XX and a known daughter of Carl are half-siblings is 99.9%.

The test results came amazingly fast. The two women tested on Saturday, September 12, and the results arrived on September 16, in a prepared lab report that was emailed in the form of a JPG file. Modern communication is aMAZing!

Carl’s previously known daughter should receive the ancestryDOTcom autosomal test via postal mail within a day. She has said that she will do that test and send it in. Expectation is that the 2nd test will confirm the 1st test.

Here is the lab report, with names redacted.
(Open the image in a new screen to read it.)

TEASER: DNA Matches Reveal Elizabeth ROOT’s Lost Descendants

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Consider this a teaser. 😉 I’m preparing a post. It will be long and complex.
This image is genealogy shorthand for a long, detailed story:

Back in 2016, I found more info for Elizabeth ROOT, b. 1864 in Rossville, Clinton Co., Indiana, daughter of Hannah HUFFORD (1845-1877, gr-granddaughter of Christian’s son Casper) and her husband John K. ROOT (1838-1905). Elizabeth is listed on page 61 of the 1909 HUFFORD FAMILY HISTORY. Elizabeth and her descendants had been “lost” for over 100 years. I wrote about how I found her here:
610 S. 11th St., Tacoma, Washington

Then, in 2022, a new DNA match popped. Because the new match and I shared over two dozen identified HUFFORD cousins, I knew the new match had to be a HUFFORD descendant. After hours and hours of researching and puzzling, I determined the new match was a 3-greats-granddaughter of Elizabeth ROOT, b. 1864. I wrote about that here:
Autosomal DNA: WOW!

A few months back, I found DNA matches for more of Elizabeth’s descendants, and the DNA began verifying and telling the story of her descendants. Most of Elizabeth’s descendants have no idea who Elizabeth was. Even fewer know that Elizabeth was a HUFFORD descendant.

The above image shows that 21 of Elizabeth’s descendants have done autosomal DNA testing: 8 from her son (from 5 of his 10 children), and 13 from Elizabeth’s daughter (from 5 of her 7 children). The DNA proves how they relate to each other, and how they relate to others who descend from Elizabeth’s great-grandparents, Abraham HUFFORD and Elizabeth PLANK, whose graves are in the little Hufford Cemetery in Owasco, Carroll County, Indiana:
Elizabeth’s great-grandfather’s grave and bio

The DNA and lots of documents track Elizabeth’s son John Clarence FISHEL thru five marriages. The post for which this is a teaser will share many of those documents.

In the meantime, you can see Elizabeth’s basic information at the tree/database that I keep at geneanet (entirely free):
Elizabeth’s family group sheet and life events

And here is a list of Elizabeth’s grandchildren, at geneanet:
Elizabeth’s grandchildren

PAGE NOTE:
Elizabeth Root is on page 61 of the 1909 HUFFORD FAMILY HISTORY.
Her line: Elizabeth, from Hannah b. 1845, from John b. 1814, from Abraham b. 1788, from Casper b. 1762, from Christian b. 1716.

Never lie to a genealogist. Just don’t do it!

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FREE ADVICE to any man who is told that he fathered a child and that the DNA proves it: Don’t lie!

Genealogists come with the receipts. Follow this story to see how DNA talks. I shall eliminate info that would serve as ID for anyone but another genealogist:

November 2024, a new match popped for me:
22 cM w/ a man who also shares DNA w/ 1 Plank; 2 Cripe/Nesbits; 8 Hufford/Planks; 4 Cripe/Daniels; 13 Hufford/Cripes; 3 Hooker/Huffords.

That spread of DNA shares told me that this new DNA match descends from my three-greats grandparents Andrew HUFFORD (1827-1881) and Sarah Catharine CRIPE (1833-1907). They lived their adult lives in Carroll Co., IN. Thirteen children survived childhood: 10 sons, 3 daughters. And I had autosomal DNA proof thru 9 of those children. (Andrew was son of Abraham, who was son of Casper, who was son of Christian b. 1716 who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1729)

Among our shares was a 270-cM match he had w/ a woman who was the granddaughter of one of Andrew and Sarah’s sons. That match told me which child of Andrew and Sarah was the Hufford ancestor of my newly found 22-cM match.

The man’s profile page showed a friendly-looking face and included the message: “Adopted.”

Nov. 11, 2024, I sent him a message:
“You and I share 22 cM of DNA. I can tell that you descend from my 3-greats-grandparents Andrew HUFFORD and Sarah Catharine CRIPE. If you want some answers, almost certainly, I can help you puzzle things thru.”

The man let me see his DNA matches, and by Nov. 22, 2024, the DNA revealed one set of the man’s grandparents. I did not know whether they were his paternal or maternal grandparents, but I could tell for sure who one set of the man’s grandparents were. And those grandparents were not on the man’s HUFFORD side.

Looking at the newly-found grandparents of my 22-cM match, DNA into and age ruled out all but one of the sons of the grandparents, and they had only one daughter. That meant that either their oldest son was the father of my 22-cM match, or their daughter was the mother of my 22-cM match. I made contact with the daughter — who was either the birth mother or the sister of the birth father. Why? Discretion for the woman if it were she. And, if she were the aunt, she would know how to approach her brother.

The woman acknowledged maternity, had appropriate responses, was happy to hear that the baby she’d birthed grew up in a loving family, that he’d had a good life, and that he loved his mom and dad. (Mom and dad are always the adoptive parents. Good, bad, or indifferent, Mom is the woman who mom-ed you as you grew up.)

I explained to the woman that I was related to whoever was the bio-father and that, eventually, the DNA would tell me who the bio-father was, but that all I could tell at that time was that the man descended from my ancestors Andrew and Sarah. The reality was that I could tell descent was from one particular son, but I did not go into that with her.

The woman gave a full name for the bio-father, and the last name was HUFFORD. She said the town he was from, but she no longer knew where he lived or knew anything about him. Her only interest was contact info for the baby whom she’d birthed.

The fact that the bio-father carried the surname HUFFORD was a real bonus! It meant that he carried the name and the DNA and was in the area close to Carroll county; that meant that he was an in-the-open descendant. Even if the HUFFORD name had carried thru an unmarried HUFFORD woman, it had been done in the open. I looked back at Andrew and Sarah’s son whom I knew my 22-cM match descended from. He had three sons who lived beyond childhood, b. 1888, 1896, 1900:
The son b. 1888 had two sons.
The son b. 1896 had no children.
The son b. 1900 had only one son (b. 1930), and the man b. 1930 moved far from Carroll County before 1955, and ALL of his children were by-adoption.

That meant that the line of my 22-cM match had to come thru the son son b. 1888.

The man born in 1888 had two sons — twins b. 1920. One twin never married and had no children. That meant that the line came thru the other twin, who married and had three sons.

Among the matches of my 22-cM match were matches showing that he descended from the ancestors of the woman whom that twin born in 1920 married. In other words, for sure I’d found the other set of grandparents of my 22-cM match. The twin born in 1920 and his wife had three sons, born 1955, 1961, and 1964. One of them had the name given to me by the birth mother.

One of those three brothers is the bio-father of my 22-cM match. Is it possible that, in 1983, a man used the name of his older brother over a period of several weeks/months as he established a relationship with a woman and left her with a child? Well, it’s possible, but not too likely.

Never lie to a genealogist. Just don’t do it. In days of yore, I walked thru cow pastures w/ fresh manure to get to old gravestones, dig ’em up, and uncover hidden info. It’s so much easier now, but just never lie to a genealogist: We come with the receipts.

DNA-proven Hufford lines

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DNA testing continues to find proofs among HUFFORD descendants. To date, the following lines have been proven via DNA matches with autosomal tests:

• Snowie Beatrice Hufford (1905-1992) > Lewis Townsend Hufford (1869-1939) > Solomon Hufford (1838-1893) > Peter Hufford (b. abt 1788) > Christian Hoffart II (1746-1826) > Christian Hoffart (1716-1788).

• Earl Leslie Hufford (1907-1933) > Jesse Emanuel Hufford (1876-1959) > Emanuel Hufferd (1831-1913) > Abraham Hufford (1788-1859) > Casper Hoffert (1762-1825) > Christian Hoffart (1716-1788).

The above two lines are proved by a DNA match between Snowie’s grandson and Earl’s grandson, on chromosome # 8, from 11156163 to 18892233.

My line to the immigrant Christian Hoffart (1716-1788) is the following:

• Sarah Catherine Hooker (1871-1952) > Elizabeth Hufford (1851-1929) > Andrew Hufford (1827-1881) > Abraham Hufford (1788-1859) > Casper Hoffert (1762-1825) > Christian Hoffart (1716-1788).

Based on my line, the following lines are proven:

• Martha Jane Curtis (1927-1991) > Edith E. Hufford (1883-1952) > Jacob Leonard Hufford (1841-1907) > Jacob Staley Hufford (1798-1884) > Casper Hoffert (1762-1825) > Christian Hoffart (1716-1788).
[Proven by DNA from Martha Jane’s daughter.]

• Ivan Clyde Smith (1910-1959) > Mabel Edna McKinley > Mary Amelia VanHellen > Mary Ann Hufford > Jacob Staley Hoffert > Casper Hoffert > Christian Hoffart (1716-1788).
[Proven by DNA from Ivan’s son.]

• Norma Jean Hufford > Richard Robinson Hufford > Walter Arthur Hufford > David D. Hufford > Andrew Hufford > Abraham Hufford > Casper Hoffert > Christian Hoffart. … [Proven by DNA from Norma Jean’s grandson.]

• Dorothy Lorraine Hufford (1934-1972) > Clarence Everett Hufford, Sr. (1903–1987) > Levi Silas Lee Hufford (1871-1912) > Aaron J. Hufford (1846-1915) > Michael William Hufford, Sr. (1804-1875) > Casper Hoffert (1762-1825) > Christian Hoffart (1716-1788).
[Proven by DNA from Dorothy’s only daughter, who was placed for adoption at birth: a 5 cM match on chromosome # 13, from 108162547 to 109642722.]

• Vernon Clarence Carstensen (1928-2013) > Helen Anna Seiling (1904-1972) > Delia Mary Limmer (1874-1951) > Lucinda Hufford (1853-1914) > Jacob Stanley Hufford (1798-1884) > Casper Hoffert (1762-1825) > Christian Hoffart (1716-1788).
[Proven by DNA from Vernon’s son.]

• Fred Louis Remer (1944-1996) > Frederick Jesse Remer (1925-1973) > Jesse Henry Remer (1880-1949) > Mary Ann Bader (1854-1884) > Elizabeth Hufford (1826-1889) > John Hufford (1801-1825) > Casper Hoffert (1762-1825) > Christian Hoffart (1716-1788).
[Proven by DNA from Fred’s daughter.]

• Bess Levada Fasgold (1926-2010) > Iva Alberta Pumphrey (1898-1986) > Clara Elizabeth Hufford (1877-1967) > William Lafayette Hufford (1848-1928) > Jefferson Hufford (b. abt 1807; d. aft 1880) > John Hoffart (b. abt 1758; d. bef 18-May-1819) > Christian Hoffart (1716-1788).
[Proven by DNA from Bess’ son. This line has been problematic. The autosomal DNA match says the line is correct; however, another male descendant of this line has done a 37-marker Y-DNA test that showed a match at 0 points removed from someone who descends on a MOORE line from a MOORE who lived in Woodford County, Kentucky, in the 1800s, at the same time the HUFFORDs were there.]

If you are a HUFFORD descendant who has been able to prove your line with DNA testing, please share the information with me so that we can begin to collect information on proven lines. I’ll add the information here in this HUFFORD FAMILY HISTORY.

My line is above (Elizabeth Hufford). I have tested at familyTreeDNA, at 23andMe, and at ancestryDNA. My raw data has been uploaded at gedMatch.com, and I will provide my gedMatch number upon request.

DNA proof, the new game in town

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Autosomal DNA testing is the new world for genealogists.  I won’t try to explain it here, but it has moved into the realm of being reasonably affordable — typically about $100 per spit test.  Unlike Y-DNA testing that is good only for straight-line paternal ancestry, and unlike mtDNA testing that is good only for straight-line maternal ancestry, autosomal DNA testing shows close and distant relationships between two people.

After another HUFFORD descendant told me that he’d had his spit tested, I decided to step into the world of DNA testing.  For one hundred dollars and a small cup of spit, I would have the chance to learn if my 2nd cousin once-removed really is my 2nd cousin once removed.

Our connection is through Elizabeth HUFFORD (1851-1929) and her husband George HOOKER (1844-1921).  About four weeks after I put my spit in the mail, the DNA analysis showed that the relationship was for real: An eight cM segment on chromosome seven said, “Yes, you’re related.”

Still, that alone did not say whether the DNA segment came from Elizabeth Hufford or from her husband.

If you walk into the world of DNA genealogy, you’ll find that there is a learning curve: The more you fiddle with it, the more you learn. After some fiddling (that I won’t explain here), I found three others who also have that same eight cM segment on chromosome seven. They have strong Brethren and Anabaptist connections, but they have no knowledge of being HUFFORD descendants.

It may be that the gene that we five carry — while it proves that I descend from Elizabeth Hufford — may in fact be from another common ancestor above Elizabeth, other than straight back her Hufford line.

If you have not walked into the world of autosomal DNA testing, I recommend it.  It goes hand-in-hand with standard documentary genealogical research.  With DNA, you can prove what the documents say is so.