Here is my largest unidentified match at FTDNA:
The surname is Beaudet, which is probably not relevant. The shared DNA is 92 cM which is important. The match is challenging as no ancestral surnames are given and there is no family tree. He is listed between a known 2nd cousin once removed and a known 2nd cousin. I had written to him before but got no response. However, at that time, I mentioned that he was related to me on my Hartley side. The blue icon by his name indicates paternal or Hartley side also. While that may be true, that might have thrown him of as I should be able to figure out a closer connection.
My DNA Match with Beaudet
Our match leaves a fingerprint which I can track down:
I have mapped out many of my known matches on DNAPainter. Here is my paternal side which is where I match Beaudet:
My match with Beaudet on Chromosome 2 is in the same area as my match with my father’s cousin Maury:
Perhaps I was not wrong in my previous estimation. All matches seem to lead to a Hartley background.
The Genealogy Route
After going through many ‘papers’ online that my cousin worked on, I found Benjamin. Maury’s daughter married a Beaudet. That is where the connection comes in. Here, I added Beaudet:
Usually, I enter the first name, but I had already identified the match name in the Blog by the surname. The Gifford family is a large branch of the Hartley family. Beaudet would be my second cousin once removed. Mystery solved.
I was also able to link Beaudet to my tree at Ancestry showing his DNA match:
I assume that the blue dot by his name indicates the DNA match. Now, when I see the match at FTDNA, the correct relationship shows up:
Summary and Conclusions
- I was baffled by a Beaudet match at FTDNA
- DNAPainter pointed to the match being from my Hartley ancestry and more specifically probably related to my father’s cousin Maury
- Sleuthing through genealogical papers provided by my 2nd cousin Beth helped me find the match.
- FTDNA provides a way to link the match to my tree at FTDNA and I did that also