Exploring the Y-DNA Trail

My paternal grandfather Henry Clinton Campbell had only one son, my father. I have a brother (actually a half-brother) from my mom’s first marriage, but not a Campbell brother.

I found a second cousin (a double second cousin) to perform a Y-DNA test for me in 2012.  The results I received in May of that year¹ and additional information from the Campbell surname project administrator² links us back to the Campbells of Argyll.

My daughters, mother, and I visited Scotland in September 2012. As soon as I departed the train at Edinburgh Waverley Station, I felt I was at home.

We did a castles and lochs tour and one of our stops was in the town of Inveraray.  It is where Inveraray Castle,  the ancestral home of the Duke of Argyll, Chief of the Clan Campbell, is located.  Unfortunately we did not have enough time to tour the castle.

I want to visit Scotland again in the near future and do some research.  But I do want to get my Campbells across the pond first.

My earliest known Campbell is my 4^th great-grandfather, Abraham Campbell.  The oldest record I have of him in Rockbridge County, Virginia, is his marriage bond to my 4^th great-grandmother Elizabeth McCormick dated 7 August 1793. 

There have been several books written about the Campbell families of the Orange, Augusta, and Rockbridge Counties of Virginia, but I did not find any potential link to my line.  I have also researched at the courthouse and library in Lexington, Virginia, which did not provide me with any additional Campbell information.

In the Family Finder Y-DNA report, there are 106 matches to my cousin’s DNA at the 67 marker level.³

The closest match at a genetic distance of 1 is a known descendant of a brother of my 3^rd great-grandfather⁴, and he has no additional information on Abraham’s ancestry.  The next match is a genetic distance of 2⁵ and there is no contact information for this person.  In fact, the name is only listed as Campbell.  At the genetic distance of 3, there are 3 matches and 2 of them list the same ancestor, a Lt. Joseph Campbell (1778-1850s).⁶

From the Y-DNA report of a 25 marker level I received from the Campbell project administrator, I have genetic distance of 1 for a Col. Aeneas Campbell (ca 1730) of Maryland and Virginia.⁷

I supposed I need to begin my research with Joseph and Aeneas and hope I can find some information about my Abraham.  Hopefully I will have enough information to visit Scotland within the next couple of years (if not, I may go anyway).

1.  Family Tree DNA, "Y-DNA Matches," Family Tree DNA (http://familytreedna.com : 12 May 2012), Thomas Campbell.

2.  Kevin Campbell, Alexandria, Virginia,[E-ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE),] to Yolanda Campbell Lifter, e-mail, 22 June 2012, “Campbell DNA Project Analysis,” Campbell Research Files; privately held by Yolanda Campbell Lifter, [E-ADDRESS AND ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE],Malabar, Florida, 2012.

3. "Y-DNA Matches," Family Tree DNA
4. Ibid.
5. Ibid.
6. Ibid.
7. Kevin Campbell e-mail.