In the realm of family DNA, a Unicorn refers to a missing ancestor who, once discovered, unveils a previously overlooked branch of relatives. Recently, my pursuit of this elusive Unicorn began when I received a notification from 23andme, informing me of a potential 4th cousin match who shared my Y haplogroup, Q-L804 DNA. What made this particular connection a Unicorn was the revelation that my Unicorn, Richard Evenson, paternal grandparent had immigrated from Norway in 1882. While I had always known from my own DNA studies that my Q-L804 DNA originated from Scandinavia, likely from Viking settlements near Liverpool, England a millennium ago, I had been unable to identify documented ancestors tracing back to Norway. Have I had stumbled upon a breakthrough!?
Before delving further into my journey, let me first explain the significance of the Y haplogroup. In human genetics, the Y haplogroup is passed down only from father to son and can be identified through DNA testing. This means that if someone shares the same Y-DNA, we can ascertain that we have a common male ancestor from the past.
- (I have refined my Q-L804 DNA even further on FTDNA.com to subclade Q-L807 that emerged about 450 years ago)
Driven by curiosity, I attempted to reach out to Richard Evenson through 23andme and ancestry.com, but unfortunately received no response. Consequently, I invested in an ancestry.com subscription to aid me in uncovering his ancestral lineage. Eventually, I discovered that his paternal grandfather, Christ Evenson, did indeed hail from Norway, approximately 60 miles north of Oslo, in 1882.
This revelation captivated me, prompting further investigation that led me to identify six generations of his paternal ancestors in Norway, all residing in the same vicinity. I found myself puzzled by the fact that Richard is predicted by 23andme and ancesty.com to be my 4th to 8th cousin, considering that I will need to trace back much further than the 17th century to locate a common ancestor. If our shared paternal forefather predates the Viking settlements in the Liverpool, England around 900AD, Richard would be my 40th cousin not my 8th and how could I reconcile this disparity?
Based on my research, I have a 99% confidence that my Q-L804 lineage can be traced back to Wilmslow, England, with my 8th great-grandfather, Thomas Pearson, born in 1653. I also share the same Q-L804 Y-DNA with a 7th Cousin Steve Pearson. Together, we managed to trace our shared paternal ancestor back to Thomas Pearson's son, Enoch Pearson, born in 1690. This compelling evidence solidifies my belief that Thomas Pearson, born in 1653, brought the Q-L804 DNA of my paternal ancestors from England to America in 1683.
Now, the question arises: if Richard Evenson's Q-L804 DNA arrived in America from Norway in 1882, and mine arrived through Wilmslow, England in 1683, how can we have a common paternal ancestor only 6 generations away? The answer lies in the discovery that Richard Evenson and I are related through two distinct ancestral paths. One path dates back 1,000 to 3,000 years ago, leading to the same paternal father who resided in Norway and possessed the Q-L804 DNA. The other path traces back through Richard's mother, as she and her ancestors did not immigrate from Norway. Our shared ancestry from that branch is in North Carolina, evidenced by the surname Hall appearing in both of our family trees in that same area.
Although my DNA Unicorn may have eluded me, the validity of my findings remains intact. In essence, Richard Evenson and I share a connection through our paternal Y-DNA, Q-L804, spanning over 40 generations of fathers who lived 1,000 to 3,000 years ago. While uncovering specific records from such ancient times is an impossible feat, the undeniable DNA evidence confirms that my paternal lineage is indeed linked to the Vikings. We are also connected through his mother’s branch with a common ancestor in North Carolina with the last name of Hall. So much for spotting what I thought was a DNA Unicorn.
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