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                                      05/23/09

 

Description and Overview of the Brown/Browne/Braun DNA Study 

The Brown/Browne/Braun Surname Y-chromosome DNA Study is a volunteer genealogical activity, whose main aim is to encourage and support DNA analysis for tracing Brown families and for discovering relationships among these families, including families whose names are variants of Brown like Browne, Braun, Brun, Browning and Brownlee. The project is coordinated by non-paid, amateur genealogists, and actual lab work is done at the University of Arizona through a contractor, Family Tree DNA (FTDNA) of Houston, Texas.

The Brown project is now more than seven years old and is still growing. Rufus B. "Byron" Brown was our Founder, and he served as Project Administrator until late 2002. Randall Colston took up the post of Co-Administrator and Webmaster in 2002. Jim Brown became Co-Administrator in late 2002, upon Byron's retirement. Randall stepped down from active involvement in 2008, and Jim became the Administrator.

We now have over 550 tested members, who belong to some 295 unrelated, biologically separate Brown/Browne/Braun family lines. A number of participants have reported real breakthroughs in their own genealogical research, thanks to the project. What's more, we've had good success not only with DNA matching, but even with people who have used genealogical info at our website to connect with other Brown lines in cases where their own Brown families have not yet had DNA tests. 

We're confident that successes like these can only increase as "the word gets out" concerning the power of DNA analysis for genealogical research.  And as our study's database grows, we anticipate many more breakthroughs.

Our study and other DNA surname studies are based on Y-chromosome DNA, which is possessed only by males. It is passed from fathers to sons virtually unchanged over hundreds of years. Therefore, direct participants in DNA surname studies necessarily must be males.

Direct participants in our study, that is, people who are actually tested, must be males who either (1) carry the Brown surname or a "Brown like" surname, or (2) are thought to be descended in an unbroken male-to-male line from a Brown-surnamed male.

Please note however that if you are not a test candidate yourself, you are still welcome to sponsor test participants, join our project's mailing list and help recruit new candidates for testing. In this regard, we hope you can pass this message along to others who might be interested -- or even persuade one of your Brown-surnamed male relatives to submit a DNA sample for our project. 

So if you have a Brown brother, father, cousin, nephew, or uncle who has at least a slight interest in genealogy, maybe you can help enlist them in our research. In fact, many female Browns and non-Brown cousins have already become project members by sponsoring their Brown-surnamed male relatives.

DNA samples for the study are furnished by means of a gentle "swab" inside the mouth. The test is about as much trouble as brushing your teeth and is completely painless. It does not involve drawing blood or other intrusive methods, and it is done at home with a small kit mailed directly to participants.  The cost is modest, starting at $103.00 for the most basic test (12 markers), while the recommended test for new participants (37 markers) costs $153.00.


Results may be kept anonymous, if a participant wishes, although virtually all participants have opted to list their names alongside their results in an open database.

No project member receives any money from the study. Others donate their talents and resources in additional ways. The only fees involved are the charges paid to FTDNA for test kits and lab work, and they give project members a significant discount below the normal charges.

Even if you aren't interested in joining the study at this time, but would still like to follow our progress, you are invited to sign up for our project's mailing list. There is no cost for this service, and all Brown researchers are welcome. Please let us know or use the link below if you would like to be added to the mailing list.


To Join Brown DNA Project Mail List Send an email to
Brown-dna-study-request@brownsociety.org. Put the word "subscribe" in the title and in the body of the email.

To post a message to all other members of the project, you may send it to the following address -
Brown-dna-study@brownsociety.org

To view the archives of our mailing list, or to see a list of members, you may using the following link:

        
http://brownsociety.org/mailman/listinfo/brown-dna-study_brownsociety.org

Questions and Answers:

Who can be tested in the Brown Project?

You must be a male who descends (or who is thought to descend) from a Brown-surnamed male ancestor in an unbroken male-to-male line.  This qualification means that in most cases you will carry the "Brown" surname or a variant like "Braun." But please be assured that adoptees and other "biological Browns" are just as welcome. The limitation to Brown males is necessary because the Y-Chromosome DNA test is the only known way to track a surname that passes down from father to son. This result comes about not only because women don't carry the Y chromosome, but also because the Y chromosome is passed from father to son with very little change over hundreds -- even thousands -- of years.

Who does the Actual Testing?

A company named Family Tree DNA, located in Houston TX, is our contractor. They make all arrangements for actual lab work, most of which is performed in the world-class DNA lab at the University of Arizona.

The following link will take you to the FTDNA home page:

      http://www.familytreedna.com

This site has a lot of detailed information on the uses of DNA in genealogy. In particular, you will find the title "Tutorial" on the right side of the page, below the search blocks. This link will lead you to explanations of the testing process, test kit contents and instructions, charts, and a host of other information. This FTDNA information link it is an outstanding resource, and we recommend it to you. Please note, however, that if you want to be part of the Brown DNA Study, you should NOT order your kit directly from FTDNA. We say this because you will not get our special discount price unless you order through the project.

The Brown project has a few members who have tested via other labs. If you've tested somewhere other than FTDNA, you may join our project only if you first post your results at the Y-Search website:

http://www.ysearch.org

If you haven't yet tested, however, we strongly urge that you test only via FTDNA. The reason is that even though at least some of the other labs are reliable in a scientific sense, they all test slightly different "menus" of DNA markers -- meaning that it's difficult for our project to compare and incorporate their results.


What does it cost to be tested?

Currently the lowest cost "basic test" for project members is the 12-Marker Y-chromosome test at $103.00. But we strongly recommend that most participants order the 37-marker test, which costs $153.00. Please be sure to keep in mind that these prices are discounted for the Brown DNA Study.  The kit must be ordered through our project to get the discount. Individuals who order directly from FTDNA will pay much higher prices. Also, kits sent outside the USA will incur an additional mailing charge of USD 2.00.

What is in the test Kit?

FTDNA will send a kit with contains 3 swabs, 3 vials, instructions, and a release form to be signed.  The following link has a picture of the kit contents and instructions:

         http://www.familytreedna.com/kit.html

How do I Order a Test Kit?

To order a test kit just send a simple email with the following information to:



 

Please note that to implement an order, we need the participant's full name including middle name, shipping address, billing name and address (if different from shipping name and shipping address) and E-mail address. A contact phone number is optional.

We'd also very much like to have a bit of your basic genealogical information in the male-to-male line, most importantly the birth and death residences/dates of your earliest known Brown male ancestor. But if you don't have some of this information, please just send what you can. And you may send information on additional generations if you wish.

 

What if I have already tested with a company other than FTDNA? May I still join the project?

We'll be happy for you join to us if you've ALREADY tested with some lab or company other than our regular contractor, Family Tree DNA. Among our 550 members, about two dozen men fall into that category. But if you haven't yet had a DNA test, we recommend that you test only with FTDNA, simply in order to have results fully compatible with the overwhelming majority of Brown-surnamed men who have taken genealogical DNA tests.



Whom should I contact about the Brown DNA Study?


Volunteer Administrator:  Jim Brown

(James Armistead Brown, Jr.) .
Contact Jim to order a test kit; or to ask questions about the Brown/Browne/Braun DNA Study in particular, or about "DNA genealogy" in general.  
 

 


 

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This page was last updated on 05/23/09.

 
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