Allison/Ellison Family DNA Project

Call for Participants!

The Allison/Ellison Y-chromosome DNA (Y-DNA) Project is actively seeking participants and encourages males with a direct line of Allison/Ellison descent to join us.

You can join the Allison/Ellison Y-DNA Project providing that you:

Want to further the interest of Allison/Ellison Family Research AND
Are a MAN, willing to allow your DNA to be tested and to allow other to see your results OR know such a man. Additionally the man MUST bear the Allison, Alison, Allyson, Ellison, Elison, Ellyson, Elliston, Alliston, Allanson (or variant spellings) surname now OR be the son of a man with one of those surnames.

There are, in reality, two projects the Allison/Ellison Family DNA Project with which this website is associated and the Allison/Ellison Surname Project at FTDNA, the largest genetic genealogy testing company. The two overlap significantly because almost all members of the Allison/Ellison Family DNA Project have tested with FTDNA. Women may join our project if they can source Allison (male) DNA. Members are not bound to test with FTDNA, although only two have not.

Project Objective

Our goal is to aid anyone interested in researching their Allison/Ellison family history using Y-chromosome DNA testing. If you are a serious genealogist, sooner or later you are going to reach the end of a proven "paper trail". When this happens, looking beyond this so called "brick wall" can become very exasperating and next to impossible. Y-DNA testing offers an exciting new approach to solving this problem. A Y-DNA test is that of the Y-chromosome which is passed down through the generations from father to son. The graphic at the top of the page illustrates how this occurs. However, the test results of a single DNA test, standing alone, is of little value. It is by comparing that single test with others in a database that it becomes valuable. That is the purpose of this project! Each participant's test results are of equal importance in this regard. There are now over 100 participants in the Allison/Ellison Y-DNA Project. Our database grows larger with each new participant and so does the chance that another rumbling sound will be heard as one more "brick wall" comes crashing down!

It is essential to include male Allisons, Ellisons and variant surnames worldwide for the purpose of finding common paternal ancestors and establishing the genetic connections among the various families through Y-Chromosome DNA test results. Research shows that most Allisons and Ellisons trace their lineages back to England, Scotland, and Ireland. Therefore, we are especially interested in encouraging greater participation by Allison and Ellison males who live in the United Kingdom, as well as men with our surnames who reside in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, or anywhere else in the world.

We Need Participants

Participation is easy and the Y-DNA test is quick and painless. Your privacy is maintained. The reasonable fees for participation and ordering a Y-DNA test are given below. You are sent a DNA test kit in the mail by Family Tree DNA (FTDNA) with a release form to be signed. To conduct the test, you use a small brush, and stroke the inside of your cheek to remove some cells. The brush is then placed in a tube, and the procedure is to be repeated on the other side of your mouth. The kit is then returned by mail to FTDNA. The lab will analyze the DNA and provide your test result in about 8 weeks.

To maintain your privacy, the lab will assign a number to your DNA sample and you are furnished with a unique username and password for your private webpage on the FTDNA website. The lab at FTDNA will automatically notify you of others in the group who share your DNA signature and who would be willing to correspond with you. As the project co-administrators, we will compare the results of all the participants and prepare and update a chart of these results on this website.

How to Join the Y-DNA Project

FTDNA is the company that is analyzing the Y-Chromosome DNA (Y-DNA) samples for our DNA project. DNA testing is helping many researchers find connections between the various lines of different surnames. The company is located in the United States, but they can mail their DNA test kits to any place in the world.

The person contribuing the DNA sample must be a male and descended through the male line from an ancestor bearing the ALLISON, ELLISON or similar surname. The diagram on the left shows the inheritance of Y-DNA (black squares).

You can order your test kit online qualifying for our special group rate from Family Tree DNA (FTDNA), the most reliable and well-respected test lab in the world. Place your order at http://www.familytreedna.com/group-join.aspx?code=H99693&Group=Allison

FTDNA is offering at reduced prices four different Y-chromosome DNA (Y-DNA) paternal ancestry tests to registered family groups like our ALLISON/ELLISON group:

12 marker test for $99 (US dollars)
25 marker test for $124 (US dollars)
37 Marker test for $149 (US dollars)
67 Marker test for $248 (US dollars)

We recommend choosing either the 37 or 67 marker Y-DNA tests because they are the most useful in narrowing down how recently two male Allisons/Ellisons share a common ancestor. The 12 marker test does not test enough markers to tell two men whether they share a common ancestor within a genealogically meaningful timeframe and the 25 marker test often needs to be upgraded to 37 markers before two men know for sure if they are closely related. However, we all need to live within our budgets, so starting with the 25 marker test can be a first step into the use of DNA test results to help find others who are related and enable them to share genealogical information.

If you are a male Allison or Ellison (or variant) and decide to order a test kit, please contact one of the project administrators. Please let us know as much as you can about your family history and your current e-mail address.

As Project Co-administrators, we are very excited about this project and the prospects of unraveling some of the mysteries of the past. We need participants, and encourage you to sign up today.

Mary Allison Yonan yonan@fgi.net Robert Anthony Allison bob_allison@optusnet.com.au

Origin of the Allison/Ellison DNA Project

Our Allison/Ellison Family DNA project was "unofficially" begun in April 2001 when two members submitted samples to Family Tree DNA (FTDNA). In February 2002 the Allison/Ellison Surname Project was officially organized as a surname DNA project at FTDNA.

In April of 2001, the two original Allison participants (# 617 in Group B & # 618 in the Ungrouped category on the DNA Results chart on Table 1 on the Results Page) wanted to find out whether there was a genetic connection between the Joseph Allison and Lawrence Ellison/Allison lines. Joseph Allison (origin unknown), was living on Long Island, NY by 1720 and moved to Orange Co., NY ca 1725 and Lawrence Ellison, who was born in Yorkshire, England, and migrated to New England ca 1632 and then to Long Island in New York. Lawrence Ellison's descendants moved to Orange/Rockland Co., NY in the 1700s and were using the Allison spelling by then. Several researchers of the Joseph Allison and Lawrence Ellison/Allison lines have searched for documentation to prove or disprove a connection between the two families, but traditional genealogical research has failed to find a paper trail that proves that they were related. Participant # 617 had traced his ancestry back to Joseph Allison and # 618 had traced his ancestry back to Lawrence Ellison. They each sent their DNA sample to FTDNA in April 2001 and the test results showed them to have very different DNA scores. Although disappointed by the DNA test results, they concluded that the two Allison/Ellison lines had coincidentally lived on Long Island and in Orange Co., NY at the same time in the 1700s and were not related.

Fortunately, shortly after our DNA Project was officially organized as a surname DNA Project in February 2002, other Allison and Ellison men who trace their ancestry back to Orange County, NY became interested in DNA testing. Thanks to their decisions to order DNA tests, our Allison/Ellison Family DNA Project is now providing evidence of the genetic connection between descendants of Joseph Allison and Lawrence Ellison. As a result of DNA testing of the additional participants who have Orange/Rockland Co., NY roots, all of whom make up Group B on Table 1, we discovered that the two original test results had led us to the false conclusion that the Lawrence Ellison and Joseph Allison lines were unrelated. The Allison male (# 618) who was one of the two original testees had done very careful research and had traced his ancestry back to Lawrence Ellison. However, his DNA score is very different from the men in Group B who have Orange County, NY Allison/Ellison roots. This seems to be a classic case of a non-paternity event and #618 has no idea during which generation it occurred. A non-paternity event means that one of his male ancestors who had the Allison surname was not a biological Allison. In other words, in some generation an Allison husband wasn't the biological father of one of his sons. This could have happened as a result of an adoption, perhaps of a relative's or neighbor's son who was given the Allison surname. It's also possible that child was born out of wedlock.

Disclaimer, Conditions and Agreement

The Allison/Ellison Surname Project organizers have no commercial affiliation with FTDNA or any profit making organization and receive no compensation for services or expenses involved with the project. At present, this webpage is maintained for posting DNA results and pedigrees of participants who choose to make their information available.

Although the Allison/Ellison Surname Project receives discounts at FTDNA, as do all Surname Projects, that by no means suggests a business partnership or other relationship between the Project and the Laboratory. All funds are payable only and directly to FTDNA. The Allison/Ellison Project Co-ordinators will not be the recipient nor steward of any DNA samples and has no responsibility for their care, handling or return to participant, nor duty to act on behalf of Participant in mediation of any dispute between the Participant and the Laboratory.

While a match between two participants may indicate that they share a common male ancestor, it will not identify the specific ancestor and there is no guarantee that every participant will match another participant.

By participation in the project, the participant agrees to all conditions of the Project.

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