08/06/2026
What began as a search for Scottish roots uncovered a hidden family and resolved a century-old mystery.
It’s wonderful to see Who Do You Think You Are? back on our screens.
Let us share a fascinating project we worked on recently, which perfectly demonstrates the power of DNA testing in genealogy research.
We were approached by a lady who wanted to explore her Scottish heritage. She explained that her grandfather, who had died long before she was born, had been born in Yorkshire, but that his family originally came from Glasgow - she even knew the area.
Or so she thought…
In her younger days, the family spent many happy holidays north of the border. They wore the family tartan, learnt Scottish dancing and were immensely proud of their Scottish heritage.
However, it quickly became clear that this was not going to be a straightforward research project.
Despite reviewing numerous individuals with the same name in Yorkshire and then across the UK, finding her grandfather’s birth certificate proved surprisingly difficult. Every lead ended in disappointment and eventually we reached what genealogists commonly refer to as a ‘brick wall’.
To break through it, we concluded that DNA testing would likely be the only option.
The results were remarkable.
By connecting with newly identified DNA matches - blood relatives - and carrying out further in-depth research, we were able to establish that her grandfather – let’s call him George – had actually been born in…
Lancashire.
His parents were from Lancashire.
His grandparents were from Lancashire.
In fact, the family could be traced there as far back as the early 1800s.
But that was only the beginning!
It transpired that he had married at the age of 16, fathered four children, served in the First World War and suffered gas poisoning - one can only imagine the impact that had on him. Then, in the early 1920s, he left the family home to seek work and never returned.
He eventually relocated to Yorkshire, assumed another christian name, remarried (bigamously) and started a second family.
That second marriage - to her grandmother - produced one son – her father.
Heartbreakingly, George died in a mining accident just one week before the child was born.
What had begun as a search for Scottish ancestry had unexpectedly uncovered much more!
The findings and the discovery that there was an entirely separate branch of the family existed came as a complete shock.
If those discoveries were not surprising enough, there was one final twist.
When her DNA Origins results were analysed, they revealed that she had…
No Scottish ancestry at all.
The family folklore bubble had well and truly burst.
She was understandably devastated at first. A story that had shaped her family’s identity for generations had turned out not to be true. However, with time, she has come to terms with the discovery and can now see the funny side of it, particularly thinking of her efforts at mastering Scottish dancing 😜
As for the descendants of George’s four children from his first marriage - some in the UK and others in Australia - they were delighted that DNA testing had finally resolved a mystery that had remained unanswered for more than 100 years. They had always wondered what had happened to him.
Today, the two families are in contact.
How lovely.
People often tell us, “We thought things like this only happened to people on the telly!”
The truth is that remarkable stories like this are hidden within family trees everywhere.
Do you have a family mystery, an unanswered question or a piece of family folklore that has been passed down through the generations? Perhaps there is a story that has never quite made sense, a relative who seemingly disappeared, or a family belief that has never been proven. We’d love to help you uncover the truth. Get in touch and let’s discover the stories hidden within your family history.
