Sellers Circle Puzzle on AncestryDNA

How can I have a Nathan Douglas Sellers circle?

Yes, I have a Nathan Douglas Sellers in my Heartland_Genealogy tree on Ancestry. He is part of my FAN (friends, associates and neighbors) club for my early Kentucky research. The Sellers family is also part of my FAN research for Preble County, Ohio.

Yes, I have DNA matches to support a Sellers relationship.

No, I don't have the SELLERS surname in my pedigree. I have lots of documentation to support my pedigree back for 5 and 6 generations. Generation wise, Nathan Douglas Sellers (1797-1874) would match up with Nelson Garret Crawford (1808-1864). Nelson Crawford is my 3rd great grandfather (6th generation).

I have yDNA results to support my CRAWFORD lineage.

So where do the SELLERS fit?

Based on my paper research, the only possible connection between Nathan Douglas Sellers and myself is thru his mother, Sarah Crawford. Sarah was given permission to marry William Sellers by Rebekah Crawford in 1795 in Lincoln County, Kentucky.  This is where it gets 'fuzzy'. Based on the marriage record, I (and other researchers) have Rebekah Crawford as Sarah's mother. Rebekah's husband is believed to be John Crawford who died in 1779. Other children in this family may include Mary (who married James Sellers) and James Crawford. At this point, the conclusion has been that this James Crawford is the James Crawford who married Martha Knight and NOT my James Crawford.

Going back another generation, the John Crawford who died in 1779 is claimed to be the son of James Crawford and Margery.  Researchers have identified the sons of this couple as James, John, William and Andrew. One Crawford researcher has proposed that my James Crawford is a son of Andrew Crawford. Ancestry's 'We're Related' app did propose that my James Crawford was a grandson of James Crawford and Margery. The app had an unidentified male as the father of my James Crawford.

Based on this 'fuzzy' tree, Nathan Douglas Sellers and my James Crawford (married Sally Duggins) could possibly both descend from James Crawford and Margery.

Nathan D Sellers --> Sarah Crawford --> John Crawford / Rebekah --> James Crawford / Margery
James Crawford (Sally Duggins) --> unknown --> James Crawford / Margery

If the above scenario is accurate, then James and Margery Crawford would be our common ancestor. That would make me a 2nd cousin to Nathan Douglas Sellers FIVE TIMES removed.  It would also mean going back EIGHT generations from me to get to the common ancestor.

In looking at the relationships in the circle, I am shown outside of the circle. I do match 2 family groups in the circle along with a third individual in the circle.

Does this DNA circle support the idea that Nathan Douglas Sellers and my James Crawford are related thru a common ancestor such as James (Margery) Crawford?

Still a puzzle!

RootsMagic - Preparing to Sync

It's almost here! The ability to 'sync' my genealogy data stored in RootsMagic with Ancestry is arriving soon.

According to the RootsMagic blog post, "Questions about Upcoming Ancestry Features - We've Got Answers", the first preparatory step will involve a decision.

Which set of data do I use to sync RootsMagic with Ancestry?

• RootsMagic data 
• Ancestry tree

I'm going to use my RootsMagic data

• RootsMagic contains all of my collateral line research
• RootsMagic contains sources from outside of Ancestry (deeds, licenses, certificates, FamilySearch, MyHeritage, newspapers, etc.)
• Most of the events in RootsMagic have documentation attached. Some of this documentation is older and not as accurate as current standards -- but it is documentation. 

Since this will be a 'new' tree on Ancestry, I believe there will be some consequences associated with switching to this 'new' tree. (NOTE: This is MY opinion. The sync may not work this way.)

• I will have to 're-connect' the DNA tests I administer to this new tree
• matches may change
• shared hints may change
• circles will likely disappear at first before re-forming
• genealogical communities will likely disappear at first before reappearing

• Shaky leaf hints may be affected -- This will depend on how well Ancestry recognizes the events and associated documentation in my file. 

Because I don't want to risk losing something that is in my RootsMagic file, I'm willing to risk having a ton of shaky leaf hints appear when I elect to use my RootsMagic data for the sync.

Thus, my major concern is making sure I have downloaded my DNA matches and documented the shared matches and DNA circles.

There may be other consequences that I haven't considered. I would love to hear from other RootsMagic users about how they are preparing for this upcoming sync.

There's work to do to prepare -- but I am looking forward to this new feature!