Author Archives: Roberta Estes

About Roberta Estes

Scientist, author, genetic genealogist. Documenting Native Heritage through contemporaneous records and DNA.

Horse Shoe Jim, an Indian Chief, Claiborne County, Tennessee

Posted on March 1, 2016 by Roberta Estes

During a visit to Claiborne County, TN is the 1980s, I happened across a scrapbook that had been contributed to the library. Inside the scrapbook were old clippings from the Claiborne Progress Newspaper that related to the residents and includes … Continue reading →

Posted in Tennessee | 2 Comments

Further Analysis of Native American DNA Haplogroup C Planned

Posted on February 5, 2016 by Roberta Estes

Haplogroup C is one of two Native American male haplogroups. More specifically, one specific branch of the haplogroup C tree is Native American which is defined by mutation C-P39 (formerly known as C3b). Ray Banks shows this branch (highlighted in yellow) along … Continue reading →

Posted in Canada, Cree, DNA, Miawpukeks, Micmac | 18 Comments

Native American Haplogroup X2a – Solutrean, Hebrew or Beringian?

Posted on January 28, 2016 by Roberta Estes

I was very pleased to see the article, “Does Mitochondrial Haplogroup X Indicate Ancient Trans-Atlantic Migration to the Americas? A Critical Re-Evaluation” by Jennifer Raff and Deborah Bolnick. This is one of those topics that gets brought up over and over … Continue reading →

Posted in Algonquian, Anthropology, Anzick, Archaeology, Archaic Indians, Asia, Beothuk, Canada, Chippewa, Clovis, DNA, Europe, History, Jemez, Kennewick Man, Michigan, Micmac, Migration, Montana, Navajo, Ojibwa, Sioux, Solutrean | 8 Comments

Samson Occom, the Presbyterian Mohegan

Posted on December 2, 2015 by Roberta Estes

Born in 1723, Samson was a member of the Mohegan nation from near New London, CT and became a Presbyterian minister. Occum was the first Native American to publish his writings in English, and also helped found several settlements, including … Continue reading →

Posted in Brothertown, Iroquois, Lenape, Mantauk, Mohegan, Mohican, Oneida, Pequot, Six Nations | 2 Comments

First Bible Printed in US is Algonquian

Posted on December 1, 2015 by Roberta Estes

The Elliott Bible, translated into Algonquian by John Elliott, a Puritan missionary known as the “Apostle to the Indians,” was the first Bible printed in the colonies in 1663 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. John used this Bible in his missionary efforts. … Continue reading →

Posted in Algonquian, Massachusetts | 5 Comments

Free Access to Native American Records – Limited Time

Posted on November 5, 2015 by Roberta Estes

Many people have an oral history of Native American heritage. Fold3.com is offering free access to their Native American Collection until November 15th, 2015. Finding that your DNA carries a history of Native heritage often is just the beginning of … Continue reading →

Posted in Research, Resources | 6 Comments

Mass Pre-Contact Native Grave in California Yields Disappointing Results

Posted on October 20, 2015 by Roberta Estes

In 2012 during excavation for a shopping mall near San Francisco, a mass grave containing 7 men was unearthed. The manner in which they were buried led archaeologists to believe that they had been murdered, and quickly buried, not ceremonially … Continue reading →

Posted in DNA, Ohlone | 1 Comment

Interactive Early Maps Show Native Movements

Posted on October 15, 2015 by Roberta Estes

Early maps are a great source for Native researchers. They often show the locations of Indian peoples or towns, in addition to place names that reflect Native people as well. At this link, you will find several interactive maps. As … Continue reading →

Posted in Cayuga, Shawnee, Tuscarora | 1 Comment

Indian History of Present Day Berkeley County, West Virginia

Posted on September 13, 2015 by Roberta Estes

According to missionary reports, several thousand Hurons occupied present-day West Virginia, including the Eastern Panhandle region where Berkeley County is located, during the late 16th and early 17th centuries. During the 17th century, the Iroquois Confederacy (then consisting of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Cayuga, Delaware, Huron, Iroquois, Mingoes, Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Ottawa, Seneca, Shawnee, Tuscarora, Wyandot | 5 Comments

Indians Along the Susquehanna in the 1670s

Posted on September 9, 2015 by Roberta Estes

Excerpts from the book, “A History Between the Rivers; The Susquehanna, the Juniata and the Potomac 1609-1958 by C. Arnold McClure. Page 47 – 1675/76 “…the destruction of the Susquehannocks, a once-powerful group of Indians who had stablished themselves on … Continue reading →