Without a Trace

"Without a Trace" is a series of educational articles about DNA testing and genetic genealogy, helping Henderson descendants understand and use DNA to discover their family connections.

Your DNA tells the story of your ancestors — where they came from, who they married, and how they migrated across the world. Modern DNA testing can reveal connections you never knew existed.

Y-DNA (Male Line) — Follows inherited DNA from your father, his father, etc. Valuable for surname research; can identify the family group of your male line. Recommendation: start with at least the Y-37 test.

Mitochondrial DNA (Female Line) — Follows inherited DNA from your mother, her mother, etc. Useful for studying ancient migration of maternal ancestors.

Autosomal DNA (All Ancestors) — Mix of DNA from both parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. Most common testing. Provides countries of origin and connects you to genetic "cousins" from all sides of your family.

DNA shared between relatives decreases by roughly half with each generation. Understanding these percentages helps interpret DNA match results and estimate relationship distances.