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Abstract

The purpose of this dissertation is to examine the genetic and genealogical data of male descendants of Aaron Stark [1608-1685] having the surname "Stark." This report will provide explanations of how we have arrived at certain conclusions; identify reoccurring haplotypes that can identify probable male descendants of Aaron; determine the probable ancestral haplotype of Aaron; and discuss the rate of mutation of the Y-DNA of Aaron's descendants.

There will be descriptions of differences (or mutations) observed between members at one or more DYS Markers. (See DYS Marker Definition). Because one differs from another at one or more of the markers discussed  is not a bad sign nor are the matches a good sign. Enough marker matches merely explains relatedness between individuals while not enough matches explains non-relatedness of Individuals.

All of the male individuals discussed in this report have the surname Stark or Starks and have been found through genealogical research to be descendants of Aaron Stark [1608-1685] of Connecticut.  The Genetic Results confirms there is a high probability these men all have a common ancestor who lived within the previous 20 generations. (Click HERE to see Lineage Table). (Use Back Button to return to this text.)

Background

The origins of the Stark surname in North America began with the arrival of Aaron Stark in New England between 1630 and 1637 —  most likely from Scotland or England. He was born about 1608 and died in 1685 in New London County, Connecticut. His service in the Pequot War under Captain John Mason in May of 1637, was the first record we have of him in Connecticut. He eventually settled in New London County, Connecticut in a region that later became Groton Township. 

 Those who have participated in the Stark Family Y-DNA Project have been found to be descendants of many genetically unrelated families having the surname Stark or one of it's derivatives.  The majority of the participants are descendants of families that settled in New Hampshire, Virginia, and Connecticut. Contrary to the beliefs of some earlier researchers, the Stark Family Y-DNA Project has clearly proven the descendants of Aaron Stark are not  related to the descendants of the New Hampshire and Virginia families.

Introduction

The male Y-chromosome is handed down from father to son relatively unchanged through the generations. A comparison of the Y-DNA of two males with the same surname can determine their relatedness to each other. Groups of males with the same surname so tested and compared can define family groups and establish a probability they have a most recent common ancestor who lived after the usage of surnames became common in Europe in the 13th and 14th centuries. Considering that one generation is about 25 years or more, the year 1500 would be the approximate equivalent of about 20 generations prior to the present generations.

Those males with the surname Stark who have been genealogically proven to be descendants of Aaron Stark are descendants of two of his sons — Aaron Stark II [1654-1701] and William Stark, Sr. [1664-1730]. It is known with certainty that Aaron Stark lived approximately between the years 1608 and 1685 — well after the establishment of surnames in Europe. The following list identifies the Kit number of the descendants of Aaron Stark [1608-1685] and groups them as descendants of the two sons of Aaron. 

A conservative probability of 85% or greater — for the purposes of this discussion — will be considered a confidence threshold of sufficient probability to declare that any two individuals compared most likely did have a common ancestor that lived within the number of generations specified. Probabilities below this threshold will be deemed insufficient. This threshold is intended as a guideline and should be the subject of further interpretation when the plots approach 85% from the direction of greater or lesser probabilities.

This population of individuals have been variously tested over Panel 1 (Markers 1-12), Panel 2 (Markers 13-25), and Panel 3 (Markers 26-37) as will be presented in the Genetic Results Table. One or more participants can have the same haplotype over any combination of these Panels . For the purposes of this discussion, the most common haplotype over a selected group of DYS Markers will be referred to as Haplotype 1. Other lesser occurring haplotypes will be numbered 2 thru N (Haplotype 2, Haplotype 3,..., Haplotype N). All genetic comparisons of lesser occurring haplotypes in this report will be compared to the most common haplotype.

Terminology

Before we begin, here are some explanations of common terms used in this summary.

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Genetic Results

The following Genetic Results Table presents the allele values available over 37 DYS Markers for each of the members. Cells with this background color report DYS Marker allele values of descendants of William Stark [1664-1730]; while cells with this background color report DYS Marker allele values for descendants of Aaron Stark II [1654-1701]. The Common Ancestor Column reveals from which of the two sons of Aaron Stark I each member descends — according to the genealogical research. The "letter" preceding each Kit # will be the "Letter Code ID" for each Member used when discussing genetic comparisons. [Comparison of A-B, for example.]

For the purpose of this report, a Mutation occurs in a DYS Marker column when an allele value differs from the most common allele value in that column (excluding the ancestral haplotype allele values). For example, in Panel 1 (Markers 1 thru 12), all of the allele values in the Marker 2 (DYS-390) column are 24 — resulting in no observed mutations in this column. However, in the Marker 1 (DYS-393) column, the allele value 13 occurs more often than the allele value 12. Therefore, Members F, R, and S — having the allele value 12 in the Marker 1 column — have their Marker 1 allele values highlighted in yellow; indicating each has a DYS-393 mutation relative to the more common allele value of 13. This method of determining mutations results in a minimum number of mutations for the population tested.

Using genealogical and genetic data, the deductive triangulation method devised by Charles F. Kerchner, Jr. was employed to define the Ancestral Haplotype of Aaron Stark I. [See Charles F. Kerchner, Jr.'s article entitled "Triangulation Method for Deducing the Ancestral Haplotype in Y-DNA Surname Projects."] Cells with this background color report DYS Marker allele values for the Ancestral Haplotype of Aaron Stark I [1608-1685]. Appendix 1 entitled "Defining the Ancestral Haplotype of Aaron Stark [1608-1685]" has a more complete analysis of this process.

According to FTDNA, those DYS Markers labeled in RED have a higher mutation rate than those Markers not labeled in Red.

Genetic Results Table

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Genealogical Lineage

The following Genealogical Lineage Table shows the direct male line from each member to their earliest known ancestor. The Common Ancestor of all members, Aaron Stark [1608-1685], is presented in the Gen 12 column. Note that the Kit #'s of the program members are variously shown under the column's labeled Gen 0 through Gen 3. This is because there were four living generations participating in the program. The following would be the number of generations Aaron Stark lived before the members: 12 generations before those listed under Gen 0; 11 generations before those listed under Gen 1; 10 generations before those listed under Gen 2; and 9 generations before those listed under Gen 3.

The Panels/Mismatches column reports the Panel haplotypes that were reported for the Member in that row and the number of mismatches over each Panel — relative to Kit #76234 (A) reported in the first row. The 'ID" column assigns a letter code to each row for the purpose of discussion when making genetic comparisons. [Comparison of A-B for example.]

When reading from left to right, each row will eventually encounter a common ancestor associated with a member in an adjacent row. For example, A and B have a common ancestor named Moses, reported in the Gen 6 column. A, B, and C have a common ancestor named Jonathan J., reported in the Gen 7 column. This continues to occur reading left to right until Gen 12 — where Aaron I is reported to be the common  ancestor  of all of the members.

Members Genealogical Lineage to Aaron Stark [1608-1685]

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Analysis of Panel 1 Haplotypes

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While there is sufficient genetic evidence to establish relatedness in comparisons within each of these haplotypes, the comparisons of Haplotype 1 to Haplotypes 2 & 3 cannot resolve relatedness between these members without additional genetic data. Nor can comparisons of Haplotypes 2 and 3 to each other resolve relatedness between these Members. However, genetic results over Panels 2 and 3 will later determine F, R, J, and S are related to those members having Haplotype 1.

Future participants genetically tested having the surname Stark and having Haplotype 1 in Panel 1 — most likely will be descendants of Aaron Stark [1608-1685]. New members joining the program having Haplotypes 2 and 3 could also be descendants of Aaron Stark [1608-1685]. However, it is suggested new members having Haplotype 2 or 3, upgrade their test to include the Panel 2 DYS Markers to confirm their relatedness to members tested over these additional Markers.

Analysis of Combination of the Panel 1 & 2 Haplotypes

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The lesser occurring P12 Haplotypes will now be compared to the P12 Haplotype 1.

The addition of the Panel 2 markers to the Panel 1 markers improved the probabilities dramatically. All of the members with Haplotype 1 have the most common haplotype observed in Panel 1. Observe those with Haplotype 2 and 6 also have the most common haplotype observed in Panel 1; but had mutations occurring at Marker 21 and Marker 25 in the Panel 2 Markers.

All of those having Haplotypes 2 thru 4, and 6 — when compared to Haplotype 1 — had probabilities in the range between  93.4% and 94.77% that they share a common ancestor who lived within 20 generations, suggesting members having these haplotypes are related to those having Haplotype 1. The comparison of Haplotype 5 to Haplotype 1 resulted in a borderline probability of 84.33%. While R remains below the confidence threshold, his results will conclusively demonstrate he is related to the other members when his Panel 3 genetic results are combined with Panels 1 and 2.

In the Analysis of the Panel 1 haplotypes, there was insufficient genetic evidence to determine the relatedness of S to those in Panel 1 having the P1 Haplotype 1. S was not tested over Panel 2. However, F was tested over Panel 1 & 2 and found to be related to Members with the P12 Haplotype 1. The confirmation F is related to other members having the P12 Haplotype 1 — confirms S is also related.

The combination of Panels 1 and 2 suggests the P12 Haplotype 1 will most likely identify men with the surname Stark or one of it's derivatives as descendants of Aaron Stark [1608-1685]. While the other Profiles may also identify them as descendants of Aaron Stark — they most likely identify mutations that occurred in one or more generations after Aaron Stark and may represent members of one or more of his descendant branches. How often Haplotypes 2 through 6 will occur depends on the generation in which the mutation was transmitted from a father to his son.

Analysis of the Panel 1, 2, & 3 Haplotypes 

Table 3 identifies nine unique Haplotypes when the Panel 1, 2, & 3 haplotypes are combined.  Haplotype 1 is the most common haplotype and is the same as the Ancestral Haplotype over all three Panels. All members having Haplotype 1 in this combination were a perfect match to each other and exhibited no mutations. While Member F had partial results over markers 26 thru 37, they were not complete and he has been excluded from this discussion. 

  The lesser occurring profiles will be compared to P123 Haplotype 1.

The combination of Panels 1,2, & 3 suggests the P123 Haplotype 1 will most likely identify men with the surname Stark or one of it's derivatives as descendants of Aaron Stark [1608-1685]. While the other Haplotypes may also identify them as descendants of Aaron Stark — they most likely identify mutations that occurred in one or more generations after Aaron Stark and may represent members of one or more of his descendant branches. How often Haplotypes 2 through 9 will occur depends on the generation in which the mutation was transmitted from a father to his son along the respective descendant branches.