I am the manager of eight DNA Surname Projects, but not the Hawkins Project. However, I am the 6th great grandson of a Hawkins lady, so I have a personal interest in seeing the advancement of this study. Personally, I descend from Philemon Hawkins (1690-1725), through his son, John Hawkins. My family is said to descend from Admiral Sir John Hawkyns, and I hope to use DNA testing to establish this as fact or fiction.

DNA has become an extremely useful tool for genealogists. By joining a DNA Surname Project, any man with a given surname can have his Y-DNA (male) chromosomes compared to other men of the same name. If their DNA profiles are very similar, then the participants can determine if they share a Common Ancestor on their direct paternal line (father’s, father’s, father’s, father’s, father, etc.).

Women may also be tested for mtDNA (female), but this measures the DNA profile passed down from mother to daughter. Because women chang e names at marriage, maternal DNA testing is not usually as useful to genealogists as the Y-DNA test. Obviously, DNA is easier to match with traditional paper trail evidence when a surname is a common thread.

If you are a man named Hawkins, and you have a sincere interest in genealogy, then you owe it to yourself to see if your family is connected to other distant Hawkins’ lines. Believe me, you have close and distant cousins who will also appreciate your participation. Please visit the wonderful web site for the Hawkins DNA Project at the following link:

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~hawkinsdnaproject/

Phil Hawkins, the manager of this Hawkins DNA Project and this linked web site, is doing an absolutely fantastic job. I’m sure he or this web site can answer any questions you might have, but feel free to contact me directly as well.

Like I said, I am a desc endant of Philemon Hawkins (1690; ENG – 1725; VA) and Ann Eleanor Howard. Their son, John Hawkins (1720; VA – 1804; NC), and his wife, Mary Wyatt, were the parents of Mary Hawkins (1746; NC – 1830; GA). Mary was married to Nathaniel Benjamin Bullock, a Patriot of the American Revolution.

Philemon Hawkins and Ann Eleanor Howard had two sons, my John (mentioned above) and Philemon (1717 – 1801), both of whom had numerous male descendants. Finding a suitable DNA participant from each branch should not be difficult.

But the real key to successfully proving this line will be from also finding a Hawkins descendant of the proven brother of Admiral Sir John Hawkins, William (1530 – 1589). Supposedly, many American Hawkins families trace their line to William (also a noted mariner). If the DNA profile of a descendant of William is a match to that of a descendant of Sir John, then we will have proven the family connection to their parents, William (b. 1485) and Joan Trelawney. Of course, this would also prove our descent from Admiral Sir John Hawkyns.

Unless you’ve been involved in a DNA Project before, you have no idea of the thrill of finding a genetic match to an unknown or unproven line. I whole heartedly recommend every man joining the DNA Project of his own name.

Thanks.

Stan