Early Texans DNA Project

The Early Texans DNA Project consists of several sub-groups that are part of the Texas State Genealogical Society DNA Project.

Access the Early Texans DNA Database

Project Scope

The Early Texans DNA Project incorporates data from tests taken at Family Tree DNA when the test-taker joins the Texas State Genealogical Society DNA Project (TxStateGS Project) at Family Tree DNA. Data from other testing companies can be incorporated when the data has been uploaded to Family Tree DNA (or to GEDmatch.com in some cases).

The project is a geographically-oriented project focused on analyzing the DNA of those with ancestors who settled in Texas before 31 December 1900:

  • Group 1: A subset of members with the earliest ancestors—those who settled before Texas became a state on 19 February 1846; this group includes descendants of early Spanish and Mexican settlers, Austin’s Old Three Hundred, Families of Alamo Defenders, descendants whose ancestors were part of a colony such as Mercer’s, Robertson’s, Castro’s, DeWitt’s, Edwards, and others
  • Group 2: A subset of members with ancestors who settled after statehood, arriving by 31 December 1900.

As the project grows, we will be able to form subsets of those ancestors who form groups such as German immigrants, Czech immigrants, and more

Project Goals

The project goals are to:

  • Study the DNA of descendants of early settlers to discover information that can contribute to Texas history including:
    • Determine which admixtures are found in living Texans today.
    • Link those admixture results to early colonies or settlements.
  • Learn which segments of DNA are shared with other descendants of early settlers of Texas.
  • Facilitate applicants for TxSGS Heritage Certificates. DNA matches support claims of descent from a common ancestor and can provide clues as to where to locate documentary evidence.
  • Many more exciting projects in the future!

Join the Project

Join this project and contribute to our understanding of the Early Texans!

  1. If you tested at Family Tree DNA, login to your account then join the TXStateGS project using the “JOIN” button on the page at https://www.familytreedna.com/groups/tx-state-gs/about/background. ONLY if that process does not work, then try steps A through G below.
    1. hover over “myProjects” then click “Join a project”,
    2. scroll down to “Search by Surname”,
    3. change the “Equals” drop-down box to “Contains”,
    4. in the search box enter “txstategs”,
    5. click on “TXStateGS” under “Matching Projects” when the search results are displayed,
    6. click on the “Join” button and follow any additional instructions displayed,
    7. you can include additional information (such as TxSGS heritage certificate numbers) with the join request or submit the form in step 3 below
  2. If you tested elsewhere, please:
    1. upload your data to the Family Tree DNA website (there is a small fee involved), then join the TXStateGS project at Family Tree DNA (see item number 1 above).
    2. An alternative is to upload your data to GEDmatch.com (free); however, few project members are available there making it impossible to compare DNA between project members.
  3. Submit the project application form found here (.PDF). This will allow us to link the Family Tree DNA kit number or GEDmatch kit number with your lineage (either through ancestors documented in a heritage certificate application or through direct data entry into this fillable PDF form).

The TxSGS DNA Project