How do I use my DNA test to prove a relationship to German Oscar Ballard?

Question

German Oscar Ballard was born 18 December 1915 in Corinth, Van Zandt county, Texas to Robert Thomas Ballard and Nettie Jane Southerland. All have profiles on Wiki. German Oscar is Ballard-6469.

Answer 1

Jeff Ballard-6469 is your grandfather. To use your 23andMe test to prove your relationship to him and his wife you need to ask a first cousin who is also descended from him and his wife to take an auDNA test and upload the results to GEDmatch.com. If you and your first cousin share the expected amount of DNA (approximately 850 cM), you can mark your relationship to your mother 'confirmed with DNA' and also your mother's relationship to her parents 'confirmed with DNA'.

Comments

My mother has done the 23andme test also and is confirmed to be my mother through that test. Do I still need a first cousin to test in order to confirm?

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Please ask your mother to become a WikiTree Family Member (by entering her e-mail address on her 'edit' page just under her gender). Then ask her to add her 23andMe DNA test information to her WikiTree profile. After adding a statement to your profile, explaining your DNA match with your mother, (see this page: https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Help:DNA_Confirmation#One-to-One_23andMe_Confirmation  which will be updated soon to reflect changes related to the GDPR) you can mark your relationship to your mother 'confirmed with DNA'.

You had asked about confirming your relationship back to your grandfather. Your match with your mother only confirms your relationship to her. It does not confirm her relationship to her own father. You would need a matching test from a cousin to confirm that relationship.

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Thanks for the explanation. I'm a relative newby to the DNA aspect of genealogy, which is why I was asking the question. I can "prove" the relationship on paper but wasn't sure how to do it with DNA.

Answer 2

You may not need the DNA - if the person of interest has a profile here, Relationship Finder can tell you the relationship. Is this a living person, or deceased? Of this generation or from history?

If the intent is genealogy, exploring what you can find here is wholly appropriate. If proving a relationship is for some other need? An attorney or your local legal aid office.

Good luck!