Is this profile appropriate/adequate?

Question

My William Jackson ancestor apparently abandoned his family. There is no known genealogical evidence supporting where he went. He simply disappears.

A recent DNA test shows I am related (2C1R) to a g-grandson of a John Jackson. I am also a g-grandson of the Willian Jackson of this profile. My match's John Jackson has same approx birth date as my William Jackson. I am making a leap in this profile, stating William morphed into John.

Because of the Hamilton County Courthouse fire of 1849, local records are generally not available from the 1820s and 1830s there.

Can you buy what I am peddling here?

Comments

Congratulations on making a match. However, you will need more matches to elevate your assumption to make it more likely. Especially with the intermingling of families in the area, it would be a good idea to make sure you and John's g grandson are not related in another way. You should also contact your match and see if he knows anything more. I wish you luck.

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Thanks Lucy. There is more DNA evidence than I mentioned. And I have corresponded with John's grandson and he has no more information than is in his tree. I can envision no other way to be connected to my match, but I'll keep trying.

Answer 1

!. William may have died. What evidence is there that the family was abandoned? (family stories don't really count as proof)

2. His name may have been John William or William John.

3. There may have been no William, he may have been conjured to cover for out-of-wedlock births.

4. There may have been no marriage.

Never make your possibilities or avenues of investigation too narrow.

Comments

Thanks Deb. You get another gold star.

I will add your four items to my profile's research section, as topics for further consideration.

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Thanks Weldon. I have often taken family lore as gospel in the past only to discover it was complete fantasy or so garbled as to be near-fantasy. It’s not always easy to envision less “savory” possibilities when considering our forebearers lives. I have seen so many double lives and fictitious spouses at this point nothing surprises me or is too far-fetched to consider.

Answer 2

John and William could be twins or cousins.

Comments

Identical twins, yes! I hadn't thought of that. I'll see if I can make a case. As for cousins, wouldn't that push the match beyond 3C, which seems the outside bounds of this match?

Answer 3

This John Jackson b1802 d1870 

"Find A Grave Index," database, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVVH-GRH4 : 13 December 2015), John Jackson, 1870; Burial, Petersburg, Petersburg City, Virginia, United States of America, Blandford Cemetery; citing record ID 9453698, Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com.