Hello, my name is Meredith (Carison) Windust, I have been researching my great, great grandparents who were Dutch settlers in the state of New York for many years. I still have a brick wall on both sides. My great grandfather migrated to Australia to follow the gold, in 1856 and he said his name was Thomas Smedes Carison. He said his father was Ebenezer Smedes Carison and his mother, Sarah Ann Doughty. My DNA matches indicate that Smedes was most likely his correct surname, and I have reasonably close matches to Decker, Sherwood, Kipp, Kierstede, Kuykundall, Bogardus, Terwilliger, Van Etten and Jansen to name a few. It seems that intermarriage within the community was rife! I would love to join the project if you will have me. I have searched everywhere for Ebenezer Smedes, but have only found 2 records, one a burial, and the other the marriage of his daughter, but I am not sure they are even correct.