>MY PATERNAL GGGGRANDFATHER (CHESTANG) WAS FROM
>FRANCE AND HE HAD A LONG SPOUSAL RELATIONSHIP WITH A
>FREED SLAVE WHO HAD 12 CHILDREN ALL BORN FPOC IN
>ALABAMA IN THE 18TH CENTURY. ALL THE RECORDS SHOW
>HER FIRST NAME AND NOTHING MORE ABOUT HER, SO I
>WOULD LOVE TO FILL IN SOME BLANKS. SO TO DO THE DNA
>TESTING ON MY PATERNAL GRANDMOTHER IT WOULD HAVE TO
>BE A FEMALE RELATIVE? AS FOR MY FATHER HE IS NOT
>ALIVE.

How is the freed slave related to your father? I know she's your ggg-grandmother, but you didn't tell me which of the 8 ggg-grandmothers she is.

1. Your father's father's father's father's mother?
2. Your father's father's father's mother's mother?
3. Your father's father's mother's father's mother?
4. Your father's father's mother's mother's mother?
5. Your father's mother's father's father's mother?
6. Your father's mother's father's mother's mother?
7. Your father's mother's mother's father's mother?
8. Your father's mother's mother's mother's mother?

mtDNA is passed from the mother to all her children, BUT, only daughters pass it to the next generation, So, for mtDNA testing, you will need a continuous line of female to female descent from this CHESTANG g-g-g-grandmother, down to the person you test.

You will note that seven of the eight ggg-grandmothers listed above do not have a female-to-female descent down to your father. But cousins are also possibilities.

Does your father have any sisters? Did they have daughters?

Did his father have any sisters? Did they have daughters?

You many need to go back up the line of descent from your father to this ggg-gm, go over to a sibling and come down to a living person to test.

Oh, yes. Almost forgot. One of the members of my church is a CHESTANG. In fact, she told us Sunday that she is moving to Arizona to live with a daughter.