Cluster your DNA matches with the Leeds Method | How To Find Your Family

[@DanaLeeds]

Hi, Ryan. I’m the creator of the Leeds Method. You did a great job of explaining the process. Thank you!

[@pinwheelgrl9304]

You have the most concise explanation and visual for doing Leeds I have seen. Saving this link for referrals.

[@StokesCheri]

Hey kid, just ran across your channel while looking for a different LEEDS video to send a DNA cousin. Watched yours and because it was so short opted to send it to her instead. LOVE that all your videos thus far are short and to the point! Keep up the good work. You just earned a new subscriber. 😘

[@engineeringismyblood5212]

The best video I have ever seen for genealogy and how to cluster matches. Thank you so much 👍

[@chelsieterezhultz]

You ROCK! Thank you for making this clear, simple, and brief! Appreciate this oodles! Ready to cluster!

[@gregbilser3627]

It's wonderful to find a really clear explanation! There really are some confusing videos out there.

[@7tracey7]

Wish I'd found this simple and to the point video a few weeks ago! I have got this far but have 14 groups with lots of overlap and need to work out which ones to combine. Very strangely, I didn't notice the music that others complained about which is VERY unusual for me & my ADHD brain as usually am distracted by anything! Think it was because it was short & to the point with clear graphics. Thank you

[@opendoorgenetics5596]

Thanks for watching! Best of luck combining your groups

[@carazy123_]

Dang this is really cool. “It’s all coming together” lol

[@staceycoates1418]

As another idea, I don't color code my matches at the start. I use letters. Then once I group those letters (like the yellow and purple) then I might color code. Also, I sometimes have problems differentiating between colors so using letters helps.

[@MrDannyDetail]

This video is really clear and easy to understand, but I feel that the 90cM lower threshold is probably a bit too high for people in the UK, as families tended to be smaller here in the last 150 years or so than they were in the US, so there are less available cousins to find in the first place. Using my test I come up with just 5 people in the 90-400cM threshold, and they fall into two groups, which turn out to be one group for each of my paternal grandparents. I have literally nobody within the threshold that is on my maternal side. Using my father's test I find 9 people that fall into 3 groups, of 5, 3 and 1 respectively, of which two of the groups are equivelant to the two groups from my own test, as the group of 5 people is entirely through my paternal grandfather's mother and contains the three people that my own test grouped together as being through my paternal grandather, and the group of 3 people is entirely through my paternal grandmother's mother and contains the two people who my own test grouped together as being through my paternal grandmother. The third group contains only one person, whose precise relationship is unknown to me, but a couple of our shared matches have common ancestors that mean that this person must be related through my paternal grandmother's father. Using my mother's test I find 9 people that fall initially into 5 groups, containing, in order of their group number, 4, 1, 2, 3 and 1 people respectively. There is a person in common between groups 1 and 4, and a different person in common between group 3 and group 4, so these collapse into a single group with 7 people in, whose apparent connection is only that they are all paternal relatiives of my mother. Group 2 has a single person in it who happens to be descended from my mother's maternal grandparents, but who is two generations lower than her. Group 5 contains a single person who is related through my mother's maternal grandfather, but who apparently did not have a large enough match with the single person in Group 2 who is actually descended from the same maternal grandfather (and of course from the maternal grandmother too). So using my mother's test there would be three groups, of which one jointly represents two grandparents, whilst a different grandparent is represented simultaneously in two groups (in as much as a single person can even be described as a group) once alone and once alongside another grandparent. An additional complication is that my mother's largest match within the 90-400cM is related twice over, because my mother's paternal grandfather (Bill) had a mother Mary, whose brother William married Madeleine, who in turn was the sister of James, who was the father of my mother's paternal grandmother (Nell). As far as I know none of the other 8 people in any of the groups are descended from William and Madeline though, so even if I exclude this largest match due to the double relationship, I still get the same groups, but with only 6 people in the largest group, of which 4 are all definitely related through my mother's paternal grandfather, and the relationship of the other two are unknown to me, but based on 'common ancestors' within their shared matches both must also be related through my mother's paternal grandfather. with one being a descendant of her paternal grandfather's own paternal grandparents, and the other being, at the very least, descended from her paternal grandfather's own paternal grandfather's own parents. Hopefully that all made sense, but apologies if not, as it's a very hot and humid day here in the UK, and I'm a nightshifter trying to type a coherent comment at noon when I ought to be asleep.

[@TopProducer-l8o]

@cliftonwarren1693 8 hours ago I found your videos very helpful. I have. 8 groups on my Leeds chart, however, I can see the connections with the four main groups. When this happens should you add another row above showing great parents or combine them into one of the four main colours?

[@btu59]

Great information ❤

[@gingo21]

thank you i found your explanation of this very helpful. Only problem is im only showing 5 matches between the 90-400 mark you stated?

[@lemonbade]

I cant find a way to do this using the coloured dots on Ancestry. Is there a recent video on this?

[@babytense]

I don’t understand the combing the groups? How would that be shown?

[@mattpotter8725]

I agree with using this method and the way you explained it up to the point where you said you needed to collapse groups 6 into group 2, this for me is unnecessary. Yes, there is overlap between the groups and everyone in group 2 should be placed in group 2 as well as keeping them in their own separate subgroup (with a few caveats that might mean later you have to reassess this on a case by case basis as there may be some endogamy going on with your ancestors intermarrying amongst each other - nothing to worry about they may be distant cousins themselves). Keeping the subgroups may help later identify great grandparent clusters so keeping them for me isn't a problem. Lastly, I would say if you get less than 4 groups then once of the people you've used initially may not be distinctly from a single grandparent, but from the descendants of a grandparent couple, so from the brothers or sisters of a parent, this depends on the age of the people whose DNA has been tested, obviously this is less likely if the person tested is young and so there can't be say a 1st cousin 2x removed for example, which might be possible if the person tested are over 40, and even more possible if over 60 or 80. So if you get less than 4 groups whilst it's possible people in certain branches of the family might not have tested, you might want to try removing the top person in the first group and starting again. This happened when I tried the technique with the DNA of my 100 year old grandfather.

[@PaulJHawkinsJr]

Age can throw you for a loop too. I found out a girl I went to high school and I are related - she's a generation below me. One of my recent matches is 5 years older than me but my maternal grandmother's generation (40 year difference). My match's ggf and my 3xggf were brothers. We match at 24cM. 🤔

[@fourwallsphoto]

What is the overlap criteria for combining columns?

[@opendoorgenetics5596]

It's more of an art than a science, and there are exceptions, but in general, if more than one overlaps, combine

[@PaulJHawkinsJr]

Just came across this video. Although i originally clusted all 3c matches on ancestry to get 8 great grandparent groups, i decided to give this method a try. In my 90-400, my matches are between 100 and 283ish. I got 7 groups, but i can't see any more than 2 legit overlaps, bringing me down to 6 groups. I've got 2 groups with only one individual in each. All i know is they are both paternal matches. 🤔

[@nygreek743]

I dont think 90 - 400 is good for endogamy though? Do you have a video on that???

[@purrfectmeow]

Can you cluster by great grandparents instead? I've got a grandmother whose father is unknown.

[@opendoorgenetics5596]

This process is well designed to accomplish that goal. Following this video will help you isolate the dna matches you have particular to that grandparent. Then you can move on to video 4 and start looking for common ancestors

[@SylviaFriesland]

Very good explained but how can I mute the background music. It’s very difficult to concentrate. Sorry!

[@opendoorgenetics5596]

Feel free to mute the video and enable closed captioning!

[@keri5527]

I am doing the Leeds method now, but I don’t have many matches between 400 and 90. Can I safely assume that ANY matches I find for one particular color no matter the cM size belongs in that color group? Even if the match is 75cM?

[@opendoorgenetics5596]

Yes... if I'm understanding you correctly. So if you go through the process and "Amy" is green, then Amy shares DNA with Bill, he would also be green, even if he only shares 75cM with you

[@keri5527]

@@opendoorgenetics5596 exactly what I was asking. Thank you!

[@truthhurts5158]

I have over 600 relatives in my tree. I have been stuck on my great Grandfater for 30 years. Got my great grandmother back to about 1750. I have no siblings of his just Him. I have looked in church records both books dont show his parents for some odd reason. Church books from Russia where destroyed. I had Thru lines for all my great grand parents except him. Wondering if he is adopted thats why I am stumped. I could use help please.

[@hazeldickenson3376]

I have 5 groups but only 1 person in group 5

[@opendoorgenetics5596]

Great! Focus on your top 4 groups

[@melo7572]

I only have two connections above 90 cm, damn

[@opendoorgenetics5596]

Are they related to one another? If so, look for common ancestors. If not, look at who those two matches do share dna with and look for common ancestors between them

[@glenjones6980]

My tree is based in the UK and is backed up with every possible birth, marriage and death certificate for my pedigree lines back to 1837, every available census return from 1841-1921 and a vast amount of pre 1837 parish registers together with over 1500 news cuttings back to the very early 1700's. The 90-400cM range gives me a grand total of 14 matches, three match my maternal grandmother's line, one to my paternal grandmother but nothing on her paternal line, it seems her birth certificate is one of many that has some suspect information where the name of the father is concerned. . The remaining ten don't come up as shared matches with either grandmother and all are either private or no tree affairs, I've messaged them all but only had two replies. I think the two replies are from a mother and daughter at 155cM and 95 cM respectively, both claim that as I don't have the common ancestor in my tree we are not related and not to contact them again!

[@danette823]

What if they end up with 3 colors!? Thanks!

[@opendoorgenetics5596]

See the 3:04 mark on the video!

[@ChrisHayden-d7k]

I’ve tried to contact you through your website, I never received a response.

[@opendoorgenetics5596]

Reply sent. Sometimes it goes to spam, so be sure to check there!

[@sonogr41994]

Hi, I sorted my mother's matches. But, I only was able to sort down to 2 set of colors (clusters). 15 people above the 90 cm threshold Can I use below that to find the other set of people??????

[@opendoorgenetics5596]

You should only have two colors on your mom's side (and two on your dad's), so sounds like you're on the right track!

[@sonogr41994]

@@opendoorgenetics5596 no that's not what I meant, I have only two colors. (the overlap on my maternal side, I don't get the other part. I have already figured out my paternal side. I am missing the other set of my maternal great grandparent I have an unknown maternal great grandfather. My grandpa's father. Every match funnels back to overlap same surname. I don't see any different names. I have 11 people with matches above 90cms. All lead to the same family. I get a set of great grandparents initials A.M & S.S. But Don't get the other set I need. How would I get these if I don't have any DNA matches that fall in the limits you advise??

[@MrDannyDetail]

@@opendoorgenetics5596 They meant they were starting with their mother's DNA test rather than their own. So their mother should still get 4 groups if there are enough matches in the 90-400cM threshold.

[@wesleyhiggins2665]

What if the grandparent was the one that was adopted?

[@opendoorgenetics5596]

Ideally you would have them or their sibling tested so you could work off their results. But if you must work off yours, use Leeds to figure out which of YOUR matches belong to that grandparents' branch. Then you can use 'shared matches' to find lower (

[@dalehalliday3578]

your background "music" was so loud it was hard to concentrate on what you were saying. I gave up.

[@7dhernandez]

Wow. The music is extremely annoying. I don’t think I will be able to set through your 5 minute video.

[@opendoorgenetics5596]

Sorry to hear you found it a hindrance! Closed caption is available should you wish to mute the volume.

[@idneilkell]

What is with the freaking background music??? It makes this totally unusable.

[@opendoorgenetics5596]

Sorry you found it a bother. Feel free to mute the video and utilize the closed caption. It is perfectly timed