Hello, I have long suspected that my ancestor, Antonio de Almada (b. abt. 1800), who came to the United States in 1836 via the whaling industry and settled in New York, originated from Sao Jorge. But for a long time, my suspicion was mostly due to the fact that most people with the Almada surname seem to come from the area centered around Norte Grande. Recently, however, I stumbled on another clue that provides even more concrete evidence that that is in fact where Antonio came from.
Several years ago I had my DNA tested on Ancestry.com. It wasn't until a couple weeks ago while searching through my DNA matches I found a distant cousin who claimed to be descended from a Joao de Sousa de Almada from Sao Jorge. While I am not descended from this particular person myself, when I trace his genealogy back a couple generations in the parish records, I come to the family of Manoel de Souza de Almada and his wife, Anna. They had a son named Antonio that was born around the right time that my ancestor would have been. And if this Antonio is indeed my ancestor, that would explain my genetic connection to the person on Ancestry.com who said he was descended from Joao de Sousa de Almada - and more importantly, I would confirm the date and place of my ancestor's birth. But of course, there is also a chance that our link is through a different ancestor altogether. So the way to prove it would be to find another known descendant of the Almada family from Norte Grande and see if we're also connected. I notice DNA testing seems to be a major topic for discussion in this group - is there anyone out there who is also descended from this family? Appreciate any help anyone can offer. Thanks! -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Azores Genealogy" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/azores.
