#03 (Vol 1, No 3) - December 2020

This year-end 2020 issue of the Rowland Genealogy Newsletter discusses the year-end statistics, goals for 2021, DNA Group news, and error propagation on popular tree-building platforms.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. I hope everyone had an enjoyable Christmas holiday despite the constraints the pandemic has bestowed upon us. Since no one was able to predict the events of 2020 a year ago, I will not even hazard a wild guess of what awaits us in 2021. Let’s just hope it is a vast improvement over the past year. With that in mind, I wish you all the best in 2021.

Year-End 2020 Statistics

We made progress on all fronts in 2020. Here are a few year-end data points:

The quantity of Rowland (and variants) memorials at Find-A-Grave is more than 70,000
The Rowland surname database on WikiTree increased by 2,774 profiles to 13,547
137 Y-DNA test takers are in the FamilyTreeDNA (FTDNA) Rowland Project
79 of the 137 Y-DNA test takers (58%) are grouped into one of 12 DNA Groups
21 of the 137 Y-DNA test takers (15%) have their latest pre-1900 ancestor identified
16 of the 137 Y-DNA test takers (12%) have been disclosed to (are known by) the Xref Project
6 of the 137 Y-DNA test takers (4%) have been linked to Y-DNA matches on WikiTree
17 genealogy documents are available as free downloads on our website

Goals for 2021

Our overriding goal for 2021 is to make it a banner record-breaking year in all categories. Specific goals include:

Grow the Rowland surname database on WikiTree to 17,000 (an increase of 3,453)
Grow the quantity of Y-DNA test-takers in the FamilyTreeDNA (FTDNA) Rowland Project from 137 to 160 (nearly two per month)
Increase the 15% of Y-DNA test takers with their latest pre-1900 ancestor identified to 50% (not a typo)
Increase the 12% of Y-DNA test takers that are known to the Xref Project to 50% (also not a typo)
Increase the 4% of Y-DNA test takers that are linked on WikiTree to 20%
Increase the quantity of free downloadable genealogy documents from 17 to 30
Reorganize the Xref Project pages and have a unique page for each DNA group
Build out ancestral and descendant trees for our “famous” Rowland ancestors and identify which DNA Group they belong to

Some of these goals may seem to be aggressive, but I’m of the belief they are achievable as awareness of the Rowland Genealogy website and its Xref Project grows. We’ve only been “live” for five months, and I think it is fair to say that most Rowlands don’t know we exist.

Rowland Xref Project Group News

Many genealogists have noted that the Robert Rowland of Botetourt County, Virginia, and the Robert Rowland of Surry County, Virginia are often confused with each other. A few years ago, the Y-DNA testing at FamilyTreeDNA proved the two lines were not related. This confusion was still evident on WikiTree as recently as a few months ago, and the two Roberts were conflated into a single profile. I separated the two profiles in November to match the DNA evidence. The profile for Robert Rowland (1716-1782) of Botetourt (DNA Group F) now has 1,062 documented descendants and Robert Rowland (1710- ??) of Surry (DNA Group J) has 981. This is an example of what the Rowland Xref Project is trying to accomplish – updating, correcting, and verifying the WikiTree database based on DNA evidence.

We are currently in the process of collecting evidence to sort out the Gasper/Casper Roland confusion. At the present time, there are Y-DNA test-takers in both DNA Group D and DNA Group I that believe they are descendants of Gasper Roland (1721-1809). The DNA evidence shows that both groups cannot be correct, and the Xref Project intends to find the answer.

Error Propagation

Ancestry.com and other many other “tree building” websites make it extremely easy to grow your tree by attaching branches found in other trees, even if those other trees are WRONG. The above two cases are examples of this:

585 trees on Ancestry.com have the Robert Rowland of Botetourt incorrectly connected to the parents of the other Robert Rowland of Surry. This is error propagation run amok.
Gasper/Casper Roland appears in more than 350 individual trees. Few, if any, have documented sources of how they are related, as people were in a hurry to “grow” their trees. The hints and “Thru-Lines” they provide help encourage this behavior, even though they are often the source of the error-prone data and connections.

Bottom line: Be extremely careful of growing your tree with unsourced connections. Also, be aware that the Ancestry DNA test will not help in many of these situations because the ancestors and generations in question are out of the range of autosomal DNA testing.

New Articles Posted

“Murder in Centralia” was published on November 27 and provides an account of the murder of one of our ancestors. William H Rowland, age 22 and a civilian, was murdered in cold blood on the streets of Centralia, Missouri while trying to protect a wagon full of women. This is the story of a hero in the often-overlooked events surrounding the Centralia Massacre.

“10 Most Wanted – December 2020” was published on December 2, and as the title implies, it identifies the 10 most wanted Rowland DNA test-takers and genealogical data. It contains the 10 Rowland Y-DNA groups and Rowland Family Trees that are most in need of your help. I envision this will be an ongoing series with items coming off the list and new ones being added.

New Products in the Free Downloads

New products recently added include:

“Descendants of John Rowland, Son of William Rowland (Botetourt Co., VA)”, compiled by Carol (Rowland) Petersen, self-published 1999, 302 pages. This book focuses on John Rowland (1766-1843), who was born in Botetourt County, Virginia, and passed away in Boone County, Missouri. John has more than 450 descendants documented on WikiTree as part of Rowland DNA Group F.
“Rowland Genealogy: Joseph Rowland of Lancaster Co., PA. & Ashland & Wyandot Cos., Ohio. 1760-1927” compiled and published by the Committee of Willis P. Rowland, Charles Rowland, Rev. W. D. Rowland, and Mrs. Edith West (~1927). Joseph Rowland (1760-1856) was born in Hanover, Germany, emigrated to Hagerstown, Washington County, Maryland in 1764, lived in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and Ashland and Wyandot counties of Ohio. The families in this document are part of Rowland DNA Group I.

Share and Share a Like

As stated earlier, improving the awareness of our existence is key to our goals for 2021. You can help by forwarding this email newsletter to family and friends that may find it of interest. If you received this newsletter from someone else, then you can sign up to get future issues directly at the Rowland Genealogy Newsletter sign-up page.

Following us on Facebook may be the easiest way to keep abreast of new articles and activities between issues of the newsletter. To do so, simply “like” the Rowland Genealogy Facebook page.

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Ron Rowland
Editor & Publisher

PS – I welcome your suggestions for improvements, features, and topics.