On July 27th, the Pike DNA Project reached a milestone in the form of its 20th anniversary. In the two decades that have passed since the summer of 2004, the project has grown well and now has 286 Y-DNA results. This has enabled us to identify 24 genetically distinct clusters that have the surname Pike or one of its variants. Twenty years ago we were relying on Y-DNA tests that consisted of a mere twelve STR markers. While we still make use of panels of STR markers to help determine which genetic clusters people belong to, we are now able to also use the advanced BigY test that analyses over 10 million SNP markers to help determine how family branches fit onto their family tree.
In the remainder of this blog post I want to showcase a feature of the BigY test that is regularly updated by FamilyTreeDNA and can be viewed by those who have taken the BigY test, namely the "Time Tree" feature. FamilyTreeDNA has written about it in their own blog (which you can see by clicking here). Below I will illustrate the Time Tree for each of the genetic groups in our project for which multiple people have taken the BigY test.
One particular benefit of the Time Tree is that it calculates the estimated birth year for the founder of each branch in the tree. This in turn provides us with estimates for when each of the clusters in our project was founded. Note that this calculation takes into account the years of birth of people who have taken the BigY test, if they have provided their birth year. For people without a stated year of birth, the Time Tree calculations use 1950 as a default value.
The Time Trees presented below are each drawn chronologically from left to right (i.e., from past to present). Each branch in the tree is indicated by a circular node with the name of the SNP marker that defines the branch. When BigY testers login at FamilyTreeDNA and view their Time Tree, they can hover their mouse over a SNP's node to see the estimated year for when that branch in the tree originated. At the very right of the tree are circular
icons for each person within each branch who has taken the BigY
test (the flags correspond to what they have each indicated as the
location of their most distant known Pike ancestor).
Group 1
This group is by far our project's largest cluster, accounting for about a quarter of all project members. Based on the extent that people have been able to trace their lineages in historical records, it generally appears that Group 1 originated in the vicinity of Berkshire, Hampshire and Wiltshire in England. The earliest documented Pikes in this group are John Pike from Whiteparish, Wiltshire who was born about 1572 (and in 1635 emigrated to Massachusetts), and a Richard Pike from Newbury, Berkshire who was born around 1598 (and whose son Richard gave rise to a Pike family at Cork, Ireland). These two lines descend from some earlier common ancestor, which indicates that the Group 1 family is one that is old and well established.
The Group 1 Time Tree, illustrated below, estimates that its founder was born in the year 1325. This estimate isn't shown in the screenshot below, but instead it appears when BigY testers view the Time Tree and hover their mouse over the founder's circular icon. As a caveat regarding the estimate, note that there is a margin of error extending from about 1020 to 1530 (denoted by the dashed horizontal line in the Time Tree diagram). Four project members that descend from John Pike who settled in Massachusetts in 1635 have taken the BigY test. Between them, their most recent common Pike ancestor is John. In the Time Tree below, their branch of the tree (which we know originates with John) is the R-YP5462 branch, with an estimated origin of 1521. Clearly this is too early to be the year of birth for a man who was still alive and well in 1635, but note the margin of error extending from about 1225 to 1750. With additional BigY results, it is anticipated that these calculated estimates will improve.
The Time Tree shows different branches within the Group 1 family, as determined by SNP mutations that have been detected in the results of the ten members of Group 1 who have done the BigY test. In particular, notice that there are two major branches, one that carries the SNP named R-YP5461 (and which is estimated to originate around the year 1442) and another that carries the SNP named R-FT427056 (which is estimated to originate around the year 1366). These two main branches have sub-branches of their own.
Something else to observe is that FamilyTreeDNA has included an entry for Zebulon Montgomery Pike, an American explorer after whom Pikes Peak in Colorado is named. They have been able to do this for Zebulon on account of the combined genealogical knowledge and DNA results of members of our project. In a similar manner, FamilyTreeDNA has been able to include other notable individuals in their system, although Zebulon is the only one to so far appear in any Pike Time Trees.
When we review the Time Trees of other Pike groups below, something interesting will arise. Although our Group 1 is clearly a deep and well established family, there are others that have even earlier estimated dates of origin than the 1325 estimate for Group 1.
Group 2
This group consists of Pikes who have ancestry in/near the town of Carbonear, Newfoundland, where a Thomas Pike was included in a census taken in 1681. The Group 2 Time Tree below shows that the man responsible for this group is estimated to have been born in the year 1631.
So far twenty members of Group 2 have received results of BigY tests, which has enabled us to identify four branches of the family that are marked by distinct SNPs. These four SNPs are named R-FT351132, R-BY23384, R-BY111567, and R-FT59829, which are estimated to have arisen in the years 1679, 1726, 1747, and 1798, respectively. At the top right of this tree are six project members who belong to other branches for which we have not yet been able to determine identifying SNPs (but as we receive more BigY results there is hope that such SNPs will be discovered).
The R-FT351132 branch is interesting since it has a sub-branch (R-FTC99220) that is close to two centuries old itself. But more than that, since the R-FT351132 branch has an estimated origin of 1679, it hints that the Thomas Pike who was at Carbonear in 1681 might not be a common ancestor for all of Group 2. Possibly Thomas is only responsible for a portion of Group 2, while some cousins or brothers might have given rise to some the branches we see in the Time Tree. I am working to explore this hypothesis to either prove it or refute it.
Group 6
A man named James Pike arrived at Charlestown, Massachusetts in or before 1647. His descendants are in our project's Group 6. For reasons not yet understood, the Y-DNA profile of James' son John and his descendants does not match that of the descendants of James' sons James and Jeremiah. The four descendants of James junior who have taken the BigY test are shown in the Time Tree below, along with two other men who we have admitted to our project. The four Pikes fit into the R-BY36036 branch that is estimated to have originated in the year 1533. Its parent branch (R-BY36062), which includes the two other men, is estimated to have originated in 1432.
Regarding James' son John, two of his descendants have taken the BigY test. Their Time Tree is shown below. From genealogical records, we know that the most recent common Pike ancestor of these two men is actually James' son John. On the basis of the BigY test results, The Time Tree suggests that he was born in 1652. This compares well with the date 01 January 1653 that is often stated for John's birth.
Group 7
This is one of our project's smaller groups, with only seven project members belonging to it. Of these seven, two have taken the BigY test. One of them traces his ancestry back to a Pike ancestor who was born in North Carolina around the year 1795. The other BigY tester carries the surname Pikes and has ancestry that is solidly rooted in the English county of Herefordshire, back to the early 1700s. Other members of Group 7 (but who haven't taken the BigY test) suggest that there may be another line that goes back to the early 1700s in Maine and Lancashire.
The Group 7 Time Tree, shown above, gives an estimated origin date of 1245, suggesting that this is an extremely early Pike family with a long history, even though we have not yet encountered many members of the family.
Such an early date is truly fascinating. As it happens, this might tie in with a research project that I've been pursuing for several years. The mayor of Bristol in 1548 was a man named William Pikes. He died in 1550, leaving three adult sons named John, John, and Walter. I have been trying to trace their descendants. Two years ago the Guild of One-Name Studies published a report on my efforts in the guild's journal (you can read it online from this link), culminating in having traced one line of descendants from Bristol to London and then to Herefordshire in the early 1700s. Effort is underway to determine whether this line connects with the line of our project's Herefordshire BigY tester.
Group 8
We now have 18 project members in Group 8, although only five have received BigY test results so far. Genealogically, everybody in this group is currently stuck in tracing their Pike ancestry somewhere in the USA. Most of the earliest known members of Group 8 resided in either Kentucky, South Carolina or Alabama, but a common ancestor has not been able to be identified.
The Group 8 Time Tree gives an estimated birth year of 1581 for the group's founder. This suggests that there were likely multiple men who separately immigrated from England (or some other point of origin) to the American colonies and gave rise to the members of Group 8 that we now find scattered across several states.
Incidentally, one sub-branch has been identified from the BigY
results within Group 8. This sub-branch is marked by the SNP named I-FT23630 and is estimated to have
originated in 1752.
Group 10
Our project's Group 10 is comprised of people with ancestors who carried the surname McPike (or McPeek, or something similar). The family's origin appears to be in Ireland, with Donegal and Ulster being cited as ancestral origins for some of our project members.
The Time Tree for Group 10 reveals a few branches that can be discerned from the BigY test results. Some of these branches appear to be fairly young, having arisen within the past century. Meanwhile, the founder of Group 10 is estimated to have been born about 1118, which is the earliest estimated origin date for any of the genetic groups within the Pike DNA Project.
Group 20
Group 20 is another cluster consisting of Pikes with ancestors in Newfoundland, particularly in Trinity Bay. From genealogical records it appears that this family came to Newfoundland from Christchurch, Hampshire.
Two of the group's members have taken the BigY test. Each of these two project members descend from a man named George Pike who was having children in the 1850s, but we don't yet know if it's the same ancestor or if there were two George Pikes fathering children at the same time.
The Time Tree constructed from the BigY test results suggests that the two project members descend from a common Pike ancestor who was born about 1808. This would tend to suggest that it is was just one George Pike instead of two, except that the margin of error (extending from about 1630 to 1930) allows for the possibility of two separate men both named George Pike. There is also the possibility that there were two George Pikes, with one being the son of the other.
Recommendations and Suggestions
There are a few things that I would recommend members of our project to do.
One is to enter your own birth date into your profile at Family Tree DNA, as this will help generate more reliable estimates for the birth years of the founders of the various branches that are detected. To enter your details, login at FamilyTreeDNA, go to your Account Settings, scroll down past your Contact Information, and enter your date of birth in the appropriate field.
Having more people take the BigY test is another thing that would be helpful, as this can help to identify new branches within our family trees. And as the Time Trees shown above illustrate, BigY test results also help to determine where branches belong within our family trees, as well as when the branches originated. People with BigY results can login to to their dashboard at FamilyTreeDNA and view the Time Tree and any recent updates to it.
Making a donation to our project to help cover upgrade costs would be welcome, particularly in cases of posthumous upgrades. Donations can also help with recruiting additional people to join our project.
Recruiting new members to join our project is a task that Stu and I do whenever we can, but over the years the rate of newcomers joining has slowed. If and when you encounter people who have the Pike surname or a variant such as Pyke, please encourage them to join our project. If nothing else, send them a link to our project's introduction webpage.
Genealogical Disclaimer
As with any genealogical research, the reasoning and conclusions that are outlined above are based on what information has been found to date. New discoveries will be assessed and incorporated as they arise, and may on occasion require adjustment to conclusions. That's one of the best features of genealogical DNA testing, as each new test result provides new information that can reinforce past conclusions, or sometimes it can focus scrutiny onto something that isn't quite right.
