I have now done the Ancestry.com and 23andMe DNA. I had hoped it would be more helpful but has yet to meet my expectations. With that being said, it did spur me on to check for a name. Faye, a new"family" member at 23andMe, contacted me to see how we're related.
She sent me a list of family names. The only one I could find was a Collins.
Ida Belle Tyler, my 1st cousin, 2x removed, (meaning, she was the daughter of my great grandmother's sister), married Landon Haynes Collins and had one child, Robert Jesse Collins. Given the relationships, Robert is my 2nd cousin, 1x removed. None of them live in the places Faye mentioned but it didn't stop me from doing a little more research.
Landon's father was Bailey Collins, 1868 - 1897. He is related to me by marriage so that throws off the DNA as far as the Collins goes. However, doing a little more research, I discovered that Bailey Collins married Melissa Rhea. The name was familiar so I did a little more digging.
Melissa Rhea is the daughter of Samuel Rhea. Samuel Rhea is my 1st cousin, 3x removed. I had to figure this one out step by step.
John Elijah Rhea Sr married Febra Northcross. They had 7 children.
Joseph Rhea is the 1st child. He is the father of Samuel who is the father of Melissa who married Bailey Collins.
Martha Pricilla Rhea is the 3rd child. She is my 3rd great grandmother and married John McCollom. Their son is James Northcross McCollom.
John Elijah Rhea Jr. is the 4th child. He is my 2nd great grandfather. He married Lucy Anderson and their son, John Carter Rhea married Martha Jane McCollom, the daughter of the above mentioned James Northcross McCollom.
This is where I stop because I just can't think about it anymore.
