Continuing to Untangle My Crawford–Sellers DNA Connections

In a recent post, I described my “experiment” to identify the Sellers matches in my DNA tree. While some might consider my method a bit unconventional (or even slightly daring), it led to some exciting results. Not only did I locate descendants of Mary and Sarah Crawford, who each married a Sellers brother, but I also found matches descending from their brother James Crawford, who married Martha Knight.

Using Ancestry’s Colored Dots

To keep everything organized, I used Ancestry’s color-dot system to mark both the ThruLines matches and their shared matches. My current coding looks like this:

• 7 CRAWFORD DOUGLAS SELLERS — ThruLines matches – See Color Coding post
• SELLERS — Descendants of James and Mary (Crawford) Sellers or William and Sarah (Crawford) Sellers, and all of their shared matches
• Knight–James Crawford — Descendants of James and Martha (Knight) Crawford, and their shared matches

Testing a Hypothesis

Working with the hypothesis that Rebekah Crawford’s husband, John, was a brother to James (Rebecca Anderson) Crawford and William (Elizabeth) Crawford, I experimented with changing the parents of “my” James Crawford in Ancestry to each of these brothers to see how ThruLines would respond.

The results were enlightening. Those two trials not only found descendants of James and William, but the Rebecca Anderson Crawford ThruLines also revealed Maxwell descendants—likely connected to Rebecca’s first marriage to John Maxwell. That discovery led me to continue expanding my color-coded system.

Updated Color Codes

• 7 CRAWFORD DOUGLAS SELLERS — ThruLines matches for James/Rebecca Crawford or William/Elizabeth Crawford
• Anderson–Maxwell — Descendants of Rebecca Anderson and her first husband (John Maxwell)
• Anderson–Crawford — Descendants of James and Rebecca (Anderson) Crawford
• Crawford, William–Elizabeth — Descendants of William and Elizabeth Crawford

What the Numbers Show

Although I’m not finished color-coding every shared match, my current tallies show just how extensive these networks are:

• 109 ThruLines descendants across the Crawford lines
• 949 Anderson–Crawford shared matches
• 652 Anderson–Maxwell shared matches
• 791 Crawford, William–Elizabeth shared matches
• 1,008 Knight–James Crawford shared matches
• 1,024 Sellers shared matches

Drawing Conclusions

Based on the depth and overlap among these shared matches, I’m increasingly convinced that the father of my James Crawford was a brother to John, James, and William Crawford—all believed, according to the FamilySearch Tree, to be sons of James and Margery Crawford of early Virginia.

Every new shared match adds another thread to this genetic tapestry—and reminds me that even unconventional experiments can reveal meaningful connections.

Reflection

As I continue exploring these interconnected Crawford–Sellers lines, I’m reminded how DNA research is both science and storytelling. The dots and color codes may look like data, but behind every match is a family, a shared history, and perhaps the answer to a centuries-old question. Each discovery—no matter how small—brings me closer to understanding how my branch fits within this larger Crawford family tree. And while my “experiments” may not follow a traditional research path, they continue to spark new questions, new theories, and renewed excitement for the hunt.