A reader just asked me if, as an adoptee, she shouldn’t also be using those closer matches. And, yes, she should! And, you should, too! But, I’ve never written about how to include them in the Leeds Method.
Adding Closer Matches to the Color Cluster Chart
Round 1: Create a “regular” Color Cluster chart. You can add the 1st cousins and higher 2nd cousins at the top of your chart, but do NOT include them as part of your original sort. In other words, they do NOT get a color during this first round. (Note that I wrote them in light grey to keep them separate from the 2nd & 3rd cousins who share <400 cM.)
Above is an example of a Leeds Method cluster chart. I’ve hidden the names, but I have added a column for cM which I do think is really important. I created the original chart with those 2nd & 3rd cousins who shared LESS than 400 cM with the test taker. (Note: To avoid a really long chart, I did not use all of the 3rd cousin matches.)
Round 2: Look at the shared matches of the 1st and high 2nd cousins. Add them to one or more color clusters by looking at all of their matches on the original chart.
In this round, you are looking at the shared matches of these closer cousins. They easily might fall in more than one category! So, as you work through each cousin, make sure you look at ALL of their 2nd & 3rd cousin matches and add them to all the color groups they overlap.
Examples:
-
- #757 shared cM match – As I looked at this person’s matches, I saw matches to the blue, green, and red clusters. So, #757 belongs in all 3 color cluster.
- #440 shared cM match – Only matches people in the blue cluster, so they are part of the blue cluster.
- #431 shared cM match – Only matches people in the red cluster, so they are part of the red cluster.
I hope this helps! And, please, let me know if you have any other questions!
30 Comments
Leave your reply.