Maternal Threads Unwoven: Identifying Margareta’s Mother in 18th Century Sweden

Jill K. Morelli, CG

In spite of birth entries for Margareta’s five siblings in Hishult, there was no record of her birth in the parish. Tax records quickly identified the father, and revealed multiple moves within a narrow span of time; however, identification of the mother remained elusive. No witnesses to births of the children provided clues; no household examinations existed. Coupling the understanding of broad context (naming patterns, inheritance laws, the calendar shift, etc.) with mtDNA and documentary evidence, the mother was identified and the lack of a records was explained.

Presenter: Jill Morelli, CG, CGL is a “Roots” genealogist, becoming interested in family history in the 1970’s with the Alex Haley show. At that time, she just collected “stuff.” After a hiatus during which she had a family and volunteered in her community, Jill came back to genealogy with a vengeance in February 2002 and a total commitment to “doing it right.” She is the founder of the Certification Discussion Group which shares tips and strategies for BCG portfolio building, and a co-founder of Applied Genealogy Institute, whose motto is “Learn by Doing”. She has been published in a variety of publications including NGSQ, Swedish American Genealogist and others. Jill is past president of Seattle GS and is co-chair of the SGS Centennial 2023.