DNA Study Finds 1.3 Million Living Relatives of Colonial Maryland Settlers

A groundbreaking genetic study published in Current Biology has identified over 1.3 million living relatives of 49 individuals buried in the 17th-century Brick Chapel cemetery at Historic St. Mary's City, Maryland, the first permanent English settlement in the colony. Led by Éadaoin Harney of 23andMe Research Institute, the team compared ancient DNA from skeletons with data from more than 11.5 million 23andMe users, marking the first time ancient DNA has been used to identify unknown individuals without prior hypotheses. Among the findings, researchers tentatively identified the remains of Thomas Greene, Maryland's second governor, along with his first wife Anne and their son Leonard. The study also revealed a roughly 8-year-old boy of primarily African ancestry, buried in a rare gable-lidded coffin among individuals of majority-European ancestry, suggesting early diversity. Two young men likely from Ireland showed signs of poor health and grueling labor, consistent with indentured servitude. Co-senior author Douglas Owsley of the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History noted that the analysis uncovered six genetic families, including a multigenerational one, and allowed researchers to trace relatives across decades. The research builds on earlier work at St. Mary's City, including the 1992 excavation of lead coffins containing Philip Calvert, Maryland's fifth governor, and his family, later identified through DNA analysis with Harvard University.