Remains of George Washington’s long-lost grandnephews are identified using DNA from 200-year-old bones found in unmarked graves

Unmarked graves of the first cousins ​​of the first US president have been identified using DNA after 200 years.

The bones belonged to Samuel Walter Washington and George Steptoe Washington Jr., along with their mother, Lucy Payne Washington.

The graves were discovered during a 1999 dig at the Harewood Family Cemetery in Charles Town, West Virginia, with the aim of finding the remains of Washington’s younger brother, Samuel Washington.

Researchers from the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory (AFDIL) used DNA from the fragmented bones and a living descendant, Samuel Walter Washington.

This marks a major discovery for the researchers who said their findings could lead them to identify service members dating back to World War II.

In the study, investigators had attempted to identify all unmarked graves in Harewood Cemetery and believed the remains found belonged to George Washington’s descendants, but conducted DNA testing to be sure.

Researchers believed that the remains found belonged to Washington’s descendants because the cemetery was on land of the Harewood Estate, which was built in 1977 by Samuel Walter Washington.

The most common form of DNA profiling is short tandem repeat analysis – where DNA sequences are repeated to verify family ties – but it is often difficult, if not impossible, to use this method on degraded remains.

People who were embalmed using post-war techniques – such as Samuel, Lucy and George Steptoe – used formaldehyde, which can damage DNA.

Instead, researchers conducted a series of DNA tests comparing the remains to a living descendant: SW Washington.

The researchers analyzed the Y chromosomes to determine the paternal relationship and mitochondrial DNA sequencing to determine the maternal relationships to build a family tree.

Mitochondrial DNA sequencing detects the smallest forms of biological material passed from mother to her child.

They also used a new method that analyzed DNA data from 95,000 genome sets containing all of a person’s genetic information.

“This particular case gave us the opportunity to test methods for comprehensive kinship predictions that we developed using a series of known, degraded DNA samples that require identity confirmation,” said senior author Charla Marshall, deputy director of DoD DNA Operations.

‘Our laboratory is currently validating these new methods for use in routine research.’

Through these methods, the researchers not only confirmed that Lucy, Samuel, and George Steptoe Jr. Washington’s descendants, but they were surprised to discover that their family tree was closer than they expected.

The family relationships were one degree closer, but the researchers were able to confirm that this was due to marriages between cousins ​​in Washington’s family tree.

“Our data confirmed the identity of the three sets of remains, and we additionally determined which man was the direct ancestor of SW Washington, the living descendant,” Marshall added.

Samuel was Washington’s brother and a planter, politician and military officer who lived from 1734 to 1781.

He was the county lieutenant of Berkeley County, Virginia during the early Revolution, resigning in 1777 at the age of 43.

Little is known about George Steptoe II who lived from 1806 to 1831.

He was the youngest son of a Virginia planter and militia officer who died of tuberculosis at the age of 36.

This isn’t the first time researchers have had to use new DNA methods after scientists analyzed the hair of a man claiming to be the great-grandson of Sitting Bull – a legendary Native American Chief.

In 2021, the scientists used autosomal DNA from a lock of Sitting Bull’s hair to match it to Ernie Lapointe and found it was a positive match.

Uncovering Washington’s second cousins ​​through new DNA sequencing could mean previously unknown and unidentified remains can be identified.

It will allow researchers to expand the reference points to third- and fourth-degree living relatives’ in an effort to increase the number of DNA-aided identifications, especially those from past conflicts such as World War II, Korea, the Cold War and Southeast Asia. Asia/Vietnam,” Marshall said.

Dailymail.com has contacted the authors for comment.