Putting the Pieces Together: DNA and Irish Online Resources

This presentation is the result of my being asked many times how I managed to find connections between my family and DNA matches. It covers clustering matches, building out family trees for matches, and then verifying those trees with records.

With a PhD in Chemistry and more than 25 years as a research chemist, Patricia Coleman approaches genealogy the same way she approaches science: with careful analysis, clear evidence, and a commitment to getting it right. That background shapes everything she does. Every conclusion is built on records, data, and DNA.

Today, much of her work focuses on Irish families and on using DNA to solve problems that paper records alone cannot. She specializes in untangling complex situations: unknown parents, misattributed families, and long-standing brick walls. Increasingly, she also incorporates modern tools, including AI, to organize evidence, analyze patterns, and move research forward in ways that simply weren’t possible a few years ago.