RELEASE DATE: JANUARY 17, 2021
KINSEARCHING
by
Marleta Childs
P. O. Box 6825
LUBBOCK, TX 79493-6825
[email protected]
If you have been trying to trace your immigrant ancestors from Ireland or Scotland, you have probably come across many of the excellent genealogical publications by David Dobson. Periodically continuing one of his popular series, his latest addition is IRISH EMIGRANTS IN NORTH AMERICA, PART TEN.
Although significant numbers of immigrants from the Emerald Isle had already settled in the English colonies in the West Indies and, to a limited degree, in the Dutch West Indies in the late 1600s, Irish immigration to North America began in earnest with the “Scotch-Irish” in 1718. By the early eighteenth century, they formed the largest immigrant group to settle in the thirteen American colonies. During this period, most immigrants were Presbyterians from the north of Ireland. However, this changed dramatically in the nineteenth century when Irish Catholics from all over the country began leaving. The greatest exodus—approximately one million people—left the Emerald Isle, primarily for North America, between the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815 and the conclusion of the potato famine in 1851.
Like the other volumes in the set, PART TEN documents the departure of individuals who left Ireland, voluntarily or involuntarily, for the New World in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. The interesting information about approximately 1,000 people in this particular publication was gleaned from manuscripts, newspapers, journals, monumental inscriptions, and government records found in Canada, England, Ireland, Scotland, and the United States. Although many individuals sailed from Ireland, the material shows that some emigrants left from English ports, such as Bristol, Liverpool, and London.
Since the data cover a span of three centuries, the amount of details concerning each person widely varies. Entries usually provide the name of the passenger, destination or place of residence in North America, a date, and the source of the information. Additional facts in many entries may include place of origin in Ireland, age or date of birth or death, occupation, military service, reason for emigration, names of relatives (often parents or spouse), and the name of the ship on which he or she sailed. Some recurring surnames in the volume are ARMSTRONG, BROWN, CAMPBELL, COLLINS, CONNOR(S), CORRY/CORREY, CUNNINGHAM, DONOVAN, HENRY, JOHNSON/JOHNSTON, KELLY, KENNEDY, LYNCH, MADEN/MADDEN, MCLELLAN/MCLELLAND, McCULLOUGH, McDANIEL, MEAGHER, MILLER, MURPHY, O’BRIAN, RYAN, SHAW, SMITH/SMYTH, SULLIVAN, SKERRETT, THOMSON/THOMPSON, WELCH/WELSH, WILSON, and YOUNG.
As he does in all his works, Dobson provides a wealth of valuable data. Due to his diligence, the material in his books often contains information that may previously have been difficult to access and, therefore, was unavailable to family historians. Some of the formerly unknown details now brought to light may furnish additional avenues for further research on ancestral lines. Needless to say, IRISH EMIGRANTS IN NORTH AMERICA, PART TEN will be a welcomed addition to genealogical library shelves.
Arranging main entries alphabetically, the 105-page work has soft covers, an introduction, a map, illustrations, and a key to references. To the book’s price of $20.50, buyers should add the cost for postage and handling charges. For U. S. postal mail, the cost is $5.50 for one book and $2.50 for each additional copy; for FedEx ground service, the cost is $7.50 for one copy and $2.50 for each additional book. The volume (item order 8718) may be purchased by check, money order, MasterCard, or Visa from Clearfield Company, 3600 Clipper Mill Rd., Suite 260, Baltimore, Maryland 21211-1953. For phone orders, call toll free 1-800-296-6687; fax 1-410-752-8492; website at www.genealogical.com.