Barkleys in Letterkenny, Co. Donegal

The surname Barkley is also spelled Barclay in Ireland. Both versions are commonly found and can be interchangeable and the spelling will vary as you go back in time. The 1901 census for Ireland has no Barkleys in Co Donegal but there are 40 Barclays. So the name is found in the county, though clearly not very common. Most in 1901 were RC though some were Church of Ireland and a couple Presbyterian.

If your ancestors left Ireland in the mid 1700s, they are most likely to have been Protestant, perhaps Presbyterian. (The majority of emigrants in the 1700s were Presbyterian).  Sadly there are very few church records for Co Donegal for that period which is probably why you cannot find any trace of your family.  They are probably descended from Scots or English who settled in the county in the 1600s. They mainly settled in the east of the county, where the better land is situated.

MacLysaght’s The Surnames of Ireland says of Barclay: “An English toponymic from Berkeley in Gloucestershire, sometimes still so spelt. Barkley is the usual form in Ulster, where it was introduced at the time of the Plantation.”

The 1630 Muster Rolls list just 1 Barkly household in Co Donegal. That was a John Barkly who lived on the Steward estate in the barony of Raphoe (eastern Donegal and not far from Letterkenny). He had a pike. Someone’s economic position can be estimated by the weapons they had. Poorest had no weapons; slightly better off had a pike; then you got folk with a pike and a sword, or a sword and snaphance who were probably the wealthiest.

Researching in Ireland in the 1700s is very hard going due to the general lack of records. If you don’t know where they lived it’s a needle in a haystack. Ideally you need to know the person’s exact denomination and the townland or parish they lived in to have any chance of finding them, and even then there may not be any records for that location, especially in Donegal.

Possibly DNA testing may be a way of matching with others who have additional information about where the family originate. Family Tree DNA reportedly has more people with Ulster roots than any other company. That obviously increases the chances of finding a match. If you have already tested your DNA with Ancestry, My Heritage or 23&Me you can upload your DNA results to Family Tree DNA for free and then join the North of Ireland Family History Society DNA Project. Simple instructions on how to do this can be found here: https://www.nifhs.org/dna/uploading-your-dna/

The 1796 Flax Growers List shows the following Barclays:

BarclayThomasDrumhomeDonegal

BarclayThomasDonegalDonegal

BarclayMargaretStranorlarDonegal

BarclayThomasRaphoeDonegal

BarclayWilliamClonleighDonegal

BarclayWilliamRyeDonegal

BarclayWilliamRaphoeDonegal

BarclayJamesRaphoeDonegal

BarclayHughRyeDonegal

BarclayFrancisRaphoeDonegal

BarclayCharlesRaphoeDonegal

BarclayGeorgeDonegalDonegal

BarclayGeorgeRaphoeDonegal

BarclayHughRaphoeDonegal

BarclayHenryFahan UpperDonegal

BarclayAndrewRaphoeDonegal