looking for information on Willam and Martin Copley. I believe they are brothers and that they left Ireland in 1848. They settled in NY in the US. I believe that both were florists.
Martin had a daughter named Mary Jane, she is the paternal grandmother of the famous American actress Mae West.
My lineage stems from WIlliam. This branch of the Copley's had a florist shop in Brooklyn, NY.
I would be eager to learn about this family.
Thursday 28th Feb 2013, 06:21PM
Message Board Replies
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Hi Lora
Thank you for your query. Firstly it is helpful to include information concerning which sources you may have already used so others may further your search.Do you know much about their emigration? The dates, the reason why they left, who they may have travelled with?..etc..Generally more information was given at the port of arrival rather than the port of departure. If you knew which city they arrived at, which you do (e.g. Liverpool, New York, etc.), this could be a good place to find more information. -And perhaps even find out an exact place of origin.
Ellis Island: http://www.ellisisland.org/search/passSearch.asp
Castlegarden: http://www.castlegarden.org/
US National Archives/Immigration info: http://www.archives.gov/research/immigration/
You will need to find a place of origin e.g. Parish, Townland to search for any existing church records.
Do you know what the religious denomination of your family was? you can view what Roman Catholic records exist for various parishes through the link below:
http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/ (Browse Roman Catholic Parish Map)
For Church of Ireland records see: http://ireland.anglican.org/about/42 and http://www.nationalarchives.ie/. The Anglican Record Project is has created an index to their records: http://ireland.anglican.org/cmsfiles/pdf/AboutUs/library/AngRecord/bunclodyunionindex.pdf
You could try checking the land records called the Tithe Applotment Books (1823-38) http://titheapplotmentbooks.nationalarchives.ie/search/tab/home.jsp or the later Griffith's Valuation (1848-64) http://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/ or the Church of Latter Day Saints (LDS) https://familysearch.org/
The Tithe Applotment List might be of use to you, or at least interesting for you. These lists constitute the only nationwide survey for the period, and are valuable because the heaviest burden of the tithes to the Established Church, the Church of Ireland, fell on the poorest, for whom few other records survive.
Here are some other websites that may be of help to you:
http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/browse/
http://www.nationalarchives.ie/genealogy1/genealogy-records/introduction/
http://www.nli.ie/en/family-history-introduction.aspx
http://ifhf.rootsireland.ie/?gclid=CKLT_Pa4wrUCFYUf4Qod4EoAGg
I hope that this information is of help to you Lora. Please do not hesitate to contact us again.
Kind regards,
Genealogy Support
Monday 4th Mar 2013, 12:29PM