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I'm an American of Irish ancestry on all four sides. The earliest immigrant in my family was my great-grandfather, Patrick Cawley, who settled near Troy in upstate New York.  His Alien's Declaration of Intent for U.S. citizenship in 1855 states that he is 30 years old, was born in Sligo and "migrated from the Port of Sligo and landed in the United States on the 30th of June in the year 1847." There is no family history of his having any siblings who followed him here.  He may have been the last surviving member of his family during Black '47.

Are there birth records as early as 1825 in Sligo so I could determine possiblities for his home parish?
I have had no luck searching passenger lists on this side of the Atlantic for that date.  Did ships from Sligo go to various destinations?  I surmise that he could have arrived in New York City and gone up to Troy, or arrived in Canada and then down to New York State.  Were coffin ships leaving Sligo during that terrible time registered, or kept under the official radar by unscrupulous landlords?

Any help would be greatly appreciated,

James B. Cosgrove

conanthelibrarian

Saturday 14th Dec 2013, 10:15PM

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  • Hi James

    I love conanthelibrarian!!

    There are 4 records of Patrick Cawley baptisms in Sligo 1825 + - 1 year on www.rootsireland.ie/

    1824, 1825 & 2 in 1826

    I assume the 1826's can be ruled out so you are down to 2. The U S census was done mid-year so if he had had a birthday that year he would have been born 1825; if not 1824

    You need to purchase credit to view the full record but it will have the parish and SHOULD have the parents' names - some do / some don't.

    Not completely narrowed down but closer.

    Col

     

    ColCaff, IrelandXO Volunteer ☘

    Saturday 14th Dec 2013, 11:30PM

  • Dear Col,

    Thanks for your reply.  I reviewed my research and found that my ancestor, throughout the six decades of American census reports of have of him, varied his reponse to the question of his birth year .  I therefore, think I should broaden my search to the entire 1820s decade.

    I also found some research results done for me by the County Sligo Heritage and Genealogy Society in 2001 which were inconclusive and will require further expense.

    I have been pursuing all no-cost, online avenues but am probably at the point where I need to invest some money.  I also plan to visit Ireland this summer and hope I can move the ball forward in my Cawley research.

    Thanks again for your interest!

    Jim ("Conan")

    conanthelibrarian

    Thursday 9th Jan 2014, 04:02PM

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