Ferguson- Londonderry

If George Ferguson was born c 1828 then I think his parents were probably born earlier than 1818. They would only have been 10 when they had George, if born in 1818.

Do you know if George and his parents lived in Londonderry or whether he simply departed from that port? And do you know his precise denomination?

Looking at the 1831 census for Co. Londonderry, there were 10 people named John/Jno Ferguson, a mix of Presbyterians, Church of Ireland and Catholics. If the family is from the county and you know their denomination then you may be able to focus on the relevant parishes and townlands.

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/search/

If know the denomination, let us know ands we’ll advise what records exist and where to find them.

If John Ferguson was a farmer he will likely have lived in the same area most of his life and he’ll likely have married locally.  I looked in the 1831 census of Co. Londonderry to see where the name Garven/Garvin was found. It’s in 5 parishes: Drumachose, Tamlaght Finlagan, Ballyscullion, Macosquin & Desertoghil.  I then searched the name John/Jno Ferguson to see if there were any in those parishes. Only Drumachose has both Garven & John Ferguson. There were 2 households both in the townland of Rathbrady Beg which is the town of Limavady. One was Presbyterian (3 males & 3 females) and the  other contained 2 families, both Church of Ireland (4 males and 4 females in both).

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/search/

Now the weakness of this approach is that it assumes John was head of his own household in 1831. If he was unmarried and living with his parents then the head of household is probably not called John. But I am sure you get the idea; if you compare all the parishes with any Ferguson and any Garven, and eliminate Fergusons who weren’t Presbyterian you’ll end up with a fairly short list.

If John Ferguson was a farmer then you wouldn’t expect him to be living in a town so I am not sure that the Rathbrady Beg household is yours but you can use that search principle to identify likely parishes where the families may have lived.

Few Presbyterian records are on-line. However most have been copied and are in PRONI (the public record office) in Belfast. There are 4 Presbyterian churches in Drumachose (the area around Limavady). Derramore’s records start 1825, Drumachose in 1827, 1st Limavady 1832 (with gaps) & 2nd Limavady 1845. A personal visit is required to access them. Access to the records there is free. This link explains what records exist, parish by parish:

https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/publications/proni-guide-church-records

If you are unable to go yourself, you could employ a researcher. Researchers in the PRONI area: http://sgni.net

The main shipping agent in Londonderry in the 1840s and 1850s was J & J Cook. They had regular sailings to Philadelphia, St John (New Brunswick) & Quebec. Their passenger records have survived and those for Feb 1847 – 1849 are on-line on various sites including PRONI (ref D2892/1/1). I searched them and did not see a John, Nancy or George Ferguson listed, though there was a William Ferguson, from Limavady of all places.

Cindy,

I made some enquiries with a colleague who is the genealogy expert for Derry City Council and who knows all there is to know about ships sailing from Derry. It turns out that the Delta was not one of Cooks ships, and so that’s why the family don't appear in their records. That's a great pity because they were one of the few companies that kept detailed passenger records, including a passenger's address in Ireland.

I did find a mention in the Londonderry Sentinel of the Delta’s voyage from Londonderry to PA, and it’s safe arrival, in August 1849, (copy attached) but I don’t think there are any agents records to consult which will tell you where the passengers came from.

Your best bet is probably to get someone to search the Presbyterian records for the parishes I have indicated, to see if the family show up there.

Cindy,

You might be interested in the attached transcript letter which was written in 1847, and described the circumstances of emigrants from Londonderry at that time. The letter came from PRONI in Belfast.