Jeremiah and Mary McCarthy - emigrated late 1840s to Sully, Glamorgan, Wales
Hi, I am looking for some help with my family history research. I have some ancestors from Ireland including a McCarthy family. I've tried to be realistic with my expectations, I realise it's an extremely common name and therefore harder to trace but I'd appreciate any support you can provide, I've tried to include all that I know below.
Jeremiah ‘Jerry/Jerey’ McCarthy is the furthest I've been able to trace back on the McCarthy family line, he was my 4x great-grandfather, and I am descended from his son Denis. Our first known record of him was as a Farmer in Sully, Wales in 1851. His wife Mary and his four children Patrick, Denis, Honora and Thomas were recorded alongside him on the 1851 Wales Census.
Thomas, born 25th July 1850 in Sully was recorded as the son of Jerry Mycarty and Mary Mycarty nee Nouls. (GRO reference:. MYCARTY, Thomas NOULS Q31850 Cardiff 26 417) So far, this is the only child confirmed to be borne by Mary. Nouls is likely a misspelling of Knowles, which along with Newell are anglicised Irish surnames derived from Ó Tnúthghail
The following records have not been found:
- The baptisms of Patrick, born about 1836; Denis, born about 1844 and Honora, born about 1845. We know all were born in Ireland but not which county they were from.
- The marriage of Jerry and Mary. It’s possible they were unmarried, though I believe this is unlikely given they may have had at least 4 children together, 3 before they emigrated.
- Passenger record. We know based on the ages of their children they must have emigrated between 1845 and 1850.
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It’s possible they emigrated with older children who married in Wales prior to the census, though no known records confirm this. The nearest Catholic Church was in Cardiff, there could be a McCarthy wedding recorded by them with a father of the groom or bride matching this family.
Inconsistencies in the census records for Jerry and Mary’s ages have exacerbated the difficulties with identifying them in Ireland, though Mary is likely to have been born around 1812 plus or minus a few years. It’s possible that Jerry was born around the same time or some years before. Some records showed he could’ve been a decade older than her, others indicated they were closer in age. See transcripts below:
--1851 WALES CENSUS-- Taken on the night of March 30.
Residence: Hays Farm, Sully, Glamorgan
Jerey CARTY Head Married 50 Ireland [Farm Labourer]
Mary CARTY Wife Married 40 Ireland
Patrick CARTY Son Single 16 Ireland [Farm Labourer]
Dinnas CARTY Son 7 Ireland
Annora CARTY Dau.r 5 Ireland
Thomas CARTY Son 7m Sully
I believe the age gap between Patrick and Denis could indicate either that there were other children born in this time that didn't survive infancy, or that Patrick and any potential older siblings were children from a previous marriage.
--1861 CENSUS--
Residence: Hays Farm, Sully, Glamorgan
Jeremiah MCCARTHY Head Married 60 Ireland [Labourer]
Mary MCCARTHY Wife Married 48 Ireland [Labourer]
Denis MCCARTHY Son Single 17 Ireland [Labourer]
Norah MCCARTHY Dau.r Single 16 Ireland
Thomas MCCARTHY Son Single 11 Sully
Note: Lodger Edward Sullivan (Irish)
--1871 CENSUS--
Residence: Bower Farm, Sully, Glamorgan
Jerry McCarthy Head Married 66 Ireland [Ag. Labourer]
Mary McCarthy Wife Married 59 Ireland
--1881 CENSUS--
Residence: Middleton, Sully, Glamorgan
Dinnes MCCARTHY Head Married 36 Ireland [Agricultural Labourer]
Jane MCCARTHY Wife Married 35 Pontypridd
Mary Jane MCCARTHY Dau.r 5 Cadoxton
John MCCARTHY Son 2 Cadoxton
David MCCARTHY Son 1 Cadoxton
Jeremiah MCCARTHY Son 4d Sully
Jeremiah MCCARTHY Father Widower 75 Ireland [Agricultural Labourer]
I’ve used the resources available at rootsireland.ie and irishgenealogy.ie to try and locate the baptism and marriage records to no avail. Unfortunately, the number of Jeremiah McCarthys recorded in the Tithe Applotments number too many without a narrower location than “Ireland” to filter with. I was advised previously that the names indicate the family is likely to be from Munster.
A detail that may not be significant is that Denis married Jane/Bridget Roach who I believe to have emigrated from Causeway, Co Kerry. In naming their children they appeared to (loosely) follow the Irish naming convention four of their children named after their parents, the exception being they named their eldest son ‘John’, for which I could find no familial link. Patrick also named his eldest son ‘John’.
I believe this is everything I have on the family. I'd be really pleased if I could tie them to a parish in Ireland but I've not had much luck so far. Thank you in advance to anyone who fancies a try at this puzzle :)
