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Emigration Route

TipperaryEmly (Tipperary)

My Great Grandparents emigrated from Emly Tipperary to Chicago sometome between 1866 amd 1869.  I have been unable to find any information regarding their emigration so I was wondering if someone could let me know their likely route.  Cobh was (I think) the nearest port but I don't know if others like Galway may have been easier to get to.'  I also wonder what their destination might have been.  I assume Ney York or Boston but Canada and New Orleans are also possibilities.  I also wonder if they came as a family or if My Great Grandfather came first.  That would have left my Great Grandmother with two very young children.  I am hoping that others whose families took similar journeys might be able to provide some insight

Thanks

Mike Callahan

Mike C

7 replies

Their names would help.
Cobh at that time would be listed as Queenstown.

Margot Secrette

My great great grandfather was Michael Callaghan, son of Michael Callaghan and Mary Rea(gh)? Born in Emly in 1838. His wife was Johanna Fahey, daughter of Edmund Fahey and Ellen Real. Born in 1839

Mike C

Mike,

Regarding your question of which port your family sailed from there’s a big choice. There were direct sailings to America and to Canada from a variety of Irish ports, but by far the majority of Irish emigrants left via Liverpool. Liverpool acted as a clearing house for migrants from all over Europe bound for North America and there were daily sailings from there to a variety of ports.  Competition for the business was fierce and shipping agents often threw in passage to Liverpool and a couple of nights in a seedy lodging house there as part of the deal. The newspapers in the 1860s were stuffed with adverts for tickets to North American ports and elsewhere.  Here’s an example from the Wexford Independent on 19th Dec 1868 (see 5th column) including Cork.

The railway to Limerick Junction opened in 1849 so they may have left by rail from it. (Emly itself later had a rail station but it didn’t open till 1879).

Elwyn, IrelandXO Volunteer ☘IrelandXO Volunteer

Hi Mike,
I cannot find a ship record. I did see the 1880 Census in the USA and was hoping it would say the year they arrived. The States have different information on the Census records.
From that area I think possibly they would have gone to Cork.  Hard to say as no records show.
From Nellie's birth 1864c in Ireland I checked Emly records, up to now I cannot find her.

Looking at Edmund Fahey, in the tithe records there are three, the nearest to Emly is Ballinglanna, Shronell this would be in the Parish of Emly.
Ballinglanna Townland, Co. Tipperary (townlands.ie)

Looking at Michael Callaghan he is listed in Ballyhone, Emly.

Ballyhone Townland, Co. Tipperary (townlands.ie)
 

I will look again for Nellie's birth.
 

Margot Secrette

I have found a baptism record for Ellen/Nellie in Ireland, Select Catholic Birth and Baptism Registers, 1763-1917 for September 1864. (I think my sister is the first Ellen in our family that wasn't called Nellie).  I have also found references to Michael Callaghan in Ballyhone though I also found a Mary Callaghan renting a home in Emly. No way to know if she was my ggg grandmother.

I found Edmond Fahy in Lisobehane in Griffiths 

I also realized that I can narrow down the emigration date a little more.  My gg grandfather spent 30 days in Clonmel in Sptember 1866.  I enviosion him coming home and his wife saying 'That's it.  We are out of here''  I suppose thy could have risked a winter voyage (Can't find much about ships in that era) but alos could have waited until 1867

I have read about many people leaving from Liverpool but I am cirious about how they would have gotten to Liverpool.  I guess Cork is as good an option as any'

I doubt I will ever know for sure but it is fun to think about

Mike C

There were regular sailings, often several a day, from Dublin to Liverpool, also from Kingstown (now Dun Laoghaire) to Holyhead where you could get a train to Liverpool.  A journey of just a few hours.  Liverpool was extremely easy to get to and used by far more Irish migrants than ever left directly from Ireland. The passenger records on Ancestry are full of Irish passengers who left via that port.

There were also regular sailings from Cork to Liverpool. That said, quite a few of the outbound vessels from Liverpool called at Queenstown en route to North America so you could join there, but clearly for various reasons, including the much more frequent services, a lot of Irish emigrants chose to go via Liverpool.

Elwyn, IrelandXO Volunteer ☘IrelandXO Volunteer

Where a record says left from Glasgow or Liverpool and went to USA or Australia, this is where it first departed.
Then it would call at different ports dropping off and picking up as it went on it's journey. Crew would be replaced and Captains. Usually last port of call would be Cork. 
Titanic never went to Cork, it was anchored off Roches Point as it was too big to get to the harbour. 
I only found that out on a visit to Camden Fort.

Margot Secrette

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