Herlihy History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Irish immigrants began to leave the English-controlled Ireland in sizable numbers during the late 18th century. Many of these Irish immigrated to British North America or the United States in the hopes of gaining their own tract of farmland. This pattern of migration grew steadily until the 1840s when the Great Potato Famine caused a great exodus of immigrants to North America. These immigrants differed from their predecessors in that they were desperately fleeing the disease and starvation that plagued their homeland, and many were entirely destitute when they arrived in North America. Although these penniless immigrants were not warmly welcomed when they arrived, they were critical to the rapid development of the United States and what would become known as Canada. Many went to populate the western frontiers and others provided the cheap labor the new manufacturing sector and the building of bridges, roads, railways, and canals required. A thorough examination of immigration and passenger lists has revealed some of the earliest people to arrive in North America with name Herlihy or one of its variants:

Herlihy Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

• John Herlihy, who settled in Philadelphia in 1876

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Herlihy Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

• Mr. John Herlihy, aged 26 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Triton" departing from the port of Liverpool, England but died on Grosse Isle In August 1847 2

Herlihy Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

• David Herlihy, aged 19, a farm labourer, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Howrah" in 1874
• Denis Herlihy, aged 20, a farm labourer, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Rakaia" in 1878

• Thomas J. Herlihy Jr. (1956-2015), American politician, Connecticut state representative (1997-1999), Connecticut Senator (1999-2009)
• Peter Herlihy, American geographer, the Associate Director and Graduate Advisor, Latin American Studies, University of Kansas
• David V. Herlihy, American author and historian, son of historian David Herlihy
• Patricia Herlihy, American historian and author specializing in Russian and Soviet history
• James Leo Herlihy (1927-1993), American novelist, playwright and actor, known for his Midnight Cowboy and All Fall Down, and his play Blue Denim, all of which were adapted into films
• David Herlihy (1930-1991), American historian on medieval and Renaissance life, husband of historian Patricia Herlihy
• Tim Herlihy (b. 1966), American screen actor, film producer, screenwriter, and Broadway show author
• Edward Joseph "Ed" Herlihy (1909-1999), American newsreel narrator, host of The Horn and Hardart Children's Hour in the 1940s and 1950s, voice of Kraft Foods radio and TV commercials from the 1940s through the early 1980s
• Maurice Peter Herlihy (b. 1954), American computer scientist in the field of multiprocessor synchronization, awarded the 2013 W. Wallace McDowell Award, the 2012 Dijkstra Prize and the 2005 Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery
• James Maurice Herlihy (1914-1962), Irish amateur boxer, winner of the Leinster 1938-39 Championships as a Middleweight
• ... (Another 2 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)