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McSherry History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

McSherry History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The Norman Conquest of England in 1066 brought much change, including many immigrants with new names. Among these were the ancestors of the McSherry family, whose name comes from the Norman name Odinet, from which the more commonly known Odo is derived. Apart from the aforementioned patronymic origin, the place name could also mean "pleasant valley," from the Welsh "hawdd" meaning "pleasant" or "peaceful" and "nant," a "glen or valley." 1

Early Origins of the McSherry family

The surname McSherry was first found in Shropshire at Hodnet, a village and civil parish in the union of Drayton, in the hundred of North Bradford. 2

The first record of the place name was found in the Domesday Book of 1086 where it was listed as Odenet. 3

"The Hodnets, or Hodnetts, derive their name from the Shropshire parish of Hodnet. During the 13th century there was a powerful family in the county that took the name of De Hodenet from either the manor or the parish of the name." 4

Early History of the McSherry family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our McSherry research. Another 120 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1116 and 1237 are included under the topic Early McSherry History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McSherry Spelling Variations

Endless spelling variations are a prevailing characteristic of Norman surnames. Old and Middle English lacked any definite spelling rules, and the introduction of Norman French added an unfamiliar ingredient to the English linguistic stew. French and Latin, the languages of the court, also influenced spellings. Finally, Medieval scribes generally spelled words according to how they sounded, so one person was often referred to by different spellings in different documents. The name has been spelled Hodenet, Hignett, Hignet, Hodnet, Hodnett, Hodenett, Hodinett, Hodinutt, Hodinut, Hodinott, Hodinot, Hoddenett, Hoddinet, Hoddinutt and many more.

Early Notables of the McSherry family

More information is included under the topic Early McSherry Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McSherry Ranking

In the United States, the name McSherry is the 11,998^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 5

Migration of the McSherry family to Ireland

Some of the McSherry family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 104 words (7 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McSherry migration to the United States +

To escape the political and religious persecution within England at the time, many English families left for the various British colonies abroad. The voyage was extremely difficult, though, and the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving. But for those who made it, the trip was most often worth it. Many of the families who arrived went on to make valuable contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families reveals a number of immigrants bearing the name McSherry or a variant listed above:

McSherry Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Daniel McSherry, who arrived in America in 1812 6
Joseph McSherry, who landed in South Carolina in 1831 6
Michael McSherry, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1840 6

McSherry migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

McSherry Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

John McSherry, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Hooghly" in 1846 7

McSherry migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

McSherry Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. Thomas Mcsherry, British settler arriving as the 1st detachment of Royal New Zealand Fencible Corps travelling from Tilbury, Essex aboard the ship "Ramillies" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 6th August 1847 8
Mrs. Bridget Mcsherry, British settler travelling from Tilbury, Essex aboard the ship "Ramillies" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 6th August 1847 8

Contemporary Notables of the name McSherry (post 1700) +

John Patrick McSherry (1944-1996), American umpire who worked in the National League from 1971 to 1996
Brigadier-General Frank Johnson McSherry (1892-1977), American Deputy Chief of Allied Military Government Europe (1943-1944) 9
Richard McSherry (1817-1885), American physician, one of the founders of the Baltimore Academy of Medicine
James McSherry (1776-1849), American politician, former Congressional Representative from Pennsylvania
James McSherry (1842-1907), American jurist, former Chief Judge of the Maryland Court of Appeals
Michael J. McSherry, American politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from New York 19th District, 1982 10
James McSherry (1776-1849), American politician, Member of Pennsylvania State Senate 11th District, 1815-17; U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania 5th District, 1821-23 10
Frank D. McSherry, American politician, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, 1953-61 10
Elizabeth J. McSherry, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Massachusetts, 1960 10
Charles T. McSherry, American Democratic Party politician, Democratic Candidate for U.S. Representative from Michigan 3rd District, 1938 (primary), 1940 10
... (Another 5 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the McSherry family +

Empress of Ireland

Mr. James McSherry, British Assistant Steward from United Kingdom who worked aboard the Empress of Ireland (1914) and survived the sinking 11

Grover Shoe factory

Mr. Thomas Mcsherry (b. 1858), American employee of the Grover Shoe factory in Brockton, Massachusetts on 20th March 1905 when the boiler exploded and collapsed the wooden building; he survived 12

Citations +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) HOOGHLY 1846. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1846Hooghly.htm
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2013, May 9) Frank McSherry. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/McSherry/Frank_Johnson/USA.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 14) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Commemoration Empress of Ireland 2014. (Retrieved 2014, June 17) . Retrieved from http://www.empress2014.ca/seclangen/listepsc1.html
California Digital Newspaper from 21st March 1905 (retrieved on 5th August 2021.) Retrieved from https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=SFC19050321.2.19&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1