Gawley History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland
Scotland

Many variations of the name Gawley have evolved since the time of its initial creation. In Gaelic it appeared as Mac Amhalghaidh or Mac Amhlaoibh. The former name denotes a son of Auley, while the later denotes a son of Auliffe or a son of Humphrey. They claim descent through the Heremon line of Irish kings. 1

Early Origins of the Gawley family

The surname Gawley was first found in county Westmeath (Irish: An Iarmhí) in the Irish Midlands, province of Leinster, where at one time the area which is now Ballyloughnoe was once called "McGawley's Country." There is another sept named Mac Amhlaoibh in Gaelic which were a branch of the MacGuires and mainly found in County Fermanagh. This branch gave their name to Clanawley. 2

Early History of the Gawley family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gawley research. Another 109 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1787 and 1841 are included under the topic Early Gawley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gawley Spelling Variations

Names from the Middle Ages demonstrate many spelling variations. This is because the recording scribe or church official often decided as to how a person's name was spelt and in what language. Research into the name Gawley revealed many variations, including MacAulay, MacAwley, MacAuley, MacAullay, MacAulley, MacAwlay, MacCaulay, MacCawley, MacGawley, Magawley, Cauley, Caulay, McCamley and many more.

Early Notables of the Gawley family

Notable among the family name at this time was

Count Magawley Cerati, Chief of the name, he was Prime Minister to the Empress Maria Louisa

Gawley migration to the United States +

Thousands of Irish families left for North American shores in the 19th century. These people were searching for a life unencumbered with poverty, hunger, and racial discrimination. Many arrived to eventually find such conditions, but many others simply did not arrive: victims of the diseased, overcrowded ships in which they traveled to the New World. Those who lived to see North American shores were instrumental in the development of the growing nations of Canada and the United States. A thorough examination of passenger and immigration lists has disclosed evidence of many early immigrants of the name Gawley:

Gawley Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Andrew Gawley, aged 22, who landed in New York in 1812 3
Joseph Gawley, aged 36, who arrived in New York in 1812 3

Gawley migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Gawley Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Miss. Mary Gawley, aged 1 who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Yorkshire" departing 9th June 1847 from Liverpool, England; the ship arrived on 10th August 1847 but she died on board 4

Gawley 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:

Gawley Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Miss Kate Gawley, (b. 1863), aged 20, Scottish settler travelling from Glasgow aboard the ship "Forfarshire" arriving in Invercargill, Southland, South Island, New Zealand on 26th June 1883 5

Citations +

O'Hart, John, Irish Pedigrees 5th Edition in 2 Volumes. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1976. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0737-4)
MacLysaght, Edward, Irish Families Their Names, Arms and Origins 4th Edition. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2364-7)
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)
Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 77)
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html