Shorghnesy History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

• Origins Available:
• Ireland

Early Origins of the Shorghnesy family

Early History of the Shorghnesy family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Shorghnesy research. Another 101 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1569, 1673, 1690, 1691 and 1744 are included under the topic Early Shorghnesy History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Shorghnesy Spelling Variations

The scribes who created documents long before either the Gaelic or English language resembled their standardized versions of today recorded words as they sounded. Consequently, in the Middle Ages the names of many people were recorded under different spellings each time they were written down. Research on the Shorghnesy family name revealed numerous spelling variations, including O'Shaughnessy, Shaughnessy, O'Shanessy, Shanessy and others.

Early Notables of the Shorghnesy family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was Ruaidhrí Gilla Dubh Ó Seachnasaigh (aka Sir Roger O'Shaughnessy) (died 1569), Irish Knight and Chief of the Name; Roger O'Shaughnessy, The O'Shaughnessy (d. 1690), Captain in the Irish...
Another 37 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Shorghnesy Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Shorghnesy family

Suffering from poverty and racial discrimination, thousands of Irish families left the island in the 19th century for North America aboard cramped passenger ships. The early migrants became settlers of small tracts of land, and those that came later were often employed in the new cities or transitional work camps. The largest influx of Irish settlers occurred with Great Potato Famine during the late 1840s. Although the immigrants from this period were often maligned when they arrived in the United States, they provided the cheap labor that was necessary for the development of that country as an industrial power. Early immigration and passenger lists have revealed many immigrants bearing the name Shorghnesy: Thomas O'Shaughnessy settled in Philadelphia in 1854; along with Martin and James; John O'Shanessy settled in Philadelphia in 1820; Patrick, James, John, Michael Shaughnessy all arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860..