McGaw History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
There are multitude of rich histories underlying the many Irish surnames in use today. The name McGaw originally appeared in Gaelic as Mac Gafraidh. Gafraidh or Gothraidh equates with the English personal name Godfrey. Variations that start with the prefix Mac or Mc mean son of Godfrey.
Early Origins of the McGaw family
The surname McGaw was first found in County Fermanagh (Irish: Fear Manach) in the southwestern part of Northern Ireland, Province of Ulster, where they held a family seat at Ballymacaffrey near Five mile Town in Fermanagh near the Tyrone border. 1
Early History of the McGaw family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our McGaw research. Another 51 words (4 lines of text) covering the year 1987 is included under the topic Early McGaw History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
McGaw Spelling Variations
In the Middle Ages, a name was often recorded under several different spelling variations during the life of its bearer. Literacy was rare at that time and none of the languages to be found in the British Isles had achieved any great semblance of standardization. Variations of the name McGaw found include MacCaffery, MacCaffrey, MacCafferty, MacAffery, MacAffry, MacAfferty, MacGoffrey, MacGodfrey and many more.
Early Notables of the McGaw family
More information is included under the topic Early McGaw Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
McGaw migration to the United States +
Ireland experienced a dramatic decrease in its population during the late 19th century. This was in a great measure, a response to England's imperialistic policies. Hunger and disease took the lives of many Irish people and many more chose to leave their homeland to escape such hunger and disease. North America with its promise of work, freedom, and land was an extremely popular destination for Irish families. For those families that survived the journey, all three of these things were were often attained through much hard work and perseverance. Research into early immigration and passenger lists revealed many immigrants bearing the name McGaw:
McGaw Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
- John McGaw, who landed in America in 1811 2
- Edward McGaw, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1839 2
- M McGaw, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 2
- Alexander McGaw, aged 28, who landed in America from Liverpool, in 1899
McGaw Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
- Colin McGaw, aged 22, who settled in America from Scotland, in 1902
- Elmer E. McGaw, aged 24, who immigrated to America, in 1904
- George K. McGaw, who landed in America, in 1906
- Alex McGaw, aged 23, who immigrated to America from Glasgow, in 1906
- James McGaw, aged 23, who settled in America from Glasgow, in 1906
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
McGaw migration to Canada +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
McGaw Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century
- Henrietta Mary McGaw, aged 23, who settled in Winnipeg, Canada, in 1910
- Charles McGaw, aged 34, who immigrated to Toronto, Canada, in 1913
- Allan Robert McGaw, aged 22, who immigrated to Winnipeg, Canada, in 1918
- Barbara McGaw, aged 38, who settled in Winnipeg, Canada, in 1922
- Agnes McGaw, aged 8, who immigrated to Winnipeg, Canada, in 1922
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
McGaw migration to Australia +
Emigration to
Australia followed the
First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:
McGaw Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
- John McGaw, aged 22, a labourer, who arrived in South Australia in 1858 aboard the ship "Bee"
McGaw 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:
McGaw Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
- George McGaw, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Mermaid" in 1859 3
- Wilhelmina McGaw, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Mermaid" in 1859 3
- Mr. George Mcgaw, British settler travelling from Liverpool aboard the ship 'Mermaid' arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 19th October 1859 4
- Mrs. Wilhelmina Mcgaw, British settler travelling from Liverpool aboard the ship 'Mermaid' arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 19th October 1859 4
Contemporary Notables of the name McGaw (post 1700) +
- Major-General Edward John McGaw (1901-1972), American Commanding General 1st Cavalry Division (1955-1956) 5
- Walt McGaw (b. 1899), American National Football League guard
- Robert W. McGaw, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Illinois, 1972, 1980 (alternate); Mayor of Rockford, Illinois, 1973-81 6
- Samuel McGaw VC (1838-1878), Scottish recipient of the Victoria Cross
- Mark McGaw, Australian former professional rugby league footballer
Historic Events for the McGaw family +
- Mr. Errol Victor McGaw (d. 1912), aged 30, English Fireman/Stoker from Southampton, Hampshire who worked aboard the RMS Titanic and died in the sinking 7
Citations +
- 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)
- New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 5th November 2010). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
- New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
- Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2013, February 12) Edward McGaw. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/McGaw/Edward_John/USA.html
- The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 21) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
- Titanic Passenger List - Titanic Facts. (Retrieved 2016, July 13) . Retrieved from http://www.titanicfacts.net/titanic-passenger-list.html