Keeney History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The 19th century saw a great wave of Irish families leaving Ireland for the distant shores of North America and Australia. These families often left their homeland hungry, penniless, and destitute due to the policies of England. Those Irish immigrants that survived the long sea passage initially settled on the eastern seaboard of the continent. Some, however, moved north to a then infant Canada as United Empire Loyalists after ironically serving with the English in the American War of Independence. Others that remained in America later joined the westward migration in search of land. The greatest influx of Irish immigrants, though, came to North America during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. Thousands left Ireland at this time for North America, and those who arrived were immediately put to work building railroads, coal mines, bridges, and canals. In fact, the foundations of today's powerful nations of the United States and Canada were to a larger degree built by the Irish. Archival documents indicate that members of the Keeney family relocated to North American shores quite early:

Keeney Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

• John Keeney, who landed in Charleston, South Carolina in 1832 2
• Pat Keeney, aged 48, who arrived in New York in 1854 2
• Peter Keeney, aged 18, who landed in New York in 1854 2
• Cath Keeney, aged 15, who arrived in New York in 1854 2

• Russell Watson Keeney (1897-1958), U.S. Representative from Illinois
• Shelley Keeney (b. 1979), American state representative from the U.S. state of Missouri
• Bradford Keeney (b. 1951), American psychotherapist, ethnographer, and cybernetician
• Philip Olin Keeney (1891-1962), and his wife, Mary Jane Keeney, were American librarians who became part of the Silvermaster spy ring in the 1940s
• Barnaby Conrad Keeney (1914-1980), American president of Brown University from 1955 to 1966
• H. E. Keeney, American Republican politician, Candidate for West Virginia State Senate 5th District, 1940 3
• Gurdon W. Keeney, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for Connecticut State House of Representatives from Manchester, 1904 3
• George H. Keeney (1848-1920), American politician, Member of Indiana State Senate, 1899-1901; Member of Indiana State House of Representatives, 1911 3
• George Edward Keeney (1849-1923), American Republican politician, Member of Connecticut State Senate 24th District, 1889-90, 1893-94; Delegate to Connecticut State Constitutional Convention, 1902 3
• Arthur B. Keeney, American politician, First Selectman of Manchester, Connecticut, 1907-08 3
• ... (Another 17 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)