MacGriff History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

• Origins Available:
• Ireland

Early Origins of the MacGriff family

Early History of the MacGriff family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our MacGriff research. Another 148 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1376, 1638 and 1640 are included under the topic Early MacGriff History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

MacGriff Spelling Variations

Numerous spelling variations were revealed in the search for the origin of the name MacGriff family name. Before widespread literacy, a person entrusted the proper documentation of his name to the individual scribe. As a result, a name was often recorded under several different variations during the life of its bearer. Variations found include Gilroy, Kilroy, MacGilroy, MacElroy, MacGreevy, Greevy, MacGilrea, McGilroy, McElroy, McGreevy, McGilrea, MacIlrea, McIlrea, Magilroy, Magilrea, MacElry, McElry, MacIlree and many more.

Early Notables of the MacGriff family

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

Migration of the MacGriff family

Often leaving from racial discrimination and colonial oppression, thousands of families left Ireland in the 19th century for North America aboard passenger ships. Many early immigrants found a plot of land to call their own, something unimaginable for most Irish families. Those that arrived later were often accommodated as laborers since there was a large demand for cheap labor. This was the fate for many of the families that arrived in North America during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. Whether they became agrarian settlers or industrial workers, the Irish that came to North America were invaluable for rapid development of the infant nations of the United States and Canada. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the Irish name MacGriff or a variant listed above: John MacElroy, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1798; and James Gilroy, who settled in Pennsylvania in 1864; they also settled in Massachusetts, New York, and California between 1765 and 1854. The Kilroys also settled in the above states between the same periods. The 1984 edition of the ".