McColgan History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland

While the Anglicized versions of Irish names are familiar to most people, all Irish names have a long and proud Gaelic heritage that is often unknown. The original Gaelic form of the name McColgan is "O Cuileagain."

Early Origins of the McColgan family

The surname McColgan was first found in County Londonderry (Irish: Doire), a Northern Irish county also known as Derry, in the province of Ulster, where they held a family seat from ancient times.

Early History of the McColgan family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our McColgan research. Another 112 words (8 lines of text) are included under the topic Early McColgan History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McColgan Spelling Variations

The archives that survive today demonstrate the difficulty experienced by the scribes of this period in their attempts to record these names in writing. Spelling variations of the name McColgan dating from that time include Culligan, Colligan, Quilligan, O'Quilligan, O'Culligan, O'Colligan, Coligan, Culigan, Colgan and many more.

Early Notables of the McColgan family

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

McColgan migration to the United States +

Thousands of Irish left in their homeland in the 18th and 19th centuries to escape the religious and political discrimination they experienced primarily at the hands of the English, and in the search of a plot of land to call their own. These immigrants arrived at the eastern shores of North America, early on settling and breaking the land, and, later, building the bridges, canals, and railroads essential to the emerging nations of United States and Canada. Many others would toil for low wages in the dangerous factories of the day. Although there had been a steady migration of Irish to North America over these years, the greatest influx of Irish immigrants came to North America during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the Irish name McColgan or a variant listed above:

McColgan Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Bernard McColgan, aged 23, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1837 1
John McColgan, aged 22, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1841 1
Thomas P McColgan, aged 30, who landed in Mobile, Ala in 1872 1

McColgan migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

McColgan Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Susan McColgan, aged 19, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Madawaska" in 1833
Mary McColgan, aged 26, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Trial" in 1833
Anne McColgan, aged 21, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Trial" in 1833
Daniel McColgan, aged 18, a labourer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Trial" in 1833
James McColgan, aged 13, a labourer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Bartley" in 1833
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

McColgan migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

McColgan Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

William McColgan, Scottish convict from Glasgow, who was transported aboard the "Adelaide" on April 16, 1855, settling in Western Australia 2

Contemporary Notables of the name McColgan (post 1700) +

Sarah McColgan, American fashion photographer
Peter McColgan (b. 1963), former Northern Irish steeplechaser
Aileen McColgan, English Professor of Law at King's College, London
Liz McColgan (b. 1964), Scottish long distance track and road running athlete, gold medal winner in the 1991 World Championships, silver medalist in the Seoul Olympics in 1988

The McColgan Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Virtus probata florescit
Motto Translation: Tried virtue flourishes.

Citations +

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)
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2014, November 17) Adelaide voyage to Western Australia, Australia in 1855 with 261 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/adelaide/1855