McGarity History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland

The Irish name McGarity was originally written in a Gaelic form as Mag Oireachtaigh, which is derived from the word "oireachtach," referring to a member of an assembly. Translating the name into English produces no less than seventeen different synonyms. But the origin of the name is most intriguing. In the 12th century, the name was simply Ó Roduibh but a Oireachtach Ó Roduibh at that time caused the name to be shortened to Oireachtach, their present form.

Early Origins of the McGarity family

The surname McGarity was first found in counties Roscommon and Galway (Irish: Gaillimh) part of the province of Connacht, located on the west coast of the Island, where they were one of the Hi Maine Septs in Kelly's country. They were direct descendants of the O'Connors, Kings of Connacht, and the Chief of the Clann was one of the four royal chiefs under the O'Connor. 1 The tree on the Coat of Arms illustrates their descendancy from the O'Connors.

Early History of the McGarity family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our McGarity research. Another 78 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1300, 1585, 1598 and 1744 are included under the topic Early McGarity History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McGarity Spelling Variations

Irish names were rarely spelled consistently in the Middle Ages. Spelling variations of the name McGarity dating from that time include Gerrity, Gerty, Gerighty, Gerighaty, Gerety, Gerahty, Garraty, Geraty, Jerety, McGerity, MacGeraghty, MacGartie, MacGarty and many more.

Early Notables of the McGarity family

Another 29 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early McGarity Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McGarity Ranking

In the United States, the name McGarity is the 17,663^rd most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2

McGarity migration to the United States +

To escape the religious and political discrimination they experienced primarily at the hands of the English, thousands of Irish left their homeland in the 19th century. These migrants typically settled in communities throughout the East Coast of North America, but also joined the wagon trains moving out to the Midwest. Ironically, when the American War of Independence began, many Irish settlers took the side of England, and at the war's conclusion moved north to Canada. These United Empire Loyalists, were granted land along the St. Lawrence River and the Niagara Peninsula. Other Irish immigrants settled in Newfoundland, the Ottawa Valley, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. The greatest influx of Irish immigrants, however, came to North America during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. Thousands left Ireland at this time for North America and Australia. Many of those numbers, however, did not live through the long sea passage. These Irish settlers to North America were immediately put to work building railroads, coal mines, bridges, and canals. Irish settlers made an inestimable contribution to the building of the New World. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the Irish name McGarity or a variant listed above, including:

McGarity Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Bernard McGarity, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1853 3

McGarity migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

McGarity Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Miss. Mary McGarity, aged 12 who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Julius Caesar" departing 13th July 1847 from Liverpool, England; the ship arrived on 5th September 1847 but she died on board 4

Contemporary Notables of the name McGarity (post 1700) +

Rufus P. McGarity, American Republican politician, Candidate in primary for Michigan State Senate 7th District, 1952 5
Technical Sergeant Vernon McGarity (1921-2013), United States Army soldier and recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor in 1944

Citations +

O'Hart, John, Irish Pedigrees 5th Edition in 2 Volumes. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1976. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0737-4)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 87)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 21) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html