Chat
|
Daily Search
|
My GenForum
|
Community Standards
|
Terms of Service
|
|
|
Hello John Walker--
Here is what I have on the Sheridans and Fees (mostly passed down in family lore, and may be impossible to "truly" verify, as Irish genealogy is so challenging).
THOMAS FEE (SR) married ELIZABETH SHERIDAN (who was known as "Betty")
Residence: Belturbet, County Conaharra
Children: James, Henry, William, John, Francis, Thomas, Ellen and Phoebe.
Thomas and Betty had discussed going to America, but Thomas died before they could depart (abt 1821). Betty undertook the journey as a widow,accompanied by a large number of (grown) children, spouses, etc. (She comes across as quite a forceful character!) sometime in 1821 or 1822. (I have seen a census of Emily township which states that Thomas, William, and Henry had homesteads in 1822, but were NOT there in 1821) The tradition is that they landed at Boston, where some of the family (one family source says George, John, and Phoebe) went south. The rest, including Betty, continued to Canada, settling in Emily Township, Victoria County, Ontario.
I don't have any definite information about the Fees' origins--yet ANOTHER tradition (which might be wishful thinking) holds that they were originally called MacFie, a clan which inhabited Colonsay Island on the coast of Scotland. On a trip to Ireland about ten years ago, my mother did some research and learned (according to the book "Families of Ireland") the following about the surname FEE: "Numerous of this and other anglicized forms of FIACH [Gaelic spelling]. Fees are found in Fermanangh, Armagh and Cavan." Which is not to say that, long ago, there had not been some trans-migration of the Irish Sea. The Fees and Sheridans were Protestants in an overwhelming Catholic country, which suggests they MAY have come to Ireland as part of the resettlement of Scottish families (first driving out the native Irish!) in what became Northern Ireland. In some cases, the Scots were themselves being evicted from their small farms so the landowner could use the land for raising sheep instead.
My Fee line runs: Thomas1, James2, Thomas3, Melissa Jane4 (married Richard Swain Smith), Lloyd Stanford Smith5, Lloyd Stanford Smith Jr 6 (my late father). I do have some more minor information about the family in Canada if that interests you. (P.S. My great-grandparents emigrated to the U.S. in the 1890s)
Notify Administrator about this message?
Followups:
|
| http://genforum.genealogy.com/fee/messages/672.html | ||
 |
Link to GenForum Add Forum |
|