Pioneers from Meath who made New York home in the 1800s

(EDITOR, MEATH CHRONICLE)

Dear sir - As a descendant of residents of County Meath from the early nineteenth century I was impressed with the warm welcome and help from many locals when I visited to discover my Irish roots a few years ago. Today I would like to return the favor by sharing what I learned.

My family history book, ‘For the Grass of a Cow’, tells the story of my ancestors and other families that emigrated from County Meath beginning in 1820. They were some of the earliest pioneers of an Irish Settlement in Northern New York, a wilderness when they arrived that became an important dairy farming area. The book explores the social history of County Meath, reasons for emigration, the conditions experienced on the voyage to America, and what life was like as the families carved out new farms in the North Country.

It is part history and part genealogy. The genealogy focuses on my mother’s Tiernan ancestors but also provides a detailed account of other families that were neighbours in County Meath and New York. No doubt, many of your readers are related to these families. The family histories complete the stories of the settlers and identify their occupations and achievements. Many of these families were from Navan, Ardcath parish, and Kellystown townland: Tiernan, Duffy, Martin, Dunigan, Meehan, McNulty, Murphy, Fay, Gorman, McKanna, Dalton, O’Brien, and Barry. The book is available on Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/Grass-of-Cow-Ire

Yours,

Charles M. Carletta

Maui, Hawaii, USA.