Westward Cork Migration by Sail 1815-1860 by John Sutton

PART I CALENDAR OF CORK EMIGRANT SHIP SAILINGS 1815-60

end of a cat-o’-nine-tails or the ultimate sanction of execution by hanging from a fore yard arm. At the end of the eighteenth century the full muster for the British Navy stood at 100,000 men, which represented the largest number among seafaring nations. Of the total it is estimated that one third were Irish and 50 per cent were reluctant seafarers, who had been forced or press ganged into service (Thuillier, 2014, 63.64). Residents of Halifax were firm believers in self-government and Nova Scotia would be the first colony to achieve responsible government in 1848, followed by the Province of Canada later that year. Responsible government in Canada was the Parliamentary Democracy that gradually replaced Colonial Government rule, subjecting the function of government to the will of a majority of the elected representatives in parliament.

1817 A-LIST

Ship

Captain

Cork Dep.

Arrival

Voyage Emigrants

Source

AID

G Forster

Quebec 12 Aug

8 wks.

16 settlers

2 8

B-LIST Ship Albion Ship Alpha Brig Lord Wellington Brig Active Brig Comet

– (port unknown) arrived at Quebec from Cork (38 d) 3 Jun with 20 passengers. – of Philadelphia arrived at Philadelphia from Cork 30 Jul with passengers. – (port unknown) arrived at Quebec from Cork (13 wks.) 13 Aug with 69 settlers. – of Philadelphia arrived at Philadelphia from Cork 25 Oct with passengers. – (port unknown) arrived at Halifax from Cork 13 Dec with 30 passengers.

RELATED NEWS and EVENTS * Londonderry Emigration in 1817

Four vessels carried 669 passengers to Halifax from Londonderry, while another 230 from Londonderry were saved after the wreck of the Lord Nelson near Shelburne NS. More modest numbers arrived from Coleraine, Belfast, Newry, Dublin and Waterford ( The Ships List ). Londonderry held a close trade relationship with Philadelphia in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century, importing flaxseed and often departing with emigrants. Commonly Philadelphia-bound ships from Londonderry and Belfast during this 1816-56 study period carried large groups of emigrants; like the above four vessels that arrived in Halifax. * Erie Canal construction commences Ground was first broken on 4 July 1817 at Rome NY, promising ease of transport between New York and Buffalo. This engineering marvel of its day would, in 1825, produce a tenfold reduction in the trans-shipment cost of goods from New York to Lake Erie (Part ll). * Emigration Considerations Relative populations of Ireland and North America (USA and BNA) in the early 1800s. Ireland’s population was 5.57 million in 1806, reaching 6.8 million in 1821. The USA, 5.3 million in 1801. BNA in 1806 had just 430,000 residents - not reaching 3 million until the 1850s.