Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1860-1990 (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
182pp
Context area
Archival history
Sherill McGoogan donated the reproductions of the McGoogan Letters to Kerby A. Miller via letter of 8 April 1990. The original manuscripts were held by McGoogan's cousin, Mrs. Dorothy Kier. Copies of the letters were also deposited in PRONI but not accessioned.
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Content and structure area
Scope and content
The Samuel McGoogan letters are a set of 13 letters written to Samuel McGoogan of Allegheny, Pennsylvania between 1860 and 1890 by his brother John McGoogan and cousin Samuel McClure in County Antrim.
Per Kerby A. Miller:
‘John McGoogan: Knocknahinch, Armoy, Co. Antrim; married Aug. 14, 1861 to Mary Tait (daughter of Hugh Tait, Ballycregagh); children (among others): Hugh (deceased), Ellen; in financial difficulty by 1878; emigrates Nov. 19, 1879 (wife has two brothers in U.S .: William Tait, Jersey City; a second brother, who sells his property in Michigan, returns on visit to Ireland, encourages McGoogan to emigrate); d. Mar. 1880 in Pennsylvania.
Samuel McClure: Yuba City, Sutter Co., California; cousin of John and Samuel McGoogan; from Ballycre(a)gh (sic; Ballycregagh?), Co. Antrim; siblings: Jane (New York), John, Sarah, Mary (has daughter in Philadelphia); niece: Sarah Henry (Ireland); returns to Ireland by May).’
The series includes: biographical and genealogical notes on the McGoogans; correspondence sent to Miller by donor Sherill McGoogan including reproductions of the McGoogan letters and biographical/genealogical information on the family; abstracts and transcripts of the letters created by PRONI; information on the McGoogans in East Huntingdon Township, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania provided by the Westmoreland County Historical Society; and correspondence between Sherrill McGoogan and the Ulster Historical Foundation providing further information on the McGoogans.