Sligo Merediths

The Sligo Merediths

The family history of the Sligo Merediths has been the subject of a number of studies. Previous research has been summarised, corrected and extended by Lex Johnson¹. Subsequently, Mike Faul² has added further corrections and made substantial additions, particularly to more recent generations. The reader is directed to these works for a comprehensive account, and to Mike Faul's From The West database, which is accessible online and includes a Search facility.

The earliest-known Meredith to be born in Co. Sligo was Francis Meredith of Sessuecommon, b. ca. 1650. Lex Johnson³ has provided strong circumstantial evidence that Francis was a son of the Richard Meredith recorded in 1659 as a titulado of Ballylonaghan, and that Richard was from the Welsh line of Merediths from Stansty near Wrexham. However, there is no documentary evidence that conclusively identifies a single common ancestor from whom all the Sligo Merediths are descended. There are a number of distinct branches, and it is possible that they may have originated from different ancestors arriving in Sligo at different times. 

A partial account of some of these Sligo branches can be found in the Meredith database and website of Sharon Haggerty⁴. Unfortunately the website is no longer being updated since Sharon’s passing in 2016. Our aim in the first instance, therefore, has been to incorporate the Sligo Meredith entries from Sharon’s database into this website, and then to update and extend them with more recent information compiled from the work of Johnson and Faul. This process of updating is currently in progress, and so the information about the various branches below will be incomplete. Apologies for all errors and gaps in the meantime.

We follow Sharon’s approach by assigning the various branches to a fictitious ancestor called ‘Sligo Merediths’. Each branch can be followed by clicking on Sligo Merediths and then clicking on the name of the earliest ancestor for that branch. 

The various branches can also be followed by clicking on the names of the earliest-documented ancestors below, which we split into two groups:

(1) The main and earliest branch:

• Francis Meredith (c1650-1719) of Sessuecommon

(2) More recent branches that haven't yet been connected to the main branch:

• Joseph Meredith (bef. 1780-) of Easkey, whose descendants settled in Ontario, Canada
  
• Henry Meredith (ca. 1785-) of Easkey
  
• John Meredith (bef. 1790-) who married Mary McDonald
  
• Thomas Meredith (bef. 1800-) 'of Cloonamahon', the ancestor of New Brunswick Merediths
• George Meredith (1810-c1872) of Achonry
  
• Thomas Meredith (ca. 1812-) who married Catherine Allen
  
• Robert Meredith (1814-1894) of Carrownaleck
  
• John Meredith (1815-1889) of Carrownaleck
  
• Richard Meredith (1820-1857) of Tobercurry
  
• Arthur Meredith (1831-1901) of Tobercurry
  
• Robert Meredith (1840-) of Strandhill
  
• Henry William Meredith (1820-1888) of Sligo and Dublin, who settled in Toronto and Brampton.
  

Site Navigation:

The names of specific persons in this Family Line can be found in the Surname Index.

The family history can also be explored through different types of chart:

• an Indented Chart and a Box Chart that show the relationships and family groups visually. Each name on the charts is linked to a separate biographical page for that person.
• a Fan Chart and a Dropline Chart that show the descendancy on a single page, but with the names not linked to biographical entries. A further Fan Chart focuses on the descendants of Francis Meredith only.

The charts can be accessed directly from any page on the website by means of the Charts menu item and its sub-items.