Flipside: Thomas McElroy--An Irish link

This St. Patrick's Day, as I sat down to a meal and drinks at local brewery with my son, he commented that it was unusual that we would celebrate the day since we really don't have any true Irish ancestors--except the transplanted Scottish Bruce, brother of Robert, who spent some time on the Irish throne before he was killed in battle. I laughed. I forget the connection now, but back when I was working on the Scottish links....be it Ferguson or Houston....one of them could have connected to Edward Bruce, Robert's brother. Good fun.

Checking back on Flipside, I noticed that I have neglected the few Irish ancestors that I can legitimately claim. One being, my paternal 4th great grandfather, Thomas McElroy. I have also seen his surname spelled Muckleroy and McElray. On ancestry I found that McElroy means, "Irish: Anglicized form of Gaelic Mac Giolla Ruaidh ‘son of the red-haired lad’ (from ruadh ‘red’)." More research pointed to County Clare, in the province of Munster as the first place the McElroy name has been found.

Checking my notes and Family Tree Maker (yes I'm still using it and not upgrading to Microsoft 10...lol), the primary reason I have not blogged on this ancestor is....I haven't much to blog about! There are not very many records in Monongalia County, (West) Virginia where he settled in early 1800.

According to his American Revolution pension file, Thomas McElroy, of Irish descent, landed in America in 1773. He enlisted in Chester County, Pennsylvania as a wagoner. His pension was rejected due to insufficient evidence. His birth date is approximated to be 1751

He married Elizabeth, maiden name unknown about 1787.

Children of Thomas and Elizabeth McElroy:

Samuel McElroy born 1789 died in Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia in 1870.
Elizabeth McElroy married William Watson
Margaret McElroy married Joseph Walkins
Sarah R. McElroy born June 11, 1797 in Maryland died February 8, 1881, Grafton, Taylor County, West Virginia married Jacob VanGilder.
Thomas McElroy born 1799 died November 13, 1851.
Esther McElroy married Cose Butler
Unknown Female McElroy
Unknown Female McElroy

Children known and unknown were taken from Monongalia County, West Virginia records.

The first documentation of Thomas is a listing on page 124 of the 1804 Monongalia County, Virginia tax list:

Thomas Muckleroy 1 white male over 18 and 2 horses, mares and mules

He is also listed on page 165 of the 1805 Monongalia County, Virginia tax records:

Thomas McElroy 1 white male over 18 and 1 horse, mare or mule

There are two listings for Thomas McElroy in the Monongalia County District, Superior and County Courts book, Volume 6, 1805-1808.

1806-Thomas McElroy's daughter, Elizabeth, had a female child out of wedlock on February 4 and the father is Thomas Wells. At this time the McElroy family lived at the Forks of Cheat in Monongalia County--some distance from Morgantown.

1806-a notice asking for property due Thomas McElroy $2.00 for corn fodder.

Federal Census of Monongalia County, Virginia--1810

Thomas McElroy - 1 1 - 1 3 1 2 - 1

1 male of 10 and under 16 Thomas

1 male of 16 and under 26 Samuel

1 male of 45 and up Thomas--the father

3 females under 10 Esther, Unknown and Elizabeth's baby out of wedlock

1 of 10 and under 16 Sarah (my ancestor)
2 females 16-25 Elizabeth and Margaret
1 female over 45 Elizabeth--the mother

1812 List of Tithables of Monongalia County, Virginia:

Thomas Muckelroy 1 male over age 18 1 horse

Federal Census of Monongalia County, Virginia-1820

Thomas Muckelroy - - - 1 - 1 - 1 1 - 1 - 1 - -

1 male 16 to 26 Thomas

1 male 45 and up Thomas-the father

1 female 10 to 16 unknown

1 female 16 to 26 Sarah (my ancestor)

1 female 45 and up Elizabeth--the mother

1 person engaged in agriculture

Pioneer tombstones moved to
East Oak Grove Cemetery
Morgantown, West Virginia

That's about it. No additional information is known about Thomas. I imagine he is buried with several family members in East Oak Grove Cemetery in Morgantown. There is a hillside of old pioneer tombstones which were removed from an area in town to make way for development. Many of the stones are so weathered that they cannot be read. Elizabeth, Thomas' wife's tombstone is very readable. Along side her are one of the McElroy's sons, Thomas McElroy, his wife, Amarah Doolittle McElroy.

McElroy information on Flipside:

Elizabeth McElroy tombstone

I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU. All comments are welcome; however, if they are inappropriate, they will not be published. PLEASE post your e-mail in the comment section if you would like to network about a particular surname or topic. I will capture it for my use only and not include it when I publish your comment.