Tuesday, April 9, 2013

The Rest of the Cormac and Maguire/McCown Story

My source has sent additional information that counters the last issue of this blog.  It seems
that the Eoghain(Owen) was not of the Maguire line but was an early progenitor of the
Ui O'hEoghain (modern Owens, O'Howens families) and none of those are DNA matches with
me.  I was really excited with the potential break through with my deep family history, but
now that I know more about that period, I am not particularly disappointed.  After all, what I
want is what actually applies to my McCown/Maguire connection and so the lack of
dejection.  Actually, it was a ray of hope in a generally grim research.  The O'hEoghains were
a family of church men and therefor would have been a welcome part of my family tree but
apparently they were closer to being of the O'Neill sept than the Maguire sept.  Now that the
decks have been cleared, I am still interested in the McChoens in the Barony of Lurg in
northern County Fermanagh as possibly being of my surname.

Dr. William Roulston of the Ulster Historical Foundation, Belfast, shows interest in them as
well, so that is a bit of encouragement.  I have read that very few Americans of American
descent have been able to locate others in Ireland who descend from the same ancestors but
a couple of them in my Maguire group have a record of their earliest known ancestor and where
he lived in Ireland.  My hope is that maybe some of these families can be found in the same
general area and thus my line might as well.

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