Ireland

There are a few ideas about where the Farly clan originated. One theory is that they emigrated to England with William the Conqueror (1066) from Normandy, and settled in Somerset and Wiltshire, England. There is both a parish and village named Farley in Wiltshire, 7 miles from Salisbury. These Farley's became part of the Anglo-Norman aristocracy. The Anglo-Normans were Catholic, and during the War of the Roses (1455-1487), many emigrated to Ireland, particularly County Meath. This may have been when our branch of the Farly's emigrated to County Galway.

Click on the thumbnails below to see two versions of the Farley family history and the Farley Crest. These were purchased in Ireland and Scotland during a family visit, but they can be purchased online as well.

During the time of Oliver Cromwell (1599-1658), Galway suffered considerably. John Farly's father would have lived in Galway during this time. All Catholics were expelled from the town during these years, and the great town houses of the 14 founding families of Galway were confiscated and given to soldiers of the occupying forces in lieu of pay. They quickly fell into ruin as the prosperity of the town declined. The parliamentary government confiscated 11 million acres of land from the Catholics. Twenty percent of the land was left to the Catholics, the worst land in Ireland. This led to a Protestant ascendancy.

After the Restoration of Charles II in 1660, Galway looked to recover its former position of wealth. Later, the war between William of Orange (Protestant) and James II (Catholic), Charles' brother, brought any economic recovery that existed to an end. Under the 1704 Penal Laws, which at first were rigorously enforced, Catholics suffered severe disabilities in relation to education, ownership of property and civil rights. Savage laws were passed against the Catholics. Their lands were confiscated in full, they weren't allowed to own land or hold office, they couldn't practice law, they weren't allowed an education, and they could not bear arms. Many Catholics left Ireland for the New World during these years.

These were the times that John Farly and Ann Marie Gorri (or Gorry) lived through, and into which their son Antoine was born. John's occupation as Merchant in the city of Galway is found on the PRDH record of this son's marriage to Marie Bastien, so when Antoine left Ireland, his father still operated his business. Was John Farly Catholic, as Antoine was when he married in Quebec? Another mystery ripe for investigation about this couple is whether John and Ann Marie had any more children. It would be unusual for that time for a couple to have only one child, so it can be assumed that there are a number of Farley's in Ireland that we may be distantly related to. I could only find one Farley listed in the phone book for the county of Galway. One source of information for our ancestors may be St. Nicholas Church in Galway, which existed at that time. It is an Anglican church now, but at the time John and Ann Marie lived there, it was a Catholic church, and they may hold records that pertain to this family.

Click on the thumbnails below to see the fashions that John and Ann Marie would have worn in 1660. These are photos of actual costumes worn at that time and were taken during a tour of a clothing exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, England in 2002.

Antoine Farly, born in about 1690, was the first of the Irish Farly's to arrive in the New World. "Antoine" is the correct Irish use of his name. Members of the English Farley's, who had lived in and around Someset, settled in New England in about 1622. The English Farley's were aristocracy: Sir Thomas Farley and his wife, Lady Jane Sefton, arrived in Virginia in about 1623. Thomas was said to have received 9 square miles of land from the Crown for services rendered to King James I.

Antoine emigrated to New France in about 1700, and was married in Quebec City in 1710 to Marie Ann Basquin Certificate. Antoine and Marie Ann lived in Quebec City for about 3 months, then moved to Montreal, and on June 28, 1710, Antoine signed a lease for a house on Sainte Paul Street, where he began his career as a master hatter. Marie Ann gave birth to a son, Jacques Philippe, on December 9, 1710 (Birth-JPF.pdf). Antoine died before 1720 and Marie Ann married again in 1720, but her husband died in 1724. She married Jean Fevre in 1732, and their lives came to a tragic end. They were murdered in their bed during the night of May 13-14, 1752, by their neighbour. An account of this tragedy can be found in the French Connection pdf document below.

New France

Another mystery to solve .. why did Antoine die so young! He was about 30 when he died. He may have been in poor health and that could be why he and Marie Ann only had one child. One theory about his arrival in New France has been tendered by a Farly researcher with many hours of research time under his belt. He feels that Antoine may have been in the British Navy and during a battle off the coast of Port Royal (Nova Scotia), he either deserted or his ship was wrecked and he managed to get to shore. In those years, the British Navy often abducted young men from the naval ports under their jurisdiction and pressed them into the navy, hence the term "press gang". Perhaps one of the British press gangs was scouring the harbour front at Galway and abducted Antoine, whereupon he was forced to serve on one of their battle ships during Queen Anne's War (War of the Spanish Succession, 1702-1713). He would have been in his early or mid teens when press ganged, and he would have arrived in New France between 1706 and 1710 when he married. Many young Irish men who had been forced into the navy deserted, and the government of France offered them sanctuary if they married and settled in New France. Antoine could have been in poor health following his experiences in the navy.

Jacques Philippe Farly was a person of fame and importance in New France. He led a fascinating life, an account of which can be found at The Voyageur. He was an important man in New France, and a successful fur trader and interpreter. He began his career likely as a hat maker like his father, but after 1736, the manufacture of fur hats was restricted by the government of France, who ordered that all furs be sent to France for manufacture. Jacques Philippe married Marie Josephte Dumoucher (Josette) in 1739 ("Marr-JPF.pdf"). On June 23, 1742, while living on Notre-Dame Street in Montreal, he formed a fur trade society with Jean-Baptiste Marsolet in the office of Notary Simonnet and became "marchand-voyageur". In this position, he would call on "voyageurs" to help him in his commerce. Working with groups of two to four boats, they would command flotillas of canoes making the trip between Montreal and the Great Lakes. The voyageur should not be confused with the "coureur des bois", who traded furs whenever they wished, almost like outlaws, while the voyageur was bound by a contract normally signed in front of a notary. Jacques Philippe and Josette lived in Montreal for a few years, then moved to Fort Michilimackinac, where Jacques Philippe began his career as an accountant, fur trader, and interpreter, speaking English, French and Ojibway. Jacques Philippe and Josette had 9 children, four of whom were born at the Fort. After many years of successful trading, and a significant involvement in the Seven Years War, Jacques Philippe and Josette returned to Quebec and settled on Dupas Island, St-Pierre Archipelago. He became a farmer, after signing a contract for the purchase of a strip of land in the "seigneurie" of Dupas Island. Jacques Philippe died in 1785 at 74 years of age, and Josette died in 1799 at 87 years of age ("Sep-MJD.pdf"). More about Jacques Philippe's life as a fur trader can be found in the French Connection pdf document below.

Fort Michilimackinac