COUNTY NAMES OF IRISH ORIGIN.
Eight of the counties of North Carolina are called after plain Irishmen: Burke, from Governor Thomas Burke, born in Galway; Harnett, from Cornelius Harnett, a member of the Continental Congress, born in Dublin; Dobbs, for Gov. Arthur Dobbs, born in Carrickfergus; Rowan, for Robert Rowan, a Colonial President of the Council, also a native of Carrickfergus; Montgomery, for Gen. Richard Montgomery of Donegal; Moore, for Gov. Maurice Moore, a distinguished Colonial soldier; Rutherford, for General Griffith Rutherford of the Revolution, and Davidson, for William Davidson. The places of birth of the last three are not given, but their biographers say they were natives of Ireland. In addition Gaston, Jackson, McDowell and Wayne counties, N. C., were named in honor of descendants of Irishmen.
In Maryland are Baltimore, Carroll, Garrett, Montgomery, and Talbot counties. Baltimore got its name from an Englishman, of course, but he got it from Baltimore, County Longford. Talbot was named after George Talbot of Castle Rooney, County Roscommon, the founder (in 1680) of extensive colonial estates in Maryland, called New Connaught, which with New Munster and New Leinster were subdivisions of a larger territory called New Ireland, and now embraced in Hartford and Cecil counties, Maryland, and part of New Castle county, Delaware.
In Michigan are Antrim, Clare, Roscommon and Wexford, Barry, Calhoun, Clinton, Emmet, Jackson, Macomb and Wayne counties.
Twelve states of the Union have embalmed the name of Carroll, eleven that of Calhoun, eight that of Butler and six that of Sullivan in the nomenclature of their counties. Carroll was the famous “Signer”; Calhoun a Vice-President of the United States, the son of Patrick Calhoun of Donegal; Butler, the distinguished Major-General, one of five officers of the Revolutionary Army, all brothers, and all but one born in Ireland, and Sullivan was the famous Major-General from New Hampshire, son of John Sullivan, a County Kerry schoolmaster.
San Patricio County, Texas, was named by a Spanishized Irishman, and it is not unlikely that Patrick County in Virginia was called after some Irish “Paddy.”
There are counties in the United States named O’Brien, Conway, Ulster, Kearny, Kane, McDonough, McKean, Fergus, Meagher, Harney, McHenry, Taney, Shannon, Sheridan, Dunn, McCurtain, Sharkey, Walsh and many others of similar origin. In Texas are Callahan, Nolan, Reagan, Donley, McMullen, McLennon, Dawson, Calhoun, Cochran, Crockett, Fannin, Gillespie, Hayes, Jackson, Jasper and Montgomery counties.
In Georgia, Burke, Bryan, Carroll, Coffee, Calhoun, Dawson, Dooly, Dougherty, Earley, Fannin, Fulton, Glynn, Brady, Hart, Heard, Jackson, Jasper, McDuffie, Montgomery, Pickens, Talbot and Wayne. Eleven of these counties were called after native Irishmen who were prominent at one time or another in the Cracker State. In Kentucky there are no less than twenty-five counties, ten of which were named in honor of natives of the Green Isle, and fifteen from descendants of Irish pioneers, while in Kansas there are fourteen bearing Irish names.
Indian names are in the majority in the nomenclature of our counties.