Migrants from Cork far outnumbered those from any other county or region, followed by Limerick during this period. Both counties had eponymous, busy port cities in Munster where demographic and economic pressures were fueling emigration in the first half of the nineteenth century.

However, in general, the province of Leinster emptied out earlier and faster than the rest of Ireland.  Counties  like Longford and Westmeath had higher rates of emigration before the Famine (1845-1851) than during it or afterwards.

716 “missing persons” were associated with a particular county in Ireland out of the 864 Truth Teller advertisements printed between 1830 and 1840. Of those 716, the provincial breakdown was:

ULSTER  20%

MUNSTER    33%

CONNACHT   14%

LEINSTER   33%

The Famine accelerated emigration trends already underway in Ulster, Munster and Connacht, but post-Famine estimates by Cormac O’Grada and Kerby Miller differ quite a bit from the provincial proportions reflected in the Truth Teller.

PROVINCE	% of Population Emigrating 1851-1855	% of Population Emigrating  1856-1860	% of Population Emigrating 1861-1870
ULSTER	23.4	38.8	23.8
MUNSTER	39.6	32.2	36
CONNACHT	13.1	9.2	13.4
LEINSTER	22.9	15	17.6

 

Years	% of Population Emigrating from Co. Cork	% of Population Emigrating from Co. Limerick
Pre-Famine	13.3	7.1
1851-1855	12.1	5.9
1856-1860	13.4	4.1
1861-1879	14.1	5.5

 

 

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