This is a transcript of a letter written by George Ferriter’s mother (Anne Flanigan Ferriter) to her mother-in-law, at the advent of WWII. Anne was in Portugal, having travelled over to spend time with her husband, C.A. Ferriter, who had deployed with the fleet: Addressed to: Mrs. John P. Ferriter 130 Norwood Avenue Long Branch, New Jersey USA from Portugal November 3, 1939 Dear Mother and Dad-- I am sorry to hear that you haven't heard from Charles lately--but I am sure that he has written you quite recently. Regular mail is very slow these days in fact ever since war was... Read More
Five hundred years is a long time, yet across that half-millennium span, the Ferriters in Ireland seem to have played a very consistent role. Certainly there were personalities emerging from time to time, and circumstances that demanded more or less, but in general, the social, economic, and certainly geographical position of the family remained little changed across the entire span of time. At this point in the essay – right here at the beginning – I need to identify myself as a member of the family, and as a member of a part of the family that preserved a handful of tales and legends regarding... Read More
Ferriter Name Spelling Variants Encountered During Research: Ferriter Ferreter Feriter Feritor Farritor Faritor Fheirtéaraigh (special case: “aigh” – Family head) Feirtear Feiritear Feirtier Feirteir Firtear Ferrtr Le Faritor Le Fereter Le Furetur Read More
Creation of the new Ferriter Family website moved me to a review of certain items that I had in hand, for inclusion on the site. A number of these are now posted as blog entries, including the following. None of these observations, speculations, and theories have been altered by the time that has passed between having been written and now…enjoy reading, and comment, please! Having inherited the (not uncommon within the family) interest in Ferriter History, I have pursued many of the leads provided by those mentioned above, and a few of my own. I am not a historian, but as a student of history,... Read More
Creation of the new Ferriter Family website moved me to a review of certain items that I had in hand, for inclusion on the site. A number of these are now posted as blog entries, including the following. None of these observations, speculations, and theories have been altered by the time that has passed between having been written and now…enjoy reading, and comment, please! Quite a few citations involving the Ferriters of the 17th and 18th centuries exist. That said, there are no birth marriage or death documents for any of these people, nor will there ever be. Records keeping within the Catholic communities was... Read More
Helen Theresa Ferriter was born in 1870 to immigrant parents from the Dingle Peninsula area of Ireland. She was the tenth child of Nicholas and Mary Ann (Sullivan) Ferriter. Her oldest brother, Michael James Ferriter, was 17 and working in the coal mines along with his father. Her youngest sibling was John Joseph Ferriter, age 5. Four of the nine children born before her had not survived childhood, with one dying as an infant and three dying as toddlers. Barclay Village no longer exists. At one time, it was a very busy community that sprouted up in 1850 around the coal mines and the rail... Read More