Mortality among Emigrants to Quebec In 1847

By Bryan P. Beirne

The vast majority of the more than 90,000 emigrants who sailed for Quebec during the 24-week shipping season of 1847 were Irish fleeing The Famine and its consequences. Many died aboard ship or in the infamous quarantine station on Grosse Île in the St. Lawrence River.

The Canadian Heritage ministry has now (1997) published A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847, by A. Charbonneau and D. Drolet-Dubé.

They list more than 480 ship sailings, their ports of departure, and the ages and names of passengers who died. The voyage usually was relatively safe: there were no deaths in 85 sailings from Britain or Ireland and an average of only just over 5 per cent of the passengers in all sailings died enroute or soon after arriving. But in ships from Liverpool the average mortality was almost 16 per cent. Extremes were the 56 per cent of the 476 passengers on the Virginius (which had been chartered by Major Mahon to export tenants from his Strokestown House estate) and the 58 per cent of the 334 on the Naomi. In ships from Cork the average mortality rate was higher than from Liverpool: about 19 per cent. Extremes were the 44 Per cent mortality on the Avon with 552 passengers and on the Bee with 373. In general survival was best in ships from small ports in Ireland or Britain.

The question is, how many Beirnes were among the 8308 passengers whose deaths are listed? At first sight, none: because there is no Beirne in any of the lists. The possibility that there were passengers named Beirne but that none of them died may be discounted on a basis of probability. There were deaths among other Roscommon region names, for instance of 59 Connors, 32 Hanleys, 14 McDermotts, 14 Monaghans, 10 Lavans or Lavins. But these are distinctive- sounding names whereas Beirne is not: it sounds like other names that were more familiar to those officials who made up ships' passenger lists and who were not concerned about or educated in nuances of spelling, and who thus changed Beirne names.

This is the most feasible explanation. The alternative is not reasonable: that Beirnes did not emigrate in 1847 while neighbours such as the Hanleys and Monaghans did. The strong likelihood, therefore, is that there were Beirnes among the 111 with similar-sounding names who died the: 57 Burns, 26 Byrnes, 19 Birneys, 9 Barnes. The best candidates may be the Burns because about half apparently sailed from ports in Ireland rather than a majority from Liverpool, and those who sailed from Sligo, the port most easily reached from O Beirne country, among whom three Birneys, a Byrne, a Burns, and a Barnes died. If Beirnes died under different names while emigrating it is likely that all or most of those who survived had such names. This means that their descendants are now among "The Lost O'Beirnes."

Bryan P. Beirne, author of The Family O''Beirne, holds a Ph.D. in entomology and is a retired member of.the faculty at Simon Fraser University, Bumaby, B.C., Canada.