Speculation about Thomas' Immediate Family

O'Kelleys coming to America

I guess like many families there is a great desire to learn where one comes from. There have been many in the O'Kelley family who have dug through papers, libraries, books, cemeteries, and listened to family stories to arrive at the contents of the Thomas O'Kelley Website. After all the research, not much is know of Thomas himself, such as what year he came to America, who his parents were, and if he had any brothers or sisters who might have traveled to America with him. I suspect much of the problem is we don't really know how his family spelled their name when living in Ireland. Since Gaelic was the most common spoken and written language in the early 1700s and the O'Kelley spelling of the name is not found in any Irish documents of that time it is all but certain that his family used one of the many varied Gaelic spellings which was translated to an English spelling of O'Kelley by some English speaking person either when boarding ship to come to America or after arriving in America.

There are no known documents stating who Thomas' parents were, some think Thomas may have been the son of William O'Kelly of Ireland and after becoming a young man Thomas travel to Virginia some time between 1740 and 1748 where he married Elizabeth Dean and raised his family. Records of the day do list a Rev. James O'Kelley who was the founder of the Christian Church in Virginia and North Carolina. James was born around 1734 (James' head stone is engraved with 1738 but it was erected 25 years after his death and at his death Rev. James O'Kelley was 92 years of age) and his grave is listed on the Internet where he is buried in the cemetery next to the O'Kelley Chapel. Once again there are no know documents that tie these two together, but it is possible that Thomas and James were related.

In a a book by W. E. MacClenny, The Life of Rev. James O'Kelly and the Early History of the Christian Church in the South, Raleigh, Va.: Edwards and Broughton Printing Company, 1910, James O'Kelley was reported to have been a good friend of Thomas Jefferson and Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson arranged for James O'Kelley to preach in the Halls of Congress during Jefferson's time as President. The author concludes James O'Kelley came from Ireland and his father was William O'Kelly who had two sons. One son was a minister and the other a soldier. The identify of the second son is not know but since Thomas and James are 9 years apart in age and it is reported that both settle in Mecklenberg County Virginia during the same time, it is possible they were brothers or cousins and may have come to America together. (Even today the O'Kelley clann travels together. I often see my father, Uncle Feddy, and Uncle Charles when they stop by the shop on their way to or from one of their great adventures. These retires are not going through their second childhood, they are reliving it.) It is possible that both were born in America with their father, grandfather, or even great grandfather being the first Irish born O'Kelley to step ashore. It is also possible they were not related at all.

Further evidence that James' father was William is related in the same book which states that James O'Kelly had two sons, John and William who was named after his grandfather O'Kelly. A copy of James' Will & Testament naming the two sons is printed in the book on pages 227 and 228.

It should be noted that in those days sons were often named after their grandfathers, and according to my Aunt Kathleen who has been at this quest for most of her adult life normally the first born son would be named after their paternal grandfather while the second born would be name after their maternal grandfather. I am not sure what happen in James' case but it appears if William was his father then he broke tradition by naming his second born son after his father.

Thomas also had a son named William but his date of birth is not known. It is believed he was not the first born with Thomas II being the older first born son.

While this speculation proves nothing, I must fall back to my days as a Criminal Investigator where then it was important to develop a Theory of Investigation and then set about to disprove the Theory. I talk about this speculation or family lore because some reader somewhere will have another piece of the puzzle in the exploration of the life and times of the O'Kelleys coming to America. Probably in some attic, or on a table at a flee market is an old family Bible with the family tree mapped and documented and people looking at it are wondering who Thomas or James O'Kelley were.

Anyone who believes they have documents or information relating to this quest are encourage to contact my Aunt Kathleen or my son Shawn. I will keep you post on the ever enlarging O'Kelley family.

Update - since the creation of this website Edith R. Duncan has submitted a family tree that concludes that William O'Kelley born in Ireland was the father of Thomas O'Kelley. That website is located at http://william.okelley.org. I do not know if there is any documented authority for this conclusion as there is nothing included in the notes that could be used to confirm this claim and it may be that this is soley based upon family spoken tradition and not actually knowledge. The reader should contact Edith R. Duncan directly if they need additional information about this site. Her address and email are listed on the William O'Kelley website.

Rick O'Kelley

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