Next year marks the 200th anniversary of the Peter Robinson Settlers from the Ballyhoura Region in Ireland establishing a new life in what we now know as Peterborough, Ontario.
In Ireland, Ballyhoura Development, which is a local non-profit organization, has planned a homecoming from September 21 to 25, 2025.
Celebratory plans are starting in Peterborough.
In May 1825, nine ships set sail from Cork, Ireland with 2,024 emigrants aboard. Passenger lists from these ships are available on the Trent Valley Archives website.
Peter Robinson, who was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada and a prominent businessman from York, Upper Canada, led this exodus from Ireland. Scott’s Plains was renamed Peterborough in his honour.
Robinson interviewed families and individual males to make the long voyage. These families had to meet specific criteria in order to be eligible for the voyage. The specifics required for Robinson’s settlers were that they had to be Catholic, poor and with a knowledge of farming. Males had to be less than forty-five years of age, in good health, and families were unrelated.
The majority of the Irish emigrants hailed from northern County Cork and southeastern Limerick, but there were others from Tipperary, Kerry and Clare, as well as one from Wicklow and another from Kilkenny.
Ballyhoura Development has identified the families who left the region almost 200 years ago to Ontario and the Ottawa Valley in Canada. This is based upon the records of the emigration scheme maintained by Robinson.
The records of the scheme list the passengers on each ship under family headings and give ages, occupations and former residences.
Looking for stories
If you have ancestors who were on board the ships that left Cork for Peterborough, stories of those who left, those left behind, or of recent connections with family in the new world, Ballyhoura Development would like to hear from you.
More information
Information about the homecoming, the Peter Robinson Settlers, and related resources are available on Ballyhoura Development’s website.
As for this side of the pond, watch for plans in the Peter Robinson Settlers in Canada Facebook group. You’ll need to join the group to read posts and make comments.
