Stankard in Ireland and England

All of the Stankards who came to the U.S. seem to have sprung from at least five, perhaps six, groups of immigrants, most of whom originated in the heart of East County Galway, Ireland. I have not been able to establish a relationship between any of these groups but continue to trace back in Ireland seeking that relationship.

The earliest group appears to be those who settled in Stamford, Connecticut in the very early 1800's after coming from County Galway or County Mayo.

Next are the five brothers who settled in Ohio after arriving in this country from County Galway beginning in 1847. My direct ancestor Edward's obituary says that he was born in Ballinasloe, County Galway, about 40 miles east of the city of Galway. We have found his father Michael in Clontuskert, a parish which borders that of Ballinasloe, listed in the Tithe Applotment Books of 1824 as renting a plot of land in the Townland of Sheepwalk, in the south of the parish.

The third group was quite large and settled in Boston in the 1850's after coming from the area of Athenry, about 15 miles east of the city of Galway. We have found records of several of this group living in Kiltullagh parish.

Also in the 1850's a William Stankard arrived in Indiana from Ireland, (we're not yet sure where) and found work digging the Wabash Canal. His descendants continue to live in the north central Indiana area.

The fifth group are descendants of Marie Stankard, a widow who was married to a Patrick Stankard and who had four children in Portumna, County Galway, and first settled in western Massachusetts in 1876 then later moved to Long Island, New York.

There are now Stankards all across the United States. In England, several brothers from the group in Kiltullagh moved to Oldham, near Manchester, and there are many still living in that area, as well as more across the entire country. There was a Bridget Stankard (family origin unknown) who was transported to Australia.

And of course, there are still many Stankard's in Galway Ireland!

There are a number of Stunkards who all appear to have originated in Germany, and a number of Tankards in England, but there is no known connection to these names. The Stankard name has been recorded as Stancard, and Stankart, and there is possibly a link to the Stannard surname.

This link to The History of the Stankard Families will take you to my Stankard website on Rootsweb.