John Devereux in Wexford

Hello Anne,

It looks like the word “translation,” in “translation for life” is spelled incorrectly. It is likely “transportation for life.” By 1798 the British government no longer transported prisoners to America, and I haven’t heard of any transportation schemes from England or Ireland to Nova Scotia. Most likely John Devereaux was sent to Australia, or perhaps to Van Diemen's Land, which was later named Tasmania. For more information about transportation to Australia and Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania), go to the following Wikipedia articles:

https://is.gd/w69tAv

https://is.gd/qOtimm

Concerning John Devereaux, you would really need to know the first and maiden names of his mother to see if there is a baptism record for him in County Wexford. You would also have to know if the family in Ireland had been Catholic or Protestant. His parish of baptism would also be a help as well. If his family belonged to the Church of Ireland, and if a baptism record for him exists, the maiden name of his mother may not be recorded. Traditionally, Church of England and Church of Ireland baptism records do not record the maiden name of the mother, though there are exceptions to that in some Anglican baptism records.

But, as you’re not quite sure if John was from Wexford or not, any further research with the little information you have about his origins in Ireland may be a time consuming project, and may come to naught for the effort you put into the research.

Best of luck with your continued research Anne,

Dave Boylan

Thank you all.  You are wonderful!

Hello, i too have been been studying the Devereux families from Ireland. My mother had a brief fling with a gentleman named John Devereux in 1969, then i was concieved . Apparently he was stationed in the Johnstone terrace barracks , Edinburgh , Scotland. I cannot find any information on this subject therefore i took an Ancestry test & although i have  Devereux matches , it is a very complex case because there are quite a lot of these families floating around. i wonder what his position in the military was & my older siblings remember calling him by the name of big John. i suppose i have a lot of work to do .

hello Anne,

I am a descendant of the John Devereux who was convicted for treason following his involvement in the uprising. He was indeed 'transported for life' to the penal colony of New South Wales (Australia). He was a Catholic from the church parish of Ramsgrange; he had lived in the townland of Shelbaggan with his parents and sisters.. He served his sentence and was given a land grant in Tasmania where he married and raised a family of 8 children. The proviso of "for life" meant he was never to return to Ireland. We believe he died around 1833, although there is no documented record to prove the date. His wife re-married, so it seems pretty conclusive. There are some people with trees on Ancestry.com who think he left Tasmania and went to USA. I don't believe he is the John Devereux who married your 4xgreat aunt. 

I maybe giving you false hope here, but he did have a son also called John. I have not done any research on the son, so don't know where he lived, or if he emigrated. If you are a descendant of the Nova Scotia John Devereux, we could do a DNA comparison. 

(about the name, yes there are many Devereux in Wexford, they originally came from France ce4nturies ago.)

Ali O'Ruairc