Clark/Clancy Families

Mike Clancy, is researching his Clancy surname. Preserved and treasured through generations, he is fortunate to possess some copies and other originals of his ancestors documents and has volunteered to share these. Below, he has written briefly on his family's treasures. Mike welcomes any correspondence regarding the surnames Clark and Clancy, and would be happy to hear from you.

Family lore holds that "2 brothers came from Ireland". What Irish-American family doesn't? Much information such as when they came, where they arrived in the US, and where they may have settled has been lost. Based on family documents handed down over the years, it is highly likely that John and William Clancy are the brothers that emigrated from Ireland. Recorded information for William Clancy shows that he was born in Queens County (now Laois County), Ireland in 1766.

A set of documents has been handed down for generations. They answer some questions and generate even more. They are in extremely fragile condition and in an attempt to pass these on to future generations, they will be scanned and placed into electronic form.

Where to find some answers? The Internet, many co-operative genealogy volunteers and some down-right good luck!

There are three documents, two of which were photocopied back in the early 1960's by William H. Clancy in Rochester, NY. These have been scanned into digital form. The third document will have selected pages scanned and will also placed into digital format.

William Clancy
Last Will & Testament

Death write up of William Clancy
written by son-in-law Rev. John Dempster.

The first document is a hand-written account of the marriage of William and Lydia Clancy on April 6th in 1792. It also lists the birth of their children as follows:
John b. March 26, 1793;
David b. August 6, 1794;
Elizabeth b. August 14, 1796;
George b. February 27, 1798;
Sarah b. January 5, 1800 and
Lydia b. October 23, 1802.
It closes with "the birth of Lydia Clancy and the disolution of her mother are identicle". On the reverse side of this page, the notation was added (presumably by David Clancy) that "William Clancy died October 2, 1847".

The records are written on the last page after a rather lengthy preface of a book printed prior to 1750 titled "An historical Account of the Rise and Progress of the Controversie about Separation". The book closes on page 449 with "My Lord, Your most humble and most obedient Servant and Son in Jesus Christ CLAUDE". I believe the book was printed in and brought from Ireland.

For those who may not able able to read/download the file, here is a transcription:

"An account of the marriage of Lydia and William Clancy and the births of their children"

[***The account is written on a blank page, presumably by William. This is the equivalent of this family's "Bible."]

"William and Lydia Clancy were married April 6th, 1792"

[***A burial plot is recorded in the Prospect Hill Cemetary for the family of William N. Clark, wives Lydia and Mary. and two daughters, Elizabeth and Sarah, and others. William died on October 2, 1847 which is borne out by the exact same date in the family record. It is believed that, over time, transcription errors have been made and the recording should be Clancy - not Clark. Too many dates match from the family records. Our apologies to any Clark researchers. Here is a link to that cemetary page Prospect Hill Cemetery.]

"John Clancy was born March the 26th, 1793"

[***No further information for John Clancy.]

"David Clancy was born August the 6th, 1794"

[***See dialog for the third set of documents - they belong to David Clancy. The Fulton County Census record from 1860 contains the names of David and David, Jr. It is believed that this branch of the family will eventually move to western New York, primarily the Rochester area.]

"Elizabeth Clancy was born August the 14th, 1796"

[***The cemetery reference for Elizabeth Clancey Clark. The transcribed cemetary birth date should be 1796, not 1793.]

"George Clancy was born February the 27th, 1798"

[***The burial plot for George Clancy and his family has been located in the Old Kingsborough Cemetary - Section B - Row 1. It is not known if the 3 children buried here were the only children of George and Caroline Clancy. If they were, this branch of the family tree will end in Fulton County. Here is a link to that cemetary page Old Kingsborough Cemetery -

"Sarah Clancy was born January the 5th, 1800"

[***This is the Sarah T. that was married to Darius Clark. The year of birth matches.]

"Lydia Clancy was born October the 23, 1802. The birth of Lydia Clancy and the disolution of her mother are identicle"

[*** The 1802 date matches Lydia's date of demise as recorded in the family history. It is not known if the baby survived.]

The second document is a Land Indenture issued to John Clancy in November, 1793 by the owner of the land, Andrew White. The indenture was drawn up in the town of Cambridge, county of Washington, state of New York for approximately 350 acres in the town of Caughnawaga (now defunct) in the county of Montgomery, also in New York. It also contains a reference to a "community called Mayfield". This all happened prior to the creation of Fulton County in 1838.

There is a reference on the Fulton County web page under the town of Mayfield - Early Industry - that describes a Clark & Clancey distillery in Riceville. Speculating, it is possible that this land was used in support of that venture. Nothing further is known about John Clancy at this point. The original document is extremely fragile and I hesitate to even look at it.

The file above is somewhat large and it may be slow loading but it is actually easier to view the document on the screen than it is to look at a printout or copy.

The third document (not yet scanned) is a set of about 30 lesson pages from January, 1818 thru February, 1819. They are still in the original leather folder with the title page "David Clancy - Arithmatical Reference Book - January 7th, 1818". There are painstakingly hand-written rules and examples of mathematics, geometry, square roots, conversion of fractions to decimal etc.

Of note are the names of Jedediah C. Mills and John Port. They signed and dated the lesson pages that they wrote. There is a William (1780-1865) and Polly Port buried in the Old Kingsborough Cemetary, Section B, Row 3. They may have been related to the John Port (probably parents) that worked on the lesson plans.

Additionally, there is a partially written receipt to a Milton M. Clancy for a brace of brown oxen. Milton M. Clancy's relationship to the other Clancy family members is unknown at this point. It is possible that Milton M. Clancy could have been related to John or the son of a subsequent marriage by William.

Random Thoughts:

There is knowledge of a William Bard Clancy, born around 1860. This unusual middle name could have been influenced by Solomon (1775-1866) and Phoebe Bard, who are buried in the Old Kingsborough Cemetary, both in their 90's. The middle name of Bard could have been some sort of tribute to this couple and/or their offspring. There was also a Merrell & Caroline Bard buried in the Old Kingsborough Cemetary.