Peter Gough and his wife Letitia Nulty (or McNulty) emigrated to the United States from Ireland in 1842. Four of their six children were born in Ireland (Arthur, Mary, John Joseph, and Alice) while Richard and Catherine (“Kate”) were born in Hazle Township, Pennsylvania.
Peter may have arrived in the United States on 9 May 1842 aboard the England from Liverpool; this is the same year he said he’d arrived in his citizenship application. However, the ship passenger list includes no other members of his family, unlike others also on board.
Peter was born in Garrybane, Aughnamullen parish, in County Monaghan, in 1802, according to his tombstone inscription. He probably married Letitia about 1829, though we haven’t yet found a parish marriage entry for them. He and Letitia died within four months of each other in Hazleton and are buried at St. Gabriel’s Cemetery in that city.
We don’t know what Peter’s occupation was while in Ireland, but in the United States he worked as a laborer and a carpenter, according to various census enumerations.
We know even less about Letitia and her family back in Ireland.
All but one of Peter and Letitia’s children spent the rest of their lives in the general Luzerne County area. Only son Arthur left; he moved to North Carolina, near Chapel Hill, and stayed there. And for a few years, son John lived in Philadelphia, where he met his wife, Susan McCloskey, before returning to Hazleton.
The area where Peter is from in Ireland has a number of Gough and McGough families, including many with the same relatively unusual first names of Peter, Arthur, and Richard, which are not typical Irish given names.
What is interesting to us is that Peter and his family came to America before the potato famine struck with full force. We don’t yet know (and may never find out) what pulled or pushed them to America, but we’re continuing to search
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Peter Gough (b. 1802, Garrybane, Aughnamullen, Co Monaghan, Ireland — d. 21 Dec 1871, Hazleton, Luzerne Co, PA)
m. ca. 1829 in Ireland
Letitia Naulty (b. 1810, Nobber, Co. Meath, Ireland — d. 31 Aug 1871, Hazleton, Luzerne Co, PA)
Children:
i. Arthur Gough (b. 1831, Ireland — d. 1 Dec 1895, Chatham NC); m. A. Frances Sorrell
ii. Mary Gough (b. 1832, Ireland — d. between 1880/1900, possibly Schuylkill, PA); m1. John Boyle; m2. Michael Hennessy
iii. John Gough (b. 1835, Ireland — d. 16 Jan 1876, Hazleton, Luzerne, PA); m. Susan McCloskey
iv. Alice Gough (b. 1841, Ireland — d. aft. 1872, place unknown); m. Edward Dunn
v. Richard B. Gough (b. 1844, Luzerne Co, PA — d. 11 Jan 1885, Hazleton, Luzerne Co, PA); m. Julia Ryan
vi. Catherine “Kate” Gough (b. 13 Feb 1852, Luzerne Co, PA — d. 26 Nov 1878, Hazleton, Luzerne Co, PA); m. William McNulty, ca. 1874, Hazleton, Luzerne Co, PA
Sources:
1. Peter Goff household, 1850 US census of population, Hazle’s town, Luzerne Co PA, p 24; enumeration date 22 Aug 1850, dwelling #894, family #906.
2. Peter Gauff household, 1860 US census of population, Hazle township, Luzerne Co PA, family #323, Enumeration Date 14 Jun 1860, p 45, Hazleton PO, dwelling #326, family #323
3. Peter Gough household, 1870 US census of population, Hazle township, Luzerne Co PA, Hazleton PO, 8 July 1870, p 87, dwelling #606, family #606.
4. Catherine Gough, daughter of Peter Gough and Letitia Naulty, born 13 Feb 1852, baptized 16 Feb 1852, Patrick McCabe and Anna Naulty, sponsors, St. Gabriel’s Church, Baptismal Register, Hazleton, Luzerne, PA.
5. Tombstone inscriptions, Peter and Letitia Gough; St. Gabriel’s cemetery, Hazleton, PA
6. Peter Goff, son of Arthur Goff and A. Frances Sorrile, born 20 May 1866, baptized 20 May 1866, Michael Hennessy and Mary Hennessy, sponsors, St. Gabriel’s Church, Baptismal Register, Hazleton, Luzerne, PA.