I too am looking for info on Irish that "came through Canada" My Kirby's came this way. My great great grandfather died at sea, and his wife and children walked to Boston, MA. from Canada. I do not know the year. All I know is that my great grandfather and great grandmother had their first child in 1864 in Clinton, MA The story about the walk to Boston was passed down in the family. It would have happened sometime between 1845-1864. However since my great grandfather was born in 1841 and he was a child when he came the date would probably be in the late 1840s or early 1850s. I have not located any of my family on a census or any document before 1865 and that was the MA state census. My feeling is that it was in the early 1850s. My great great grandparents were Patrick Kirby and Bridget O'Malley Kirby from County Mayo, Ireland. Patrick died at sea. It was Bridget who made the walk to Boston, where, according to family lore she had to take up the world's oldest profession for a while to feed her kids. Apparently Bridget's younger brother came too. He supposingly took up watch on the stairs to make sure the men didn't get away without paying. Good Catholics that my Dad's family was, I can not imagine them making up the story, so I assume that it is true.