Yes, after the potato famine in 1846-7 there was a general exodus as men had to look for work to provide food for wives and children. Sometimes the emigration was only as far as Paisley on the mainland and in my family's case the husband went ahead in 1847, found work and then later, after the 1851 census, the family followed. Don't discount New Zealand and Australia as eventual places of emigration. A large number arrived in NZ in 1848. Celia