OBRIEN / BRYANT; IRL>ENG>MA,USA; 1832-1891 Looking for the O'Briens/Briants/Bryants. Briefly, the mother and father, Timothy [Laborer and Farmer] and Joanna (Hart) O'Brien were born in Munster Province, Ireland, as was my great great grandfather, Michael Cullen O'Brien. Timothy and Joanna were born between 1798 and 1803. Sometime between 1828 and 1832, they emigrated to Essex, England (exactly where in Essex county still remains a mystery). It is there that their second son, Daniel W. [Webster?] O'Brien, was born on 8 September 1832. By about 1835/36 and possibly as early as 1832/33, the family moved to the United States, possibly entering Canada first. In 1835/36, Timothy and Joanna had their first daughter, born in Massachusettes, Mary Emily. Their second daughter, Ann Louisa, was born the following year. Michael [Shoemaker] married Harriet Naramore Hawley in 1850 in Newburyport. They had several children, Harriet, Pamelia, Silas, Julia, etc. Between 1850 and 1855 Mary Emily married Allen Robinson. They had several children. Daniel [Shoemaker] was married in 1855 to Harriet Frances Robinson, daughter of Timothy Robinson (b. in Sydney, ME) and Sarah Robinson. He was killed in the American Civil War at the battle of Antietam. He is buried in the National Cemetery there. About 1856/57 the family Timothy, Joanna, Allen, Mary Emily, Michael, and Harriet, as well as Ann Louisa moved to Rochester, New York. Then, in 1865 all except Michael and his family moved back to Georgetown, MA. Michael served in the 108th New York Vols. as a private, corporal, and finally sergeant in Company E. He was wounded three times, once at the Wilderness, once at Antietam, and once at Gettysburg. In 1872 he died in Tiffin, Iowa, (from Typhoid fever) while on his way to Nebraska to file a Homesteader's claim in accordance with the Homestead Act of 1862 that granted extra credit for service to Union veterans. Here is the deal on the surname transition, and this is pretty reliable. The family started out as "O'Brien." Sometime between 1838 and 1850, the family began to use the name "Briant." This continued until sometime around 1856/57, at which time everybody in the U.S seems to have switched to "Bryant," the name the descendants here are known by till this day. However, when Timothy and Joanna were elderly and finally died in Georgetown, MA, they reverted back to the surname O'Brien. Both are buried someplace in Haverhill under the name O'Brien. Since I have been researching the leads in the Essex area, I have contacted the Essex County Record Office and family History Office in Chelmsford. I was interested, because of the time frame, in possible church records. I was advised, much to my dismay, that a search in Essex County without knowing the exact parish/town would be impossible. So, I am trying everything I can to locate the exact town/parish. So far, I have . . . 1. Had a very nice lady check check the 1851 census indexes for Essex for me as we thought at one time that the family may have returned there. She located all the Briants and all the Bryants. None looks like my people. However, there was a Timothy Briant from Cork living in Leyton at the time. He was 65, so he couldn't probably have been my great great great grandfather, Timothy, who was born about 1800. In 1851, he would have been about 51, a long ways from 65. 2. I also searched in the 1881 census indexes for Essex. This was a bit more interesting. I found the following . . . Louisa Brian (Briant?) Aged 41 living in the home of Samuel S. Davis as a domestic servant. This was in Leyton Low (Not sure what the "Low" means.). It gives the place of birth as "Co. of Birth - NK." I wonder if this translates to "County of Birth Not Known." If so, perhaps his could be the second daughter of Timothy and Joanna. She was born in Massachusettes. Since my information on her age is from a census, it is possible that her age of 41 is close enough to make her a possibility. There was another coincidence as well . . . Johanna Brian (Briant?) Aged 71 She is listed as an "Inmate enumerated at Leyton." Furthermore, her occupation is listed as Field Laborer, and her place of enumeration was "I" "West Hamilton." I am not sure if this was a prison, a poor house, a mental institution or what. It lists her birthplace as Stratford, Essex. However, this could be a case of the data here or there being in error. Also, from my data in the census her age in 1881 should have been about 79, not 71. It couldn't be possible that someone would lie about her age, right? OF COURSE IT TURNED OUT THAT NONE OF THESE FOLKS WERE OUR FAMILY, AND THAT IS FOR SURE AT THIS POINT AS WE KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO ALL OF THEM. Since it appears that most of the Briants/Bryants in Essex in 1881 were from the Cork area, I am beginning to wonder if it might be a fair guess to assume a high probability of emigration for my O'Briens from Cork. I am wondering if there might not have been a regular boat service from Cork to London that would have made this a possibility in 1828-1832. I know that from Dublin, most Irish and English Irish people traveled over to Liverpool. This seems to suggest to me that it might not be as likely that my family came through there. Oh well, thanks for listening to my ramblings. If anyone sees a possible connection, please get in touch with me at my e-mail address: ctucker@wzrd.com We do have much more specific information on children, vital stat's dates, etc., more than time and space will allow here.