Joyce, the year 1850 was a big time period for Irish workers moving across America. According to some sources, as many as 20,000 Irish immigrants moved from Brooklyn, NY to New Orleans about this same time. The area became known as the "Irish Bayou" section, and the funny New York type accent still found in New Orleans comes from this same migration. It is no problem to believe many of the same type also came to wherever there was work of land available. Ron Hughes