In the chiefly genealogy, descent from Odanus Ua Séaghdha (late 10th century), Chief of the Name, is generally accepted to be historically reliable. The genealogy before this point is, it should be noted, partly conjectural, and partly the invention of medieval genealogists (particularly the descent from the High Kings of Ireland).

Information on O'Shea heraldry (coats of arms) may be accessed on the O'Shea Heraldry Page. Biographical data on selected persons of the O'Shea name (and variants) is available through the

O'Shea Biographical Database

Note: The GEDCOM format occasionally does not deal well with diacritical marks (é, ü, î, , à, etc.). Generally, the correct character can be discerned from the context.

Early Origins

Pedigree of the Corcu Duibhne (Mac Firbisigh Book of Genealogies)

English translation of above pedigree

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Early Genealogy of the Uí Séaghdha

Comparitive Genealogy of the following:

Descent from the O'Shea Chiefly Line

Start Page and Index (opens with pedigree of Sir Richard Shee of Kilkenny)

Sources

GEDCOM

Name Index (PDF, 16 pages)

New material included on the O'Sheas of Madrid.

Other O'Shea Lines

Descent from Henry Daniel O'Shea of Tipperary (1723-1785), whose descendants figure prominently in the history of Newfoundland, including Sir Ambrose Shea, Sir Edward Dalton Shea, as well as several notable figures in England, such as Gen. Sir John Stuart MacKenzie Shea, Col. Alexander Gallwey Shea, Alderman Sidney Shea, etc.

This material was previously included with the O'Shea Chiefly Line, but the manuscript linking this descent with the chiefly line (NLI P-1545 microfilm) is suspect. It was originally submitted to the British Library in 1938 by George Raymond Shea, son of Alderman Sidney Shea, K.C.G., and while it includes predominantly material found in other manuscripts on the family, it makes Henry Daniel O'Shea the son of Martin O'Shee of Camas, Co. Limerick, thus connecting to the SHEE family of Kilkenny. No other evidence has come to light to support that connection.

Start Page and Index (opens with Henry Daniel O'Shea)

GEDCOM

Name Index (PDF, 4 pages)

O'Shea of Knockavilla, Co. Tipperary & Woonsocket, Rhode Island

Descent from John O'Shea (b. about 1785) of Tipperary. Principal names include O'Shea, English, Godfrey and Wayland. Descendants settled in Woonsocket, Rhode Island around 1881, and present branches are found in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and elsewhere.

Start Page and Index (opens with pedigree John O'Shea of Knockavilla)

GEDCOM

Name Index (PDF, 84 pages)

Significant lines connected to this Tipperary branch include Wayland (De Wayland), Maunsell, Smithwick, and de Burgh (Burke).

Note: The author's maternal ancestry (Bilodeau-Gamache) may be accessed here.

Descent from Donal O'Shea of Gurranes Lauragh, parish of Tousist, near Kenmare, Co. Kerry. A branch of this family emigrated to Brooklyn, Kings Co., New York, where descendants are still found.

A note from Sean O'Shea, a descendant of this line still living in Co. Cork:

The place name "Gurranes, Lauragh" where Donal O'Shea came from is located in Co. Kerry in the parish of Tousist near Kenmare. Gurranes is approx. 6 miles as the crow flies north of Direen, Adrigole, Co. Cork, where Donal moved to, and where I, a great great grandson, live. Both areas are on the Beara peninsula which stretches into the atlantic between Bantry bay and Kenmare bay.

Index of Persons

Index of Surnames

Shea of Drishane, Co. Cork

Descendants of John Shea of Drishane (1792-1875). Descendants now in Co. Cork, New Zealand and the USA (lines emigrated to Massachusetts, then Montana and Arizona). Compiled by James O'Shea, a Cork descendant.

Offsite Links to Other Lines

William Elihu Shea descent (Carrick-on-Suir, Waterford/Tipp to Carleton County, New Brunswick ) external link

Shea of Le Sueur County, Minnesota and Dromtarriff Parish, Co. Cork (external link)

Families included: Shea (of Le Sueur County Minnesota and Dromtarriff parish, Co. Cork, Ireland), Sullivan, Luddy, Pendergrass, Fay, Crawford/Cranford (of Co. Cavan, Ireland), McNally, Lange, Rueckheim, Singler, Anderson (of Ong, Nebraska and eventually Sweden), Petersdotter, Swanson, Magnusson, Danielson, Grey, Conway, Hopkins, Bacon (of Cumberland UK), Turnbull, Leech (of Liverpool UK), Houghton and Sutton (of Formby UK).

O'Shea-Litrenta (Iowa, USA) external link

O'Shea-Walsh (Co. Kerry, Ireland) external link

O'Shea (Lisburn, Antrim, from Kilkenny?) external link

Thomas Shay (Dublin - Baltimore, MD) external link

Shea-Maher (Kerry or Tipp to New York) external link

Millis / Shea Genealogy (descendants of Dennnis J. Shea of Springfield, Massachusetts) external link

Jeremiah Shay descent (descendants of Jeremiah Shay of Co. Kerry, emigrated to New York, settled in Bradford Co. Pennyslvania) external link

O'Shea lines in Argentina (in Spanish) external link (link broken)

Other [O']Shea Lines

Lisa Shea has compiled an excellent genealogy links page with numerous pedigrees and research queries on the name. See her page, Shea/Shay Central for many additional resources!