Contents [hide]

Brady History Etymology Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables World Ranking

United States Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Suggested Reading Citations

Brady History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland
England

Etymology of Brady

What does the name Brady mean?

The Irish name Brady originally appeared in Gaelic as Mac Bradaigh, possibly derived from bradach, which means spirited, which is in turn derived from brad, which means urging.

Early Origins of the Brady family

The surname Brady was first found in Galway (Irish: Gaillimh) part of the province of Connacht, located on the west coast of the Island, and County Clare where they held a family seat from ancient times.

They were descended from Olioll Olum, King of Munster who reigned about 130 A.D. and descended through a line of Chiefs and Kings to John O'Grady, alias O'Brady, who died in 1332 in the Clann territories of Fassaghmore in the county of Clare. His son, Sir Denis O'Grady alias O'Brady of Fassaghmore was knighted by King Henry VI of England.

This great confusion of names continued into the 14th and 15th century and to make matters even more confusing the line frequently reverted from one spelling to the other. The Clann seat became established at Kilballyowen in County Limerick, and the present Chief of the Gradys (or Bradys) is one of the few Chiefs recognized in Ireland. He is Lieutenant Colonel Gerald Vogors de Courcy O'Grady. They were settled in Glenstal Abbey. Many of the name were also found in Cavan.

Early History of the Brady family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Brady research. Another 53 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1454, 1710, 1752 and 1827 are included under the topic Early Brady History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Brady Spelling Variations

Within archives, many different spelling variations exist for the surname Brady. Ancient scribes and church officials recorded names as they were pronounced, often resulting in the name of the single person being recorded under several different spellings. Different spellings that were found include Grady, Brady, O'Grady, O'Brady, Braidy, Graidy, Bradie, Braidie, Braydy, Braydie, Gradie, Graidie, Graydy, Graydie, Bradigan, O'Bradigan and many more.

Early Notables of the Brady family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was

Sir Denis O'Brady
Andrew MacBrady, was the first bishop of Kilmore in 1454
Fiachra MacBrady (c.1710), Gaelic poet
James Bernard MacBrady, Count of the Holy Roman Empire
Phelim Brady (fl. 1710), a Gaelic poet usually referred to as "bold Phelim Brady the bard of Armagh"
Thomas Brady (1752-1827), from County Cavan, became a Field Marshal in the Austrian service and Governor of Dalmatia

Brady World Ranking

In the United States, the name Brady is the 448^th most popular surname with an estimated 62,175 people with that name. 1 However, in Australia, the name Brady is ranked the 341^st most popular surname with an estimated 10,607 people with that name. 2 And in New Zealand, the name Brady is the 526^th popular surname with an estimated 1,318 people with that name. 3 The United Kingdom ranks Brady as 445^th with 14,559 people. 4

Brady migration to the United States +

In the 18th and 19th centuries hundreds of thousands of Irish people immigrated to North American shores. The early settlers were enticed by the promise of their own land, but they were moderately well off in Ireland when they decided to emigrate. Therefore, they were merely carrying out a long and carefully thought out decision. The 1840s saw the emergence of a very different trend: thousands of extremely desperate people crammed into passenger boats hoping to find any type of opportunity. The Irish of this decade had seen their homeland severely stricken by crop failures which resulted in widespread disease and starvation. At whatever time the Irish immigrants came to North America, they were instrumental in the rapid development of the emerging nations of the United States and what would become known as Canada. An exhaustive search of passenger and immigration lists has revealed many persons bearing the name Brady, or one of its variants:

Brady Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Henry Brady, who arrived in Maryland in 1671 5
Andrew Brady, who arrived in Virginia in 1674
William Brady, who landed in Maryland in 1674 5

Brady Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Tho Brady, who landed in Virginia in 1712 5
Eleanor Brady, who arrived in Virginia in 1714 5
Daniel Brady, who was sent to America in 1741
William Brady, who arrived in Virginia in 1741 5
Fanny Brady, who landed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1744 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Brady Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Francis Brady, who landed in America in 1807 5
James Brady, who arrived in America in 1812 5
Barney Brady, aged 31, who arrived in New York in 1812 5
John C Brady, aged 35, who landed in Rhode Island in 1812 5
Owen Brady, aged 19, who arrived in Massachusetts in 1812 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Brady migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Brady Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Mr. James Brady U.E. who settled in Kingston, Ontario c. 1783 6
Lt. Richard Brady U.E. who settled in St. Andrews, Charlotte County, New Brunswick c. 1783 member of the Port Matoon Association 6
Mr. Luke Brady, "Bready" U.E. who settled in Canada c. 1783 6

Brady Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Thomas Brady, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1829
Terence Brady, who landed in Canada in 1829
Patrick Brady, aged 19, a labourer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1833 aboard the ship "Britannia" from Sligo, Ireland
Peter Brady, aged 26, a labourer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1834 aboard the ship "Edwin" from Dublin, Ireland
Mary Brady, aged 24, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1834 aboard the ship "Edwin" from Dublin, Ireland
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Brady migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Brady Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Dennis Brady, British Convict who was convicted in Berkshire, England for life, transported aboard the "Earl Cornwallis" in August 1800, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 7
Mr. Thomas Brady, (b. 1787), aged 16, Irish butcher from County Meath who was convicted in Lancaster, Lancashire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Coromandel" on 4th December 1803, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
Miss Susan Brady, (Brien), (b. 1790), aged 23, Irish convict who was convicted in Dublin, Ireland for 7 years, transported aboard the "Catherine" on 8th December 1813, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 9
Miss Elinor Brady, Irish convict who was convicted in Ireland, transported aboard the "Canada" on 21st March 1817, arriving in New South Wales, Australia then transported on to Tasmania per "Elizabeth Henrietta" 10
Mr. Thomas William Brady, British Convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Coromandel" on 27th October 1819, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 11
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Brady migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Brady Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr Brady, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1842 aboard the ship Bombay 12
Francis Brady, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1842 aboard the ship Adelaide 13
Francis Brady, aged 49, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Bombay" in 1842 12
Frederick Brady, aged 9, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Bombay" in 1842 12
Mr. Brady, British settler travelling from London, UK aboard the ship "Bombay" arriving in Wellington, New Zealand on 29th December 1842 14
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Brady (post 1700) +

Thomas Edward Patrick "Tom" Brady (b. 1977), American former NFL football quarterback for 23 seasons, best known for his tenure with the New England Patriots (2001-2019), regarded as the greatest quarterback of all time
Joan Brady (1939-2024), American-British writer
Wayne Alphonso Brady (b. 1972), American television personality, comedian, actor, and singer, known for Whose Line Is It Anyway? and as host of the daytime talk show The Wayne Brady Show
James Joseph Brady (1944-2017), American lawyer and jurist, Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana (2013-2017), Judge of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana (2000-2013)
Rodney Howard Brady (1933-2017), American businessman and academic, CEO and president of Deseret Management Corporation, President of Weber State College (1978-1985)
Julio A. Brady (1942-2015), U.S. Virgin Island judge, politician and attorney, 5th Lieutenant Governor of the United States Virgin Islands (1983-1987)
Sarah Jane Brady (1942-2015), née Kemp, American campaigner for gun control, widow of White House Press Secretary James Brady
William J. Brady (1829-1878), American sheriff of Lincoln County, New Mexico, killed in an ambush in which Billy the Kid took part
James Buchanan Brady (1856-1917), known as Diamond Jim Brady, an American businessman, financier, and philanthropist
Mathew B. Brady (1822-1896), American photographer, best known for his portraits of officers of the American Civil War and 18 presidents of the United States, called the "Father of Photojournalism"
... (Another 18 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Brady family +

Arrow Air Flight 1285

Mr. Darrin P Brady (1966-1985), American Private 1st Class from Brunswick, Ohio, USA who died in the Arrow Air Flight 1285 crash 15

Hillsborough disaster

Paul David Brady (1967-1989), English refrigeration engineer who was attending the FA Cup semi-final at Hillsborough Stadium, in Sheffield, Yorkshire when the stand allocated area became overcrowded and 96 people were crushed in what became known as the Hillsborough disaster and he died from his injuries 16

RMS Titanic

Mr. John Bertram Brady (d. 1912), aged 41, American First Class passenger from Pomeroy, Washington who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and died in the sinking 17

SS Atlantic

Mr. Cornelius Brady, British crew member who was aboard the ship "SS Atlantic" when it struck rocks off Nova Scotia in 1873, survived the sinking
Mr. Phillip Brady, who was traveling aboard the ship "SS Atlantic" when it struck rocks off Nova Scotia in 1873, died in the sinking

Citations +

"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
"Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/surnames
"UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 13th August 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/earl-cornwallis
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 22nd March 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/coromandel-and-experiment
Convict Records of Australia (Retreived 2nd January 2021, retreived from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/catherine
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 9th December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/canada
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 12th March 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/coromandel
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 7th November 2010). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
Shadow Time Settlers (Retrieved 5th November 2010), retrieved from http://shadowsoftime.co.nz/settlers.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
American War Memorials - Flight 1285. (Retrieved 2016, August 24) . Retrieved from http://www.uswarmemorials.org/html/monument_details.php?SiteID=317&MemID=550
Hillsborough Victims (retreived 21st March 2021). Retreived from https://metro.co.uk/2019/04/15/remembering-96-victims-hillsborough-disaster-30-years-9206566/
Titanic Passenger List - Titanic Facts. (Retrieved 2016, July 13) . Retrieved from http://www.titanicfacts.net/titanic-passenger-list.html