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A surname of England and Ireland, in England ? from the Old English personal name Garmund, or dweller by the gore (a triangular piece of land) as in the place names Gore Court (Kent) and Gore (Wiltshire); in Ireland for (Mac) Gorman, (O) GORMAN, Mac Gormáin. MacLysaght remarks that the prefix O has been widely substituted for Mac. (Reaney, Spiegelhalter, MacLysaght). Traced by Spiegelhalter in Devon and by MacLysaght in Cos. Clare and Monaghan.
| At Ferryland: |
Ferryland District Court Actions: September 26, 1786 - Gorman, Richard - Testified in Benger vs Leigh. |
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Ferryland District Court Actions: September 22, 1794 - Gorman, Richard - Highest Bidder on fishing rooms belonging to: Griffin, Andrew. |
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Ferryland Census 1800: - Richard Gorman; wife, Bridget Gorman; Peter Gorman - 4; Mary - 8; Margaret - 6; Alice - 2; Bridget - infant. |
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A list of names of all Masters, Servants, and Dieters residing in the District of Ferryland for the Winter of 1799 & Spring 1800: Ferryland - Richard Gorman (clerk), servant of Robert Carter, Esq. |
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Carter Papers Ferryland District 1750 - Mid 1800's: Richard Gorman, Clerk of Ferryland Court - 1808. |
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Ferryland Supreme Court Actions: October 26, 1830 - Gorman, Bridget - Sued: Pitt, Robert. |
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Ferryland Supreme Court Records: Richard Gorman, Gaolor - 1826, 1828, 1829. |
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Ferryland Supreme Court Records: Peter Gorman, Gaolor - 1827, 1830, 1831, 1832, 1833. |
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Ferryland - District Court Actions: January 1, 1834 - Gorman, Peter - Appointed constable for Ferryland. |
| D'Alberti Papers 31: |
Richard Gorman, clerk of the peace, Ferryland District, 1821. |
| At St. John's: |
RC Basilica - St John's - Marriage Records: March 2, 1824 - Margaret Gorman, Ferryland m. Corp. James Gardner, (not stated). By Permission of Major Fitzgerald, (Witnesses?) Martin Howard, Honora Ivey. |
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Journal of the House of Assembly of Newfoundland - Friday - April 21, 1843 - Petition of B. Gorman, Ferryland. The petition states: "A Petition of Bridget Gorman, widow, was presented by Mr. Nugent (who stated in his place that he had obtained the consent of his Excellency for that purpose) and the same was received and read, setting forth: That her late husband Richard Gorman, for a long period of years, filled the offices of Clerk of the Peace, and Clerk of the Surrogate Court of the Southern District, and subsequently of Gaoler at Ferryland; that for several years before his death the said Richard Gorman did not receive the full amount of his salary and emoluments, but that the petitioner is unable, after the great lapse of time which has since taken place, to obtain redress without appealing to the Legislature; praying that the services of her said husband and the circumstances set forth in the said petition may be taken into consideration, and a sum granted to petitioner in compensation of the claims of her said husband. |
| Colony of Avalon: |
Richard Gorman lived in a house at the Pool called "Benger's house" according to the testimony of Thomas Phoran in 1850 (Nunan vs. Carter land dispute). |
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Furlong, Mary born at Ferryland about 1800; daughter of Richard Gorman who lived in "old Mr. Carter's house in the Pool" and subsequently moved into Benger's house; |
| At Caplin Bay: |
Voter's List for Caplin Bay: 1840, 1841, 1842, Richard Gorman - Old Woman's Pond. |
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Per Robert Carter's Journal, Richard Gorman was found dead in his garden at Caplin Bay on October, 12, 1841. |
| Family History: |
Several references to the Gorman surname, in particular, to Jeffrey and Richard Gorman, are recorded in old court documents at Ferryland going back into the 1780s. Although he could have been of either Irish or English origin, Richard Gorman's stature in local law and politics in Ferryland suggests that he was probably Protestant since few Roman Catholics could hold certain offices. However, contrary to that speculation, the Gorman surname did not appear in the Church of England records at Ferryland. It would appear Richard's family members, at least, were Roman Catholics, as suggested by the fact that his daughter Margaret married in the Roman Catholic Church at St. John's in 1824. |
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According to the surviving Voter's Lists, by 1840, there was no listing of the Gorman surname at Ferryland. However, Richard Gorman is listed on the Voter's List at Caplin Bay from 1840 to 1842. No Gormans appear at Caplin Bay, nor anywhere else in Ferryland District, after that year, even though we know that Richard and Bridget had a son named Peter. Robert Carter, in his Journal, explained Richard's later absence from the Voter's Lists when he noted that Richard was found dead in his garden at Caplin Bay in 1841. Since the Crown still owed Richard for his past services, his widow, Bridget, originated a petition in the spring of 1843. Finally, two years later, in April 1845, Bridget Gorman was awarded compensation totalling £66, the equivalent of three years' salary for her late husband. |
| Local Place Names: |
Gorman's Hill. The hill on the north side of the Old Woman's Pond, associated with the Gorman presence at Caplin Bay. |
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