7. Irish Hopes.
The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries saw many lowland Scots including many Borderers ( Ex Reiver families) transported to Ulster either as the result of Plantation policies or a result of the Lowland Clearances. Many of these only stayed for a generation before continuing to America as Ulster Scots - a number of these must have been Hopes. The number of Ulster Scots must have been quite large as six of the first twelve American Presidents were from that group. However quite a few Hopes from Scotland stayed in Ulster where they are to this day. There are fewer Hopes south of the Irish Border but possibily the first record of that name in Ireland was in the county of Westmeath in 1445 where there was a Shane Hoppe of Kyoliston. However it is thought that the name appeared in Westmeath much earlier than this possibly as far back as Norman times. Whether the name came from Scotland or England or was of local origin is open to conjecture. The name appears frequently in County Westmeath in the 17th century in Mullingar, Hopestown and neighbouring villages. Having Hopes of Hopetoun in Scotland and Hopes of Hopestown in Ireland is bewildering. The latter predating the former!
it was recorded in 1637 that there was a John Hope of Hopestown who died who was the eldest son of Edmund Hope of Hopestown who in turn was the eldest son of Richard Hope of Hopestown.
The Hope of Hopestown family was obviously aristocratic as evidenced by having an armorial but also in 1858 they were listed as one of the Noble Houses of Europe.
As mentioned in Section 5 a Henry Hope of the Amsterdam Hopes, in 1860, bought a georgian country house in Castleblayney in County Monaghan, Ireland that he called Hope Castle. This house is now part of the Lough Muckno leisure park. Whether these Hopes established themselves in Monaghan is probably unlikely. The Hope name remains in Castleblaney, apart from Hope Castle there is also the Hope Arms Hotel in the High Street.
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