James A. Getty, Sr, (left) his wife Matilda McCaughey and their seven children left Ireland in 1852 for American. They lived in the small town of Portglenone in County Antrim in what is now Northern Ireland which is a constituent country in the United Kingdom.

The Getty Family came from the small town of Portglenone in County Antrim which is now in what is called Northern Ireland. It is on the River Bann about 8 miles from Ballymena, 34 miles from Belfast and 135 miles from Dublin. Portglenone had a population of about 1,200 in 2011.

One of James and Matilda's sons, George Kilpatrick Getty (above right) was born in 1840 so he was about 12 years old at the time. Later, he married Naomi Russell and their fourth child, Ervin Leonidas Getty (left) was the grandfather of Mildred (Roggerman) Heiden. (right)

Unfortunately, we do not know the specific reason why the family made the huge decision to leave their homeland. However, the horrible potato famine occurred from the years 1846 to 1852 so that could have been a factor in the move.