Joseph G. McKee, 1804-1884, Northern Ireland; Sparta, Randolph County, Illinois, United States

Joe seems to be the first person in the McKee family who comes to the U.S. The question is: What is his first wife's name?

Based on research for Joe's brother, William, I know that William is in the Port/Mount Norris, County Armagh area as late as 11 May 1837 because of the birth of his daughter there on that date.

In 1834 I can find the following information:
http://www.igp-web.com/armagh/townlands/Kilcon.htm
Joseph McKee appears on a Kilcon Tithe Applotment (1834)...a hop away from Port Norris in Loughgilly and geographic coverage is Mountnorris, Armagh, Ireland
This Joseph is gone from Griffith's Valuation, which occurs later. In addition, this Joseph may or may not be my Joseph. Of note, I have a photocopied story that has Joseph stating that one of the reasons for leaving Ireland was rising rents.

By 1838, Joe is in Randolph County, Illinois. Here's the quotation that confirms his presence.
The Trails, Randolph County Genealogy Society, Vol 15, No 17, Page 33

At Joe McKee's house, Mrs. Eliza Stewart and Mrs. Martha McKee received on certification.

So I have a working theory that Joe and his wife (and possibly children) emigrated between 1834 and 1838.

The closest I can come to this date is this record on Ancestry.com are as follows:

Name:	Joseph McKee
Arrival date:	13 Jul 1830
Age:	22
Gender:	Male
Port of Arrival:	Philadelphia
Port of Departure:	Londonderry
Place of Origin:	Great Britain
Destination:	USA
Ship Name:	Ship Asia
National Archives' Series Number:	425
Microfilm Number:	45
List Number:	113

Name:	Martha Mackey
Arrival date:	13 Jul 1830
Age:	20
Gender:	Female
Port of Arrival:	Philadelphia
Port of Departure:	Londonderry
Place of Origin:	Great Britain
Destination:	USA
Ship Name:	Ship Asia
National Archives' Series Number:	425
Microfilm Number:	45
List Number:	113

If you look for Joe on Ancestry.com and check the families, they suggest that his wife's name is Elizabeth. They offer no source for the information that I've noticed. I have seen a Philadelphia arrival record that has a Joseph McKee entering with an Elizabeth McKee. But for the life of me, I can't locate that record. But again, even if I could find this record, I have nothing to say that this couple are the couple I'm looking for. 

If you have anything to add to this thorny knot, I'd be happy to hear from you. Please leave me a message. In the interim, I'm going with Martha until I have info to the contrary.

Update: I've been pondering the question of Joe's wife's name for days and two things occur to me.

1. No reason exist to assume that Joe is married when he emigrates from N. Ireland. He's in his 20s and members of the McKee family (like many Scots-Irish families) tend to marry later. 
2. I've never check the early marriage records for Randolph or surrounding counties to see if there is any record of Joe marrying post emigrating to the U.S., which based on the evidence I have is entirely possible. 

So I've perhaps reasoned my way to a new line of research; that is, Joe marries the first time in the U.S. I'll update the blog if and when I make any startling discoveries.