Follow
My mother's maiden name was Cowdroy. Her great grandfather, Alfred Cowdroy, came to Australia with his wife, Catherine (Plunkett) Cowdroy, whom Alfred met and married in Ireland. I am interested in tracing the Plunkett family tree, and also the early origins of the Cowdroys. Alfred's father, William Cowdroy, founded the Manchester Gazette. All four of William's sons helped him with the production of the newspaper and William Cowdroy Jr continued to edit the newspaper until his death in 1822. I'm told the name Cowdroy possibly derives from the French 'Coudroie', which is the origin of 'corduroy'. So is there a French connection, and if so, how far back does it go?