Comerford surname history

Comerford is Anglo-Norman in origin, taken from the name of a place in Staffordshire in England; Its early form was "de Quemerford". After the Norman invasion of the twelth century, the family settled in counties Waterford and Kilkenny, and later spread in the adjoining Co. Tipperary. The name is still most strongly associated with Co. Kilkenny.

John Comerford (1770 - 1832), from Kilkenny town, became one of Dublin's most fashionable portrait painters, excelling particularly in portraits of old ladies. A number of these can still be seen in the National Gallery of Ireland.

Maire Comerford (1893-1982) was a passionately committed republican who fought in both the War of Independence and the Civil War. Her account of Sinn Fein in the years immediately preceding independence, The First Dail, remains an invaluable source.