I just discovered this thread, which started in 2004.
My McCloskeys are Francis and James McCloskey.
Francis McCloskey was born about 1830 in Ireland. He emigrated to Philadelphia, PA during the famine.
There is a strong naming pattern in the family for Francis and James - every generation since then has had both a James and a Francis in it.
I don't know that they came from Donegal EXCEPT that their neighbors and friends - families that they married into or who were witnesses at weddings and baptisms - were all from Donegal.
I see a Francis McCloskey in Griffiths.
My Francis married Ellen Lafferty, another Donegal name.
Francis' sister Ann married Roger Cassidy, another Donegal name.
These facts lead me to search for my Francis in Donegal rather than in Derry/ Dungiven where most McCloskeys are clustered.

Do any of the Donegal McCloskeys have Francis or James in their family names?

Has anyone had their yDNA tested?
My father tested as an E1b1b which is found in only 2% of the Irish men tested to date, and in none of the other McCloskeys that I've asked.

I've found matches to my father's DNA in SCOTLAND, so does anyone know of any intermingling of McCloskeys with a Scottish branch?

Thanks for your help!

Colleen McCloskey