Recorded in several forms including McClory, MacGlory, and the short forms Lavery and Lowry, this is a Gaelic surname. It derives from the pre 10th century Mac Labhradha, the prefix Mac denoting son or sometimes descendant of, plus the byname "Labraidh" meaning the spokesman. Three branches of the sept are sometimes distinguished as Baun-Lavery (from "ban" meaning white), Roe-Lavery (from "Rua", red), and Trin-Lavery, from "trean" meaning strong, members of the latter sept also being recorded as Armstrong. The surname as MacClory is prominent in both Galloway in Scotland, and across the water in Northern Ireland. Examples of the recordings from surviving church registers include the marriage of Lucy Lavary to John Christina Pauli on May 21st 1792 at St. Dunstans in the East, Stepney, city of London, and the christening of Eliner, daughter of Matthew and Elizabeth Lavery on January 26th 1799 at Dromore parish, County Down, whilst Mary McClory sailed for New York from Liverpool, on the ship Shenandoah, on March 27 1846. A coat of arms granted to the family has the blazon of blue, a gold fleur-de-lis, and in the first quarter a gold leopard's head. The first recorded spelling of the family name is that of Angus McGlory of County Down, in the year 1446. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was sometimes known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.