But it should be acknowledged that this methodology leads to a collection of data that is anecdotal, and until further research is done into each individual slave-owner on the list, we cannot claim for certain that these names represent a person of Irish descent. It also does not tell us when these family lines settled in the various colonies, and it is reasonable to assume that some go back many generations. As Dr. Stephen Mullen pointed out, some of these names may even be former slaves, or second or third generation Irish who came to the colonies via England. This is complex.
Yet despite these limitations and numerous caveats, I believe that my data, while cursory, is suggestive of the level of slave-ownership among those of Irish descent. Hopefully this tentative review will lead to more in-depth research that will tease out the complexities of these family histories.”