Thomas Meagher (c. 1764 – 26 January 1837) was an Irish merchant and tailor who arrived in Newfoundland around 1780 as an apprentice to a clothier surnamed Crotty.
By 1808 Meagher had bought the Mary, which he replaced the following year with the Triton; in the fall of 1809 he shipped more than 1,350 quintals of cod and other products to Waterford.
Demand for fish such as cod in southern Europe was growing and profits from the passenger and supply trades were considerable.
[1] Meagher had sent his eldest son Thomas to Ireland to establish a branch of his business in Waterford.
[2] Meagher's business in St. John's had suffered a major setback when the premises were wiped out in the Great Fire of 1817.