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Wexford's John Barry Statue - A Gift from the American People to the Irish People in 1956

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  Photo Courtesy of National Museum of the U.S. Navy Photograph Collection In 1956, the heroic-sized statue of Commodore John Barry,"Father of the American Navy,"designed by American sculptor Wheeler Williams of Madison, CT was cast at the T.F. McCann & Sons Foundry in Somerville, MA before being shipped to Wexford, Ireland, where Barry was born in 1745. The statue was a gift of the people of the United States to the people of Ireland. US Congressman and Speaker of the House John McCormack from South Boston introduced the idea of selecting John Barry as the most suitable Irish-born hero in the American Revolution. He instructed Congressman John Rooney of Brooklyn, NY, to introduce a resolution for $30,000 for the memorial. Williams was selected by the American Battle Memorials Commission and President Harry S. Truman convened a national John Barry Commission, which included Robert Fitzgerald from Milton, MA. Williams began making sketches in 1954, and after the commission...
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When Copley Records Made Popular Irish Recordings in Boston's Dudley Square

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In fall 1926, Ellen O'Byrne DeWitt (1875-1926), an Irish immigrant who ran a successful Irish music store and record company in New York City, opened a new store called E. O'Bryne Dewitt's Sons: House of Irish Music, at 51 Warren Street in Roxbury. Located right in the heart of Dudley Square, the new shop was run by her son Justus O'Byrne DeWitt (1899-1983). The Boston store was an extension of a successful Irish music company in New York City that had flourished for a quarter century. It was run by Ellen and her husband, Dutch immigrant Justus DeWitt. Together they had run a small travel company for several years before Ellen decided to open the small Irish music shop at 1398 Third Avenue near 79th Street. With the swift rise of the recording industry in the early 20th century, Ellen was among the first to recognize that the burgeoning Irish immigrant population would always be looking out for music from back home, and she convinced several record companies su...
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Hugh O'Brien, first Irish-Born Mayor of Boston, Died on August 1, 1895

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Hugh O'Brien of County Cork, the first Irish-born person to be elected as mayor of the city of Boston, died on August 1, 1895 in Somerville after a brief illness.   His funeral was held at  Holy Cross Cathedral , and "thousands of people thronged the cathedral to pay their last tribute of love and respect" to O'Brien, a local newspaper wrote. The Charitable Irish Society sent a five-foot high Irish harp, made of roses, orchards and lilys. "The largest and most conspicuous delegation was that from the St. Vincent's Orphan Asylum, 200 little children dressed alike, who sat immediately behind the family," Republic Newspaper reported. Born in Ireland on July 13, 1827, O'Brien emigrated with his family to Boston in 1832 when he was five years old. He attended a public school in Boston’s Fort Hill neighborhood, and at age 12 joined the Boston Courier newspaper as an apprentice. By the age of 15, he had become foreman of a printing office, before starting h...
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First Lady Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy, Born on July 28, 1929

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  Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy was born on July 28, 1929 in Southampton, NY, the daughter of John and Janet.  She was an accomplished rider as a child, and attended Vassar College, University of Grenoble before transferring to George Washington University, where she earned a degree in French literature in 1951.  While working as a roving photo journalist for the Washington Times-Herald , she met her husband, John F. Kennedy, when he was a U.S. Congressman, soon to be U.S. Senator, according to the John F. Kennedy Library .  On September 12, 1953, Jackie and Jack married at St. Mary's Church in Newport, RI. She became First Lady at age 31 on January 20, 1961, when her husband took the oath of office to become the nation's 35th president. "With her gracious personal style and her passion for history and the arts, she worked hard to be worthy of her new role," notes the JFK Library. While she had a deep sense of obligation to her country, her first priorities were ...
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July 4, 1892 Hurling Match on Boston Common between Boston + Cambridge Teams Draws 20,000 Spectators

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On July 4, 1892, a massive hurling match took place on Boston Common, between the Shamrock hurling club of Boston and the William O'Brien club of Cambridge.  The winner received a $100 purse. Estimates varied from 10,000 to 20,00 spectators, according to Boston newspapers.  A detail of 100 patrolmen , including a lieutenant and four sergeants, were on-site for crowd control and to keep the pitch clear.  The game was set to begin at 7 a.m. but did not get underway until 8:15 a.m. Prior to the game, the William O'Brien Club entered a protest saying there were several ringers from Lynn playing for the Shamrocks.  In the end, the William O'Briens defeated the Shamrocks by a score of 2-1.   A few days after the match, on July 7, The Boston Globe   reported , "The members of the Shamrock Hurling Club still believe they superior players to the William O' Briens, who defeated them on the Common on July 4. and they challenge them or any hurling club in Massachusetts...
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Charles River Esplanade Honors Two Boston Irish Politicians, David I. Walsh and Maurice Tobin, at the Hatch Shell

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On the Charles River Esplanade running alongside Beacon Hill and Back Bay along the Boston side of the river is the famous Hatch Memorial Shell, the site of the free annual Boston Pops Concert & Fireworks Spectacular held each year on July 4, Independence Day.  The Boston Pops is led by maestro Keith Lockhart. There are two statues in front of the Hatch Shell that pay tribute to Boston Irish politicians in the 20th century who each made notable contributions to Massachusetts.  David I. Walsh  (1872-1947) was the first Irish Catholic elected as Governor of Massachusetts, where he served from 1914-1916.  Prior to that, he was Lieutenant Governor in1913-14.  A native of Clinton, Walsh was best known as an “ardent supporter of women’s suffrage and fought hard for a voting-rights amendment to the state constitution,” according to historian Thomas H. O’Connor.  In 1918 Walsh won a Senate seat, becoming the state's first Irish Catholic to win, as well as...
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Scottish Cornet Star Matthew Arbuckle, Performed in Massachusetts 24th Regiment Civil War Band, at Boston Peace Jubilees and Coney Island Summer Series

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Matthew Arbuckle One of Scotland's most famous musicians of the 19th century was Matthew Arbuckle, who made his name in America as an exceptional cornetist.  He was also a composer and bandleader as well as an accomplished violinist, bagpiper and drum major. Coliseum of the World Peace Jubilee in Boston He performed at the National Peace Jubilee in Boston in June 1869 for U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant, and again at the World Peace Jubilee in June 1872, which was the largest music festival ever assembled and included 2,000 musicians and 20,000 singers.   At the 1872 festival, Arbuckle conducted Handel's famous "Let the Bright Seraphim," leading the opening fanfare of fifty trumpeters and playing the trumpet obbligato part with vocalist Madame Ermina Ruggersdorf.  After the Jubilee ended, Arbuckle participated in a special concert for Austria's visiting composer Johann Strauss, perfuming a cornet solo that demanded an encore. Born in Lochside, Scotland, on March 2...
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