Irish Boston History & Heritage

Courtesy of Eire Society of Boston The very first symphony composed by an American woman was called Gaelic Symphony, Opus 32, a beautiful piece of music that evoked centuries of Ireland's ancient music.  It was written by pianist Amy Marcy Cheney Beach, who was born in Henniker, New Hampshire on September 5, 1867. Gaelic Symphony premiered on October 30, 1896 at Boston Music Hall, and was performed by the Boston Symphony Orchestra. The musical composition instantly received critical acclaim, and was quickly sought by premier orchestras around the country, in Pittsburgh, Washington, Kansas City and Chicago.   Though mainly of Yankee stock - a distant relative, John Marcy, emigrated from Limerick to New England in the 17th century - Beach said she was drawn to the simple beauty of Irish melodies, according to the late George E. Ryan of the Eire Society of Boston, who wrote about Beach in the 1992 Eire Society Bulletin. Courtesy of Fans of Amy Beach Amy herself wrote, "I can ascr

Photo Courtesy of Digital Commonwealth On September 1, 1920, more than 100 dock workers at Charlestown Navy Yard boycotted British Ships in sympathy with the Boston Irish who were protesting against Britain's treatment of Ireland. Bostonians were upset about the hunger strike of Terence MacSwiney , lord mayor of Cork, Ireland, who had been sentenced to two years in prison by British authorities. He went on a hunger strike on August 12 to protest his imprisonment and was rapidly declining in heath. He died on October 20, 1920. Photo from Boston Globe, September 1, 1920 As longshoremen were loading the British ship Nitonian, there was picketing on the docks by two women, Mrs P. H. Savage and Miss Amelia Rosser, niece of General Thomas Rosser, according to The Boston Globe. The women were joined by Irish leader John P. McCarthy, an Irish leader, who exhorted the crowd, asking if they were going to handle British goods and telling them they must tie up British shipping.  "A lar

New York Daily Herald Front Page, August 2, 1903 One of the most gifted 19th century Irish-American sculptors, according to art historians, was John Talbott Donoghue (1853-1903) , a Chicago native who lived in Boston in the 1880s and whose life and career ended tragically when he took his own life.  Donoghue was discovered as a struggling artist by Oscar Wilde during the famous Irish writer's trip across America in 1882. Wilde reported he met "a young sculptor whom we would love and be so proud of if he were in Europe. He reminded me of the old Italian stories of the struggles of genius." Wilde wrote that he found Donoghue "in a bare little room at the top of a great building, and in the center was a statuette of the young Sophocles, a piece of the highest artistic beauty and perfect workmanship…. It was by far the best piece of sculpture I have seen in America." Image courtesy of  Isabella Gardner Museum  in Boston Donoghue's most celebrated work is The

Holy Cross Cathedral in Boston, image courtesy of Elkus Manfredi Patrick C. Keely (1816-1896), regarded as one of the great neo-Gothic church architects of the 19th century, designed more than 600 churches and 16 cathedrals throughout the United States between 1846-1896.  Born in Thurles, County Tipperary on August 9, 1816, Keely was the son of an architect and skilled carpenter who built St. Patrick's College and the Fever Hospital in Thurles. The family, spelled Kiely in Ireland, originated from Kilkenny.  He emigrated to New York in 1842 at age 25 and settled in Brooklyn. Inspired by 13th century Gothic design and influenced by English architect Augustus Pugin, he used elements such as Marcello towers and pinnacles, and within a short time was the most sought after church architect in America. In addition to Catholic churches, Keely also created notable Protestant churches such as the Asylum Hill Congressional Church in Hartford, CT, which included parishioners Mark Twain and

Poster Courtesy of Boston Irish Tourism Association Irish patriot, poet, scholar and athlete John Boyle O'Reilly died suddenly at his summer home in Hull, Massachusetts on August 10, 1890, from an accidental overdose of medication taken for insomnia.  For the two decades he lived in Boston, since arriving in January 1870, O’Reilly had quickly become an influential writer, orator, advocate and sage, especially for the city’s large Irish population and the Black community. He was beloved by the literati, business and political establishments, church leaders, and by ordinary people everywhere, who recognized his authenticity, dignity and good-will.  St. Mary's Church, Charlestown His funeral was held at St. Mary's Church on Warren Street in Charlestown, right around the corner from his home at 34 Winthrop Street.  The church was full to the brim, and participants included his wife Mary and four daughters, Elizabeth, Mary, Agnes and Blanid, and hundreds of friends, collea

One of the most extraordinary travel books about France was written by Elizabeth Boyle O’Reilly (1874-1922) of Charlestown, Massachusetts, the daughter of celebrated Boston Irish poet and editor, John Boyle O'Reilly and writer Mary Murphy O'Reilly .  How France Built Her Cathedrals: A Study in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries  (1921) was published by Harper Publishing in July, 1921, in New York City, where O'Reilly was living in her final years. The 600 page book, with illustrated drawings by A. Paul De Leslie, was based on O'Reilly's extensive research and travels throughout France. Title Page:  How France Built Her Cathedrals "Of living interest to the erudite devotee of the arts and to the person who simply enjoys, in books or travels, the wonderful and beautiful things that have come from the hand of man," wrote the  Boston Herald .  Book Illustration: Notre Dame du port of Clermont-Ferrand Published a few years after World War I ended, O'Rei