Irish Boston History & Heritage

Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore (1829-1892), whose song When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again is considered one of America's iconic hymns, died on September 24, 1892 in St. Louis while on a national tour with his orchestra. Born in Ballygar, County Galway, Gilmore emigrated to Boston in 1849 and quickly established himself as an excellent cornet player and a band organizer.  He led several prominent bands in the 1850s and finally established his own Gilmore's Band. Gilmore and his band joined the Massachusetts 24th Regiment when the American Civil War broke out in 1861, and accompanied the soldiers to the battle front.  After the war ended Gilmore put together a giant Peace Jubilee in 1869 to celebrate peace.  The five-day music festival featured 1,000 musicians and 10,000 choral singers, and was attended by President Ulysses S. Grant. Then in 1872, Gilmore staged an even larger World Peace Jubilee to celebrate the end of the Franco-Prussian War.  He invited ...

Commodore John Barry   (March 25, 1745 – September 13, 1803) was a naval hero of the American Revolutionary War.  B orn in  Tacumshane, County Wexford in 1745, Barry emigrated to Philadelphia in 1760.  He joined the American forces at the outbreak of the war, and was the first Catholic appointed to command a vessel by the Continental Congress.  Barry's ship,  Lexington , was the first to capture a British vessel under the American flag. During much of the war, Barry commanded ships out of Boston Harbor, including the  Delaware  and the  Alliance . After the war,  President George Washington  assigned Barry to help create the United States Navy.    Barry settled in Philadelphia  and died there at age 59.  He is buried at St. Mary's Churchyard on S. Fourth Street. In 1949, Boston Mayor James Michael Curley spoke at the  Charitable Irish Society  annual dinner on March 17, and  vowed to buil...

Photo courtesy of the Harry S. Truman Library This Labor Day, the  Boston Irish Tourism Association  pays tribute to Boston native  Maurice Tobin  (1901-53), who served as mayor of Boston and governor of Massachusetts before being named US Secretary of Labor by President Harry S. Truman . Born in Roxbury's Mission Hill,  he was the son of immigrants from Clogheen, Tipperary. Tobin became Massachusetts' youngest state representative at age 25, and in 1937 made a surprise run for mayor against his mentor,  James Michael Curley . Tobin defeated Curley in 1937 and again in 1941, serving through 1944.  He then won the race for Governor of Massachusetts, and  served as Governor  from 1944-46.  Governor Tobin advocated for the Fair Employment Practices Bill, and helped increase unemployment insurance and benefits for workers. He helped campaign for President Truman, who appointed  Tobin as US Secretary of Labor  from 19...