John Boyle O’Reilly and Captain Jack, Chief of the Modoc People

Kindred Spirits in County Cork, Photo courtesy of Gavin Sheridan

Irish rebel John Boyle O’Reilly arrived in Boston in January 1870, and almost immediately he became a powerful voice for the oppressed, including his own people of Ireland who were trying to break free of Britain, but also in the United States, Blacks, Chinese immigrants and Native Americans. O’Reilly saw the British conquest of the…

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Irish-Born Sculptor Stephen J.O’Kelly Created Myles Standish Memorial In Duxbury and Civil War Monuments in Nashua and Gettysburg

Myles Standish Monument in Duxbury, MA

Dublin-born sculptor Stephen J. O’Kelly (1850-98) was a successful artist in late 19th century United States, creating several important memorials that still stand today. Born in Dublin, he studied art in Paris and opened a studio in London before immigrating to Boston, where he lived for much of his adult life. He had Roscommon roots, and his brother,…

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The Moakley Courthouse in Seaport District Honors a True South Boston Hero

Photo courtesy of PEI Cobb Freed and Partners

Located along the Seaport District on Fan Pier and situated along Boston Harborwalk, the John Joseph Moakley United States Courthouse is a tribute to South Boston native Joe Moakley, who represented his neighborhood and district as a state representative, state senator, Boston City Councilor and U.S. Congressman for 48 years. The Moakley Courthouse is part of Boston’s Irish Heritage Trail, an…

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American Revolution War Hero Henry Knox, Born in Boston on July 25, 1750

Henry Knox, a  first-hand witness to American history and a hero in the American Revolution, was born in Boston on July 25, 1750, the seventh of ten children.  His parents, William Knox and Mary (née Campbell), were Ulster Scots immigrants who came to Boston from Derry in 1729, part of a large exodus of Ulster-Irish Presbyterians who…

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The Revolutionary Irish Trail

The American Revolution is taking center stage across the United States thisyear, as preparations get underway to officially celebrate the 250 thanniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the birthof our nation in 2026.  The effort is being led nationally by America 250, “a nonpartisan initiativeworking to engage every American in commemorating…

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Visit these Public Memorials to John Boyle O’Reilly throughout Massachusetts

John Boyle O'Reilly Landmarks

Born on June 28, 1844, John Boyle O’Reilly helped shape the history or Ireland and America in the late 19th century in powerful ways.  Today, O’Reilly’s stature as a seminal figure in Irish and Irish-American history is particularly evident in his beloved birthplace of Dowth, County Meath; in Freemantle, Australia where he was imprisoned; and…

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The Boston Celtics: The Story Behind Their Green Theme

Old Black and white photo of Bill Russell reaching to take a shot in his Celtics jersey

Many people wonder why the Boston Celtics wear shamrocks on their green uniforms and have a giant leprechaun smoking a cigar as their team logo. And why is the team mascot a guy named Lucky who looks like he stepped out of a box of Lucky Charms? According to the Boston Celtics official website, the name came…

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Three Distinctive Civil War Memorials in Boston and Cambridge

3 MA Civil War Memorials created by Irish Scultors.

A number of Irish immigrants and Irish-American sculptors created some of the most distinctive Civil War Monuments of the 19th Century. Here are three of their monuments in Boston and Cambridge worth visiting: 1. The Shaw Memorial, atop Boston Common and facing the Massachusetts State House, was officially unveiled on May 31, 1897, a homage to…

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On May 30, 1914, Hibernians Unveiled a Memorial in Cohasset to Irish Immigrants who Perished off the Coast in 1849

Cohasset Celtic Cross

On Saturday, May 30, 1914, Massachusetts Governor David I. Walsh joined officials from the Ancient Order of Hibernians and the Ladies Auxiliary to unveil a granite Celtic Cross in memory of Irish immigrants who perished during a storm off the Massachusetts coastline in 1849. 7000 Hibernians from all over Massachusetts attended the ceremony, according to a story…

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Molly Stark, a Heroine and Inspiration during the American Revolution

Courtesy of Skylight Studios

Molly (Page) Stark (1737-1814), whose husband General John Stark was a hero in the American Revolution, has been honored for her own role in the war. On June 26, 2004, officials, historians and members of the Stark family unveiled the Elizabeth Page Molly Stark statue in Wilmington, as part of Vermont’s Molly Stark Trail, a 40-mile scenic byway on Route…

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Jewish + Irish Cemeteries Were Discouraged by 19th Century Boston Puritans

Ancestors of the early Puritans in the Massachusetts Bay Colony discouraged Jews and Irish Catholics from burying their congregations in local cemeteries the first half of the 19th century.  Boston had long been known as a place where outsiders were considered with suspicion and hatred, due to their religion or ethnic backgrounds. According to Mass Moments,…

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General John Stark of New Hampshire, Scots-Irish Hero in the American Revolution, Coined the Phrase Live Free or Die

State Capitol Building, Concord, New Hampshire, Photo, Michael Quinlin

One of New England’s true military heroes of the American Revolution was General John Stark (1728-1822), the son of Scots-Irish parents who emigrated to the American colonies in 1720 and settled in the Scots-Irish colony of Nutfield, NH, where John and his brothers were raised. Today, the former settlement is comprised of the towns Londonderry, Derry…

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In April 1861, Irish Volunteers from greater Boston Enlisted in the 9th MA Regiment to Help Preserve the Union

Irish 9th Infantry

Days before President Abraham Lincoln’s April 15, 1861 proclamation seeking 75,000 volunteers to join the Union Army, men from Boston’s Irish community met on April 10 to “express unflinching devotion to the Federal Government.” Irishman Thomas Cass of Boston’s North End immediately began recruiting Irish immigrants to form the Massachusetts 9th regiment. The volunteers came largely from…

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Quincy Sculptor John Horrigan Carved the Famous Titanic Memorial in DC

The Titanic Memorial in Washington, DC, an iconic depiction of one of the major maritime tragedies of the 20th century, was carved in Quincy, Massachusetts by local sculptor John Horrigan, who used a 20-ton slab of granite to complete the masterpiece. The pedestal, designed by Henry Bacon, used granite from the quarries in Waverly, RI. Gertrude Vanderbilt…

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Scots-Irish Reverend John Moorhead of County Down, Established the Church of Presbyterian Strangers in Boston in 1729

Rev. John Moorhead, portrait by Peter Pelham, 1751

In 1729, Scots–Irish Presbyterian Reverene John Moorhead, formerly of Newtonards, County Down, established the Church of the Presbyterian Strangers, initially with a congregation of thirty parishioners,. They built an Irish Meeting House in a converted barn at the corner of Berry Street and Long Lane (now Channing and Federal Street). As church historian Harriett E….

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