We just read a little bit about my grandmother's brother Jim Moriarty. I wonder how well Ma knew him? From the time he was a child, he was brought up in Annascaul by his uncle after their father drowned. How often would Ma see him – once a year when he cycled home for a holiday? Did they write back and forth? How long did he stay in the Boston area with Ma and John Keohane?
I suppose that Ma knew her sisters much better. We always knew that they all emigrated to Boston. When I first started researching the family history, I was stumped because I couldn’t find any information on Mary Moriarty – remember she was born 6 December 1887. When the 1901 Irish Census became available, I was shocked that Mary Moriarty was not listed in Lower Glenlough with the rest of the family. The only person I could find who was about the right age was a 13 year old servant/domestic for a 42 year old R.I.C. constable and his family living in house #22 in Lower Sneem! James Cavanagh's wife Annie is 26 - they have two children - 1 year old John James and 2 month old Richard Patrick. Mr. Cavanagh is from county Westmeath, and his wife is from County Clare. Their two children and Mary Moriarty were born in Kerry. We learned from Jim Moriarty that constables cannot be posted in their own or their wives' counties.
Would Ma's sister be out working at 13?
When researching, I thought Mary was coming from Sneem to Boston or New York so those were the records for which I was looking. Then I looked more closely at an immigration record that I had kept putting aside for a very long time.
Would Ma's sister be out working at 13?
When researching, I thought Mary was coming from Sneem to Boston or New York so those were the records for which I was looking. Then I looked more closely at an immigration record that I had kept putting aside for a very long time.
I hadn't known anything about Cornelius when I first started looking for Mary. But, sometime after learning about uncle Con Moriarty, the light bulb finally went on!! I had had Mary's immigration record for ages - but I had never really looked at it because it said Cahirdaniel and not Sneem!!
Mary has never been in prison or an almshouse – she has never been in an institution that cares for or treats the insane – she has never been supported by charity. She is not an anarchist or a polygamist. She has not been promised, offered or agreed to any kind of work. She is in good physical and mental health – she is not deformed or crippled.
Imagine - we just saw that Mary's older brother Jim Moriarty comes to New York in the same ship - the R.M.S. Carmania - 15 years later!
The Carmania arrived in New York on 3 May 1906. So Mary had to go through Ellis Island.
I can’t imagine what that trip must have been like for a 20 year old girl from rural Sneem. All the different sights, sounds, and smells – the different types of people. But Mary did not travel alone – there were two other girls from Cahirdaniel with her – Bridget Connell and Bridget Gallivan. Bridget Connell was heading to Newport with Mary – she was going to her cousin – Mary Dwyer at 39 Elm Street. Bridget Gallivan was going to Willimantic, Connecticut to join her aunt Ellen Sullivan at Hooker House of all places!! Did Uncle Con or someone meet them in New York after the ordeal of the voyage and going through Ellis Island? They all had tickets to their destinations – did they have to find their own way through the city to the train? How did they manage? Did anyone try to take advantage of them?
In 1906, the Temperance Movement in Ireland is calling for the closing of Irish pubs on Sundays and for earlier closings on Saturdays – there is also a call for a reduction in the number of pub licenses in the country. The new liberal British cabinet – which includes Winston Churchill, David Lloyd George, and H.H. Asquith - engage in sweeping social reforms after a landslide win in the general election. Theodore Roosevelt is president of the United States. An earthquake had just devastated San Francisco on 18 April. SOS is accepted as the international sign of distress. And the R.M.S. Luisitania is launched.
So Mary arrives in Newport in 1906. We have seen that her aunt, Helen Murray, and Helen’s family were living in Providence until 1902. I found out that Helen died of tuberculosis in Providence in November 1906 - we don’t know yet what happened to her husband Joseph. And we know that Uncle Con had taken in Helen’s 2 children by the 1910 U.S. Census. Mary Moriarty arrived on Clarke Street in May - months before Aunt Helen dies. I wonder when these two young children moved in with Uncle Con - we'll have to find their father's death certificate and the adoption papers.
I haven’t been able to definitely pinpoint Mary Moriarty in the 1910 U.S. Census – either in Newport or in Boston. There are a couple of listings that could be her, but I have no way to tell which one it would be. Not knowing any of her family history - and having no one to ask - makes it difficult. How long after her cousins moved in with Uncle Con did Mary leave? And why? Did she have a job?
So I keep looking. Maybe if we had some family stories, we could find Mary in the 1910 census.
Interesting tidbit - in 1910 President Theodore Roosevelt conferred with King George of England and asserted that Home Rule in Ireland would be beneficial. Roosevelt offered Great Britain support for its ongoing problems with Ireland.
I do know from my mother that our Mary Moriarty marries Jeremiah Walsh and lives in Roxbury, Massachusetts. At the Massachusetts Archives, I found a Boston marriage certificate on microfilm. It was in marriage volume 605, page 77, #1769.
On 16 April, 1911 Jeremiah Walsh, 25, of 69 Revere Street in Boston marries Mary Moriarty, 23, of Hyde Park in Boston. It is the first marriage for both of them. He is an elevator man, and she is a waitress. Jeremiah was born in Ireland, and his parents were Patrick Walsh and Bridget Sullivan. Mary was born in Ireland, and her parents were Myles Moriarty and Ellen O’Leary. They are married by Reverend F. J. Ryan at 1548 Blue Hill Avenue in Boston.
On 16 April, 1911 Jeremiah Walsh, 25, of 69 Revere Street in Boston marries Mary Moriarty, 23, of Hyde Park in Boston. It is the first marriage for both of them. He is an elevator man, and she is a waitress. Jeremiah was born in Ireland, and his parents were Patrick Walsh and Bridget Sullivan. Mary was born in Ireland, and her parents were Myles Moriarty and Ellen O’Leary. They are married by Reverend F. J. Ryan at 1548 Blue Hill Avenue in Boston.
26 December 2011, I found this same wedding on www.familysearch.com - this time it is recorded in Milton. There are a couple of differences - Mary J. Moriarty is listed as a parlor maid residing in Milton - Jeremiah J. Walsh is listed as an elevator man living in Cambridge.
I wasn’t sure where the marriage took place - so I looked up the address online.
Dorchester Atheneum reports: “St. Angela’s parish was created on December 28, 1907, with territory taken in part from St. Gregory’s (Dorchester’s Lower Mills) and in part from the Church of the Most Precious Blood in Hyde Park (Hyde Park was not part of Boston until 1912.) St. Angela’s Church is a red brick church of the Roman style at 1548 Blue Hill Avenue, Mattapan, begun by Keely and Houghton, and improved by Charles Maginnis in 1918.” Reverend Francis Ryan is the pastor in 1911, and he married our Mary and Jeremiah.
Dorchester Atheneum reports: “St. Angela’s parish was created on December 28, 1907, with territory taken in part from St. Gregory’s (Dorchester’s Lower Mills) and in part from the Church of the Most Precious Blood in Hyde Park (Hyde Park was not part of Boston until 1912.) St. Angela’s Church is a red brick church of the Roman style at 1548 Blue Hill Avenue, Mattapan, begun by Keely and Houghton, and improved by Charles Maginnis in 1918.” Reverend Francis Ryan is the pastor in 1911, and he married our Mary and Jeremiah.
St. Angela's is in Mattapan Square - once an enclave of Jewish and Irish residents. Mattapan, once part of Dorchester, is now home to a majority of people of color. From Mattapan Square, you can look up Blue Hill Avenue and see the steeple of St. Angela's. It is in a bustling business and residential area.
So who is this Jeremiah Walsh? We know Jeremiah was 25 years old in 1911 and was born in Ireland. But I haven't been able to find any definite information about him yet.
The Boston Directory for 1911 has three Jeremiah Walshes listed. One is a motorman boarding at 20 Leedsville Street, Dorchester which runs from Adams Street to Dorchester Avenue. A motor man is someone who drives or operates an electrified trolley or streetcar. The other two are waiters - one has a house at 25 East Street in Dorchester which is not far from Leedsville Street and runs between the same two streets. Both of these streets are outside the Fields Corner area of Dorchester almost opposite Freeport Street.
The other waiter is working at 56 Eliot Street, which is off the Jamaicaway, and is boarding at 45 Charles Street in Boston - this is closer to the Boston Public Garden than to Massachusetts General Hospital. I don't know if any of them would be our Jeremiah Walsh who was living at 69 Revere Street in Boston on one marriage certificate - Revere Street is between MGH and the Boston Public Garden.
I found a birth certificate for Elizabeth Walsh - # 7757. She was born 11 July 1912 at home on 85 Albion Street, Boston. This street is in the Uphams' Corner section of Roxbury - it runs off Dudley Street. Her parents’ names confirm that this is our Elizabeth – Jeremiah and Mary Moriarty – both born in Ireland. Jeremiah is a porter.
According to
http://www.ehow.com/about_5095034_job-porter.html:
"The term 'porter' is used to describe a variety of jobs. A porter is someone who handles baggage at a hotel or transportation center. The term also describes a railroad worker who waits on passengers in sleeping or dining cars. Porter is also the job title for a general maintenance worker in a hotel or institution." A porter can also be a doorman at a hotel. "A porter in a restaurant is responsible for cleaning, repairing broken equipment and stacking deliveries. Porters are often jacks of all trades who can fix any problem and procure anything that is needed."
In 1913 Jeremiah is a porter at 518 Washington Street and is still living at 85 Albion Street.
I found a Boston birth certificate for Jeremiah Walsh. He is #1772 – born 28 January 1914 with his sex listed as female! Jeremiah and Mary Moriarty are his parents. The doctor is C.E. Williams. I found 50 year old Charles Edward Williams, a physician, at 303 Warren Street in Roxbury - he is in general practice. He has been here since at least 1904 - he must rent the building since he is living there as well.
Jeremiah was born at home - 85 Albion Street. His father is still working as a porter.
The 1915 to the 1918 Boston directories show a move to 117 Smith Street in Roxbury - this is when Jeremiah switches jobs and starts working at a brewery.
Smith Street has since been redeveloped, and #117 must have been razed for the new housing. Smith Street runs from St. Alphonsus Street to Parker Street - it is right behind the Mission Church complex.
James Patrick Walsh is born May 23, 1916 - he is #7653 below. The doctor was T.V. Toohy. The Walshes are living at 117 Smith Street where James was born. Jeremiah is a brewery worker. Thomas Victor Toohey was a 29 year old physician at 129 St. Alphonsus Street in Roxbury and 102 Calumet Street in Roxbury - he was also living at 102 Calumet Street with his widowed mother, brother, and sister. He graduated from Tufts Medical School in Medford, Massachusetts in 1904.
I found Jeremiah’s WWI draft registration card from 1918. He is living at 4 Whitney Place in Boston and is working as a teamster helper at A. J. Houghton & Co. He is 33 and was born July 11, 1885, but it doesn’t list where. His wife is Mary Moriarty Walsh. Jeremiah works at A J Houghton/Vienna Brewery located at 133 Halleck Street/37 Station Street, Mission Hill, Roxbury. He is medium height and build with dark hair and does it say blue eyes?
So sometime in 1918 the family moved from Smith Street to 4 Whitney Place which may have been taken for the Southwest Corridor.
The Boston Directory for 1911 has three Jeremiah Walshes listed. One is a motorman boarding at 20 Leedsville Street, Dorchester which runs from Adams Street to Dorchester Avenue. A motor man is someone who drives or operates an electrified trolley or streetcar. The other two are waiters - one has a house at 25 East Street in Dorchester which is not far from Leedsville Street and runs between the same two streets. Both of these streets are outside the Fields Corner area of Dorchester almost opposite Freeport Street.
The other waiter is working at 56 Eliot Street, which is off the Jamaicaway, and is boarding at 45 Charles Street in Boston - this is closer to the Boston Public Garden than to Massachusetts General Hospital. I don't know if any of them would be our Jeremiah Walsh who was living at 69 Revere Street in Boston on one marriage certificate - Revere Street is between MGH and the Boston Public Garden.
I found a birth certificate for Elizabeth Walsh - # 7757. She was born 11 July 1912 at home on 85 Albion Street, Boston. This street is in the Uphams' Corner section of Roxbury - it runs off Dudley Street. Her parents’ names confirm that this is our Elizabeth – Jeremiah and Mary Moriarty – both born in Ireland. Jeremiah is a porter.
According to
http://www.ehow.com/about_5095034_job-porter.html:
"The term 'porter' is used to describe a variety of jobs. A porter is someone who handles baggage at a hotel or transportation center. The term also describes a railroad worker who waits on passengers in sleeping or dining cars. Porter is also the job title for a general maintenance worker in a hotel or institution." A porter can also be a doorman at a hotel. "A porter in a restaurant is responsible for cleaning, repairing broken equipment and stacking deliveries. Porters are often jacks of all trades who can fix any problem and procure anything that is needed."
 |
| Elizabeth Walsh |
In 1913 Jeremiah is a porter at 518 Washington Street and is still living at 85 Albion Street.
I looked up 518 Washington Street and found that R. H. White's department store took up a whole block on Washington Street in downtown Boston - from #518 to #536. It opened in 1887 and was one of the giants like Jordan Marsh and Filene's in Boston's retail district. So was Jeremiah Walsh a porter at R. H. White's? What did he do there?
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| R. H. White's |
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| View down Washington Street toward Jordan Marsh - R. H. White's on right. |
I found a Boston birth certificate for Jeremiah Walsh. He is #1772 – born 28 January 1914 with his sex listed as female! Jeremiah and Mary Moriarty are his parents. The doctor is C.E. Williams. I found 50 year old Charles Edward Williams, a physician, at 303 Warren Street in Roxbury - he is in general practice. He has been here since at least 1904 - he must rent the building since he is living there as well.
Jeremiah was born at home - 85 Albion Street. His father is still working as a porter.
The 1915 to the 1918 Boston directories show a move to 117 Smith Street in Roxbury - this is when Jeremiah switches jobs and starts working at a brewery.
Smith Street has since been redeveloped, and #117 must have been razed for the new housing. Smith Street runs from St. Alphonsus Street to Parker Street - it is right behind the Mission Church complex.
I found Jeremiah’s WWI draft registration card from 1918. He is living at 4 Whitney Place in Boston and is working as a teamster helper at A. J. Houghton & Co. He is 33 and was born July 11, 1885, but it doesn’t list where. His wife is Mary Moriarty Walsh. Jeremiah works at A J Houghton/Vienna Brewery located at 133 Halleck Street/37 Station Street, Mission Hill, Roxbury. He is medium height and build with dark hair and does it say blue eyes?
So sometime in 1918 the family moved from Smith Street to 4 Whitney Place which may have been taken for the Southwest Corridor.
With the birth date on the draft registration form, I found a baptismal record on www.familysearch.org. Jeremiah Walsh of Faugh, Killarney was born 10 July 1885 and was baptized 11 July by Reverend H. Kerin. His parents were Patrick Walsh and Bridget Sullivan. Sponsors were Timothy Shine and Mary Kelliher according to Killarney Book E, page 15, entry 6. We know this is our Jeremiah because the same parents are listed on his marriage certificate.
I looked up this A. J. Houghton Company where Jeremiah is a teamster helper. It is a brewery, and I found information on http://www.historicboston.org/99cb/h-vbrewery.htm. The brewery opened in 1870 and closed in 1918 (Jeremiah’s WWI Draft Registration was dated Sep 12, 1918) – it was one of the first breweries to use refrigeration. According to the website, “by the end of the 19th century, Boston was one of America’s largest brewing centers with most breweries located in Roxbury and Jamaica Plain because of the combination of pure water from the Stony Brook aquifer, reasonably priced land near the city, and large German and Irish immigrant populations … The brewery was designated an historic landmark. It is located near Mission Church. It has been purchased by Wentworth Institute. In August 1999 part of the complex was demolished while the remaining buildings were stabilized. Wentworth was going to construct a student recreational/athletic complex and office space using the remaining buildings.”
From the Jamaica Plain Historical Society website, I learned the following – (try to picture Jeremiah Walsh, a teamster assistant, helping with the horses) -
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| A. J. Houghton, above, founded the brewery where Jeremiah Walsh worked. It was down the street from where Jeremiah lived on Smith Street. Below is the 2 story engine room of the brewery. There were other breweries in the area - I wonder what kind of odors wafted from them? (Images of America - Roxbury by Anthony Mitchell Sammarco - page 105.) |
From the Jamaica Plain Historical Society website, I learned the following – (try to picture Jeremiah Walsh, a teamster assistant, helping with the horses) -
Beer making in Boston was in its heyday in the early 1900’s. Try to imagine the clatter of horse-drawn, iron-wheeled, wagons bringing raw materials in and finished product out of the 24 breweries in Roxbury and Jamaica Plain which were located on or near Columbus Avenue, Heath Street and Amory Street. Add the pungent odors of hops, yeast, slowly cooking grains and the coal and wood smoke billowing from each of the 24 smokestacks and you begin to sense the impact these breweries had on their neighborhoods.
“And why were they located here? There are two simple reasons: abundant and crystal clear water from the aquifer along the Stony Brook along with artesian wells bubbling to the surface around Mission Hill; and the relatively cheap land after the City of Roxbury merged with Boston in 1868. These conditions, combined with the demand for the new German type Lager beers, drove the expansion of the industry locally …
“Today many of the old main brewing buildings are gone but some of the ancillary buildings are still in place. Most of the remaining buildings are in rough shape having been idle for long periods since the beginning of Prohibition in 1919. After the repeal of Prohibition in 1933 there followed a short period of growth by the five that reopened, but they were overpowered by the giant national breweries. Only one of the 24 breweries; Haffenreffer’s, remains active at this time ...
“Boston, with a total of 31 breweries, was distinguished as the city with the highest number of breweries, per capita, in the United States. The 24 located in our area were very close together, within a circle of about a mile and a half. Sometimes they were located right across the street from each other, and sometimes there were three in a single block! Traveling down Columbus Avenue one passes seven former brewery sites in just a few minutes. This density of breweries was also a very unique circumstance at the time …"
The Jamaica Plain Historical Society goes on to say “A.J. Houghton & Co. “Vienna” Brewery.
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| A. J. Houghton's brewery on Station Street. Perhaps Jeremiah Walsh would be driving one of these horse drawn wagons. Picture from Images of America - Roxbury - page 104. |
The Jamaica Plain Historical Society goes on to say “A.J. Houghton & Co. “Vienna” Brewery.
Located at Station and Halleck Streets, it was active from 1870 to 1918. It occupies the site of the old Christian Jutz brewery built in 1857.
“The Vienna Brewery had originally been located across the street where it was owned by Messrs. Houghton and Cole of Maine and Vermont. They bought the Christian Jutz property and moved their main operations across the street, converting their original property to a stable to house their several transport horses. (This must be where Jeremiah Walsh worked.) Here they produced Vienna Lager from a German recipe. The lighter German and Austrian Lager beers came into favor in the 1850’s and 60’s displacing the heavier English/Irish Ales. Besides Vienna Lager, they made Pavonia Lager Beer, Vienna Old Time Lager and Rockland Ale.
“This is the only landmark brewery in Boston, having been protected by the Boston Landmarks Commission, despite its poor condition. It had a five story main brewing building with a large cupola, an office building, three storage buildings, a coopering or barrel-making building, and a power plant. It was a beautiful building with brick used for architectural features instead of stonework or terra cotta. The sweeping arches are built of brick while the sills and parts of the arches are granite. The floor joists are supported by architectural ironwork. The exterior “X” shaped elements on the sides of the buildings are iron brick-ties that support the brick bearing-walls and were common design features at that time. They were often connected by long interior iron rods, spanning between the walls, to help hold the structure together under the floor loads of several stories.
“The main brewing buildings had robust hoists and pumps to lift the grains and water up to the top floor to begin the brewing process. Gravity would then take the brew down to the various levels and processes below. This, then, was a “vertical” brewery. When pumping technology improved, the vertical process was discontinued in favor of the “horizontal” brewery with lower buildings and other efficiencies. This brewery closed when Prohibition arrived in 1919 and it never reopened on a full-scale basis.”
There is no Boston Directory for 1919 so we don’t know exactly when Jeremiah lost his job. But he is listed as a laborer in the 1920 Boston Directory.
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| Corner of Station and Halleck Streets 2/22/14 where the brewery was located - these seem to be the only surviving buildings. These are the same buildings as in the picture above. Wentworth has made the rest of the area into parking lots. What happened to this "historical landmark?" |
There is no Boston Directory for 1919 so we don’t know exactly when Jeremiah lost his job. But he is listed as a laborer in the 1920 Boston Directory.
In the 1920 U.S. Census the family is still at 4 Whitney Place in Roxbury and renting the 2nd apartment. They have the 3 children – Elizabeth who is 7, Jeremiah is 5, and James is 3. Jeremiah, Sr. is a laborer. He immigrated in 1907 and has taken out papers to become a U.S. citizen while Mary immigrated in 1906 and will be naturalized along with her husband. Even with this information, I can not find any naturalization papers for Jeremiah.
According to the 1921 to 1924 Boston Directories, the Walshes remain at 4 Whitney Place, and Jeremiah is listed as a laborer. During this time, there were several developments in the family.
The index to Massachusetts Births from 1921-1925 has a 1922 listing for Myles Henry Walsh in volume 2, page 67.
The Massachusetts Birth Index 1901-1967 and 1967-1970 on www.ancestry.com lists Francis Walsh born in 1924 - volume 248, page 405.
And sadly, the 1925 Boston Directory lists Jeremiah Walsh, laborer, as dying March 10, 1924. This is the same year that Francis is born! Did Jeremiah die before his youngest child was born or after? Reminds me of Ellen Leary Moriarty having my grandmother about 5 months after Myles Moriarty drowned. We'll have to obtain Jeremiah's death certificate.
Mary Walsh is listed in 1925 as Jeremiah's widow on Whitney Place, but she and her family had moved to 16 Burney Street by 1928 – across from Mission Church. I don't see Mary in the 1926 or 1927 directories - so this must be when she moved.
The index to Massachusetts Births from 1921-1925 has a 1922 listing for Myles Henry Walsh in volume 2, page 67.
The Massachusetts Birth Index 1901-1967 and 1967-1970 on www.ancestry.com lists Francis Walsh born in 1924 - volume 248, page 405.
And sadly, the 1925 Boston Directory lists Jeremiah Walsh, laborer, as dying March 10, 1924. This is the same year that Francis is born! Did Jeremiah die before his youngest child was born or after? Reminds me of Ellen Leary Moriarty having my grandmother about 5 months after Myles Moriarty drowned. We'll have to obtain Jeremiah's death certificate.
Mary Walsh is listed in 1925 as Jeremiah's widow on Whitney Place, but she and her family had moved to 16 Burney Street by 1928 – across from Mission Church. I don't see Mary in the 1926 or 1927 directories - so this must be when she moved.
The family lives on Burney Street through 1935.
Difficult to see it but this is a sign post for Burney Street in Roxbury - across the street from Mission Church. This is looking down Tremont Street - the brewery where Jeremiah worked would be a couple of blocks down on the left.
My mother thought the Walsh family lived on the 3rd floor of the brick building on the left. We didn’t have the address at that time. My sister Christine getting in or out of my yellow Fiat. This was 1979.
Across the street from where Aunt Mary’s family lived - the area was full of triple deckers.
I believe the family has moved in 1936 - Mary Walsh, the widow of Jeremiah E, is living at 46 Hillside Street in Roxbury. I hesitate because Jeremiah was not listed with a middle initial in previous Boston Directories. Mary Walsh remains here until 1945.
Only three children are living with her. John J. Walsh is 19 and has completed 4 years of high school. He was employed in public emergency work during the week of March 24 to 30, 1940. He is working as a records clerk for HYA police project. He had no income in 1939.
Myles H. is 19 and attending his 4th year of high school. Francis D. is 15 and is in the 3rd year of high school.
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| 46 Hillside Street - Mary is listed as the second family at this address. I wonder if that means the Walshes lived on the second floor? The house looks pretty well maintained in 2014. |
In 1946 the Walshes have moved to 139 St. Alphonsus Street. In the 1947 Boston Directory, the symbol of the bell beside Mary Walsh’s name at 139 St. Alphonsus St. indicates that she had a telephone. They live here through 1953.
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| 139 is the door on the left - the 2nd floor has lace curtains - maybe Mary would have had lace curtains as well. This building is on the left at the bottom of the hill just before St. Alphonsus Street crosses Tremont Street. |
And now the trail grows cold. I don't really know anything else about Mary Walsh. I did find listings in 1965 and 1966 for Mary Walsh, widow of Jeremiah J., employed as a dietary worker at Carney Hospital with a house at 1486 Columbia Road, South Boston. I'm not sure if this is our Mary.
Mary must have collected Mother’s Aid from the government after Jeremiah died like my grandmother did when her husband died in 1929.
Family legend has it that Mayor James Michael Curley got Mary Walsh a job at the L Street bath house in South Boston.
http://openwaterpedia.com/index.php?title=L_Street_Bathhouse says:
Family legend has it that Mayor James Michael Curley got Mary Walsh a job at the L Street bath house in South Boston.
http://openwaterpedia.com/index.php?title=L_Street_Bathhouse says:
"Built in 1931 by Boston's populist mayor James Michael Curley, the L Street Bathhouse was located at the intersection of Day Boulevard and L Street in South Boston. Named the L Street Bathhouse (and later re-named the Curley Community Center), the building provided hot showers and recreational facilities to the city's working people during the most difficult years of the Depression. The bathhouse remained a popular gathering spot during the years when Boston Harbor was considered safe for swimming and before air-conditioning helped people cope with the summer heat."
Francis Walsh (the youngest son) visited Loughane during WWII when he was on leave. He met Ellen Leary Moriarty O’Sullivan – he said she was a tall fit woman for her age – she was able to put her foot up on a chair to tie her shoes.
Francis was in touch with my mother and myself off and on.
" August 24, 1982
Dear Mary Ellen,
Received your most welcome letter and decided to answer as soon as possible. You see letter writing is not considered one of my strongest attributions. In fact, Clara can not believe I am actually attempting to type a response to you. So please bear with the typing mistakes.
Just out of curiosity, your letter was dated June 6th and yet the envelope was stamped August 19 out of Boston. In fact you were talking about your pending trip to Ireland July 3rd to July 31st so you had already returned to the US before your letter was mailed. Enough of that, we really enjoyed seeing both the marriage certificate for Myles and Ellen and the baptismal record of my mother. It was interest(ing) that you noted the witnesses were different on the marriage certificate from the Public Record Office in Dublin.
How brave you were in taking your two year old son on your trip (that would be Dan) on your trip. We are both interested in your itinerary. For example how did you get from Dublin to Sneem and what accommodations did you have? What was the weather like in July? What living relatives if any, do you visit with? Don't skip any of the details.
Yes, we did get a copy of the Moriarty newsletter. I have loaned it and all the other material you gave me to my brother Miah who has returned from Florida. When he returns it to me, I will write to Dan & make arrangements to receive it. You mention Uncle Pat O'Sullivan from New Jersey. Is he on your father's (grand) side?
We will enjoy hearing from you and our best to your mother, grandmother Margaret and the remaining family.
Love,
Francis"
Francis was in touch with my mother and myself off and on.
" August 24, 1982
Dear Mary Ellen,
Received your most welcome letter and decided to answer as soon as possible. You see letter writing is not considered one of my strongest attributions. In fact, Clara can not believe I am actually attempting to type a response to you. So please bear with the typing mistakes.
Just out of curiosity, your letter was dated June 6th and yet the envelope was stamped August 19 out of Boston. In fact you were talking about your pending trip to Ireland July 3rd to July 31st so you had already returned to the US before your letter was mailed. Enough of that, we really enjoyed seeing both the marriage certificate for Myles and Ellen and the baptismal record of my mother. It was interest(ing) that you noted the witnesses were different on the marriage certificate from the Public Record Office in Dublin.
How brave you were in taking your two year old son on your trip (that would be Dan) on your trip. We are both interested in your itinerary. For example how did you get from Dublin to Sneem and what accommodations did you have? What was the weather like in July? What living relatives if any, do you visit with? Don't skip any of the details.
Yes, we did get a copy of the Moriarty newsletter. I have loaned it and all the other material you gave me to my brother Miah who has returned from Florida. When he returns it to me, I will write to Dan & make arrangements to receive it. You mention Uncle Pat O'Sullivan from New Jersey. Is he on your father's (grand) side?
We will enjoy hearing from you and our best to your mother, grandmother Margaret and the remaining family.
Love,
Francis"
Francis and Clara came to Ireland one year and met up with all of us in Sneem. I'm trying to remember if it was 1984 when my mother and father, my aunt Rita and Dick Walsh, their son Michael, and my sisters Christine and Jody all went over while I was there. My aunt Peggy and Paul Navin were also there.
|
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| Francis and Clara Walsh, Nana Murphy and Peggy Navin dancing at Riney’s pub in Sneem. |
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| 1985 Dad, Hannie, Mum, Francis and Clara Walsh – at my mother's house - 59 Marshall St., Watertown. |
Clara and Francis Walsh on front of a Christmas card. This might be 1986 when my father had cataract surgery.
"Hi,
Hope you folks are in good health. Is John doing okay in his eye recovery? Thought you might like our picture of a couple of senior citizens.
We are still planning our Ireland trip next spring.
Have a good year
Francis
Ellen, John and all
God's blessing be with you at Christmas and with those you hold most dear
love, Frank & Clara
(Francis)"
Francis’ wife Clara is an artist and also made the following Christmas cards.
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| Montpelier Mansion - by Clara J Walsh |
"Hopefully will get to Ireland this year - I'm sorry we cancelled last year as it turned out to be OK & several of our friends went with no worries."
1994
"Wishing you ..
A World of Peace,
A world of Joy,
A World of Beauty
with love
Frank and Clara"
Notice Clara's signature on bottom to left of NOEL.
"May god, who showed
His wondrous love
in giving us His Son,
make this Christmas Day
for you & family
a blessed, happy one
Clara's mother just passed away at 88. Her father is 92 & hanging in there. No contest on who is going to outlive me!!
Hope your family and you are well. Time moves on. Our oldest daughter Janet & husband (4 kids) relocated near Orlando, Fl. We will spend Christmas among palm trees. love, Francis"
This is all that I know about Mary Moriarty Walsh and her family. Should anyone have more information on this family, I would be delighted to talk to you!
24 February 2019 - I just learned that Francis Walsh died a couple of days ago. I am inserting his wonderful obituary -
24 February 2019 - I just learned that Francis Walsh died a couple of days ago. I am inserting his wonderful obituary -
