Chapter M: J. Harson, (1)

Founder, Phi Kappa Sigma, Brown University, Providence, R. I.

JAMES R. O’BEIRNE,
Late Brevet Brigadier-General of Volunteers; Ex-Commander, U. S.
Medal of Honor Legion, New York City.

ST. CLAIR A. MULHOLLAND,
Brevet Major-General of Volunteers; commanded Fourth Brigade,
First Division, Second Corps, Philadelphia, Pa.

REV. THOMAS J. CONATY, D.D.,
Rector, Catholic University, Washington, D. C.

REV. GEORGE C. BETTS,
Rector, St. James Protestant Episcopal Church, Goshen, N. Y.

REV. GEORGE W. PEPPER,
(Methodist), Cleveland, Ohio.

REV. ANDREW MORRISSEY, C. S. C.,
President, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Ind.

OSBORNE HOWES,
(Eighth American generation), Secretary, Board of Fire
Underwriters, Boston, Mass.

HENRY STODDARD RUGGLES,
(Ninth American generation), Member, Sons of the Revolution and
Sons of the American Revolution, Wakefield, Mass.

HENRY G. CROWELL,
(A descendant of David O’Killia, who was a settler in Plymouth
Colony as early as 1657), South Yarmouth, Mass.

RICHARD W. MEADE,
Rear Admiral, U, S. N.

JOHN COCHRANE,
President of the N. Y. Society of the Cincinnati, New York City.

MATTHEW CALBRAITHE BUTLER,
Late a Senator of the United States, Edgefield, S. C.

_Issued at Boston, Mass.,
Dec. 26, 1896._

In response to this call, fifty gentlemen met at the Revere House on Wednesday, January 20, and organized the AMERICAN-IRISH HISTORICAL SOCIETY by signing the following agreement:

“We, the undersigned, by our subscription herewith, agree with the
other subscribers hereto to organize ourselves into a body to be
known as the AMERICAN-IRISH HISTORICAL SOCIETY of the United States,
whose object shall be the study of American history and whose
special line of work shall be the history of the Irish element in
the composition of the American people, and the investigation,
record and publication of the influence of that element in the
up-building of the nation.”

THOMAS HAMILTON MURRAY, Lawrence, Mass.
JAMES JEFFREY ROCHE, Boston, Mass.
JOSEPH SMITH, Lowell, Mass.
EDWARD A. HALL, Springfield, Mass.
BERNARD E. DONIGAN, Lawrence, Mass.
TIMOTHY P. SULLIVAN, Concord, N. H.
JAMES F. BRENNAN, Peterboro, N. H.
HUGH J. CARROLL, Pawtucket, R. I.
BERNARD MCCAUGHEY, Pawtucket, R. I.
EDWARD F. RADIKIN, Pawtucket, R. I.
PETER J. HEFFERN, Pawtucket, R. I.
WILLIAM FARRELL, Pawtucket, R. I.
M. W. KELLIHER, M. D., Pawtucket, R. I.
JOHN C. LINEHAN, Penacook, N. H.
REV. TIMOTHY P. LINEHAN, Biddeford, Me.
REV. M. H. EGAN, Lebanon, N. H.
JAMES CUNNINGHAM, Portland, Me.
M. A. TOLAND, Boston, Mass.
GEORGE H. MOSES, Concord, N. H.
THOMAS B. SMITH, Lowell, Mass.
P. J. FLATLEY, Boston, Mass.
T. CARL O’BRIEN, Boston, Mass.
JOHN A. O’KEEFE, Lynn, Mass.
DANIEL DONOVAN, Lynn, Mass.
W. J. AHERN, Concord, N. H.
DAVID E. MURPHY, Concord, N. H.
MICHAEL J. MCNEIRNY, Gloucester, Mass.
JAS. H. CARMICHAEL, Lowell, Mass.
GEO. C. DEMPSEY, Lowell, Mass.
THOS. F. HARRINGTON, M. D., Lowell, Mass.
DR. PHILIP KILROY, Springfield, Mass.
THOMAS B. LAWLER, Worcester, Mass.
REV. JOHN J. MCCOY, Chicopee, Mass.
DR. PATRICK J. TIMMINS, South Boston, Mass.
J. W. FOGARTY, Roxbury, Mass.
JOHN E. LYNCH, Worcester, Mass.
FRANCIS P. MCKEON, Worcester, Mass.
M. J. HARSON, Providence, R. I.

EDWARD A. MOSELEY

PRESIDENT-GENERAL
]

JOHN C. LINEHAN

TREASURER-GENERAL
]

THOMAS HAMILTON MURRAY

SECRETARY-GENERAL
]

THOMAS B. LAWLER

LIBRARIAN-ARCHIVIST
]

Several others were also present, but, coming in later, their signatures to this agreement were not obtained. They included Hon. Thomas J. Gargan and Osborne Howes, of Boston, Mass.; Charles A. De Courcy, of Lawrence, Mass.; Dennis H. Sheahan, of Providence, R. I.; and Thomas Carroll, of Peabody, Mass. Of these, Mr. Gargan, Mr. Howes, and Mr. Sheahan were among the signers of the call for the meeting. All expressed themselves in favor of the organization and a desire to be identified with it.

* * * * *

The following constitution was adopted:

_Preamble._

Believing that the part taken in the settlement, foundation, and
up-building of these United States by the Irish race has never
received proper recognition from historians, and inspired by love
for the republic, a pride in our blood and forefathers, and a desire
for historic truth, this society has met and organized.

Its mission is to give a plain recital of facts, to correct errors,
to supply omissions, to allay passions, to shame prejudice, and to
labor for right and truth.

While we, as loyal citizens of this republic, are earnestly
interested in all the various phases of its history, we feel that we
should be false to its honor and greatness and recreant to our own
blood if we did not make a serious effort to leave to those
generations which will follow us a clearer and better knowledge of
the important work done by men and women of the Irish race on this
continent. People of this race—men and women born on Irish soil—have
been here from the first, prompted in their flight by the motives
common to all immigration, dissatisfaction with the old order of
things, and the resolve to obtain a freer and better life in the new
land under new conditions.

And so we have come together—natives of Ireland, American sons of
Irish immigrants, and descendants of immigrants even unto the
seventh, eighth, and ninth American generations—to duly set forth
and perpetuate a knowledge of these things.

In the days to come, that lie in the womb of the future, when all
the various elements that have gone and are going to make the
republic great, are united in the American,—the man who in his
person will represent the bravest elements of all the old races of
earth,—we desire that the deeds and accomplishments of our element
shall be written in the book of the new race, telling what we did
and no more; giving us our rightful place by the side of the others.

To accomplish this is the purpose of this organization; it is a work
worthy of the sympathy and aid of every American who can rise above
the environment of to-day and look into the broad future. Fidelity,
truth, honor, are the watchwords of such a purpose, and under their
noble influence should our work be done.

_Article I.—Name._

This organization shall be known as the AMERICAN-IRISH HISTORICAL
SOCIETY.

_Article II.—Objects and Purposes._

The objects and purposes of this society are:

(1) The study of American history generally.

(2) To investigate, specially, the immigration of the people of
Ireland to this country, determine its numbers, examine the sources,
learn the places of its settlement; and estimate its influence on
contemporary events in war, legislation, religion, education, and
other departments of human activity.

(3) To examine records of every character, wherever found,
calculated to throw light on the work of the Irish element in this
broad land.

(4) To endeavor to correct erroneous, distorted, and false views of
history, where they are known, and to substitute therefor the truth
of history, based on documentary evidence and the best and most
reasonable tradition, in relation to the Irish race in America.

(5) To encourage and assist the formation of local societies in
American cities and towns for the work of the parent society.

(6) To promote and foster an honorable and national spirit of
patriotism, which will know no lines of division, which will be
based upon loyalty to the laws, institutions, and spirit of the
republic to whose up-building the Irish element has unselfishly
contributed in blood and treasure, a patriotism whose simple
watchwords will be true Americanism and human freedom, and which has
no concern for any man’s race, color, or creed, measuring him only
by his conduct, effort, and achievement.

(7) To promote by union in a common high purpose a sincere
fraternity, a greater emulation in well-doing, a closer confidence
and mutual respect among the various elements of the Irish race in
America, that, by putting behind them the asperities of the past,
they may unite in a common brotherhood with their fellow-citizens
for the honor of the race and the glory of the republic.

(8) To place the result of its historical investigations and
researches in acceptable literary form; to print, publish, and
distribute its documents to libraries, institutions of learning, and
among its members, in order that the widest dissemination of
historical truth may be obtained and placed within the reach of
historians and other writers and readers.

(9) To sift and discriminate every paper, sketch, document, bearing
on the society’s line of work, before the same is accepted and given
official sanction, in order that its publication may be a guarantee
of historical accuracy; to do its work without passion or prejudice,
to view accomplished facts in the true scientific historical spirit,
and, having reached the truth, to give it to the world.

_Article III.—Membership._

Any person, of good moral character, who is interested in the
special work of this society, shall be deemed eligible for
membership in the same. No tests other than that of character and
devotion to the society’s objects shall be applied to membership.

Every applicant for membership shall be recommended by two members
of the society before his application shall be considered by the
Secretary-General, and the application shall be accompanied by the
dues in the amounts laid down in the by-laws.

Members will be elected as follows: Candidates may send their
applications—for which blanks will be furnished—to the
Secretary-General, accompanied by the fee as provided in the
by-laws, and each application must be endorsed by two members of the
society. The Secretary-General shall submit the application to the
Executive Council, and a three-fourths vote of that body, by ballot
or otherwise, will be necessary to elect the candidate.

_Article IV.—Classes of Members._

The society shall comprise life members and annual members who shall
pay dues provided by the by-laws. The society may also choose
honorary and corresponding members who shall be exempt from dues but
shall not have the right to vote.

_Article V.—Officers._

The officers of the society shall consist of:

1. A President-General.

2. A Vice-President for each state and territory and for the
District of Columbia.

3. A Secretary-General.

4. A Treasurer-General.

5. A Librarian and Archivist.

6. An Historiographer.

7. An Executive Council.

(The word “General” herein to be considered equivalent to National.)

The officers of the society shall be elected annually.

_Article VI.—The President-General._

The duties of the President-General shall be to open and preside
over the society during its deliberations, to see that the
constitution is observed and the by-laws enforced, to appoint
committees, and exercise a watchful care over the interests of the
society, that its work may be properly done and its purposes adhered
to. In the absence of the President-General a presiding officer _pro
tem._ may be chosen.

_Article VII.—The Vice-Presidents._

It shall be the duty of the Vice-President of each state to
represent the President-General at all meetings of state chapters of
the society, and for the Vice-President of the state to which the
President-General belongs, or in which the meeting is held, to
represent him at all meetings of the parent society when he cannot
be present, and in his absence to act as chairman _pro tem._ In the
absence of both the President-General and state Vice-President, a
presiding officer _pro tem._ may be chosen from the assembled
members of the society.

_Article VIII.—The Secretary-General._

The Secretary-General shall keep a record of all the proceedings of
the society and the Executive Council; he shall have charge of the
seal and records; he shall issue and sign in conjunction with the
President-General all charters granted to the subsidiary chapters,
and shall with him certify to all acts of the society. He shall,
upon orders from the President-General, give due notice of time and
place of all meetings of the body; give notice to the several
officers of all votes, resolutions, orders, and proceedings of the
body affecting them or appertaining to their respective offices, and
perform such other duties as may be assigned him.

_Article IX.—The Treasurer-General._

The Treasurer-General shall collect and receive all dues, funds, and
securities, and deposit the same to the credit of the AMERICAN-IRISH
HISTORICAL SOCIETY, in such banking institution as may be approved
by the Executive Council. This money shall be drawn to the check of
the Treasurer-General for the purposes of the society and to pay
such sums as may be ordered by the Executive Council of the society
in meeting, said orders to be countersigned by the President-General
and Secretary-General. He must keep a full and accurate account of
all receipts and disbursements, and at each annual meeting shall
render the same to the society when a committee shall be appointed
by the President-General to audit his accounts. He shall present at
annual or special meetings a list of members in arrears.

_Article X.—The Librarian and Archivist._

The Librarian and Archivist shall be the custodian of all published
books, pamphlets, files of newspapers, and similar property of the
society. He shall have charge of all documents, manuscripts, and
other productions not assigned by this constitution to other
officers of the society, and shall keep the same in a place or
places easy of access and safe from loss by fire or other causes.

_Article XI.—The Historiographer._

The Historiographer, or official historian, of the society shall
perform the duties usually pertaining to that office.

_Article XII.—The Executive Council._

The Executive Council shall consist of the President-General,
Secretary-General, Treasurer-General, Librarian and Archivist,
Historiographer, and not less than ten nor more than twenty other
members to be elected by the society. The Executive Council shall be
judge of the qualifications of applicants for admission, and if
satisfactory, shall elect the same. The Council shall recommend
plans for promoting the objects of the society, digest and prepare
business, authorize the disbursement and expenditure of
unappropriated money in the treasury for the current expenses of the
society; shall prepare and edit—or cause to be prepared and
edited—contributions of an historical or literary character bearing
on the special work of the society, for publication and
distribution; may appropriate funds for the expenses of special
branches of research for historical data and for the purchase of
works to form a library for the society whenever it shall have a
permanent home and headquarters. The Council shall have power to
fill vacancies in offices until the annual meeting, exercise a
supervisory care over the affairs of the society, and perform such
other duties as may be intrusted to them. At a meeting of the
Executive Council five members shall constitute a quorum.

_Article XIII.—Meetings._

The annual meeting of this society shall be held on the third
Wednesday in January, at a place to be selected by the Executive
Council. A field day of the body shall be held during the summer of
each year at such time and place as the Executive Council shall
select, due regard being given to the convenience of the greatest
number, and, as far as possible, the meeting place selected shall be
one whose historical associations are of interest to American
citizens.

The annual meeting shall be for the purpose of electing officers,
hearing reports, and transacting such other business as may come
properly before it. There shall be four stated meetings each year.

Special meetings may be called at any time by the Executive Council.

_Article XIV.—Subsidiary Societies._

Chapters of the parent society may be established in any city or
town in the United States upon the petition of ten persons for a
charter, and such charter shall be issued upon payment of the sum
designated for such in the by-laws.

The President, Secretary, Treasurer, Librarian, and Historiographer
of all subsidiary societies shall be admitted to all meetings of the
parent society as members during their term of office, with all the
privilege of membership except that of voting.

_Article XV.—Amendments._

Amendments to the constitution shall be submitted to the Executive
Council through the Secretary-General at least thirty days before
the meeting of the society. A vote of two-thirds of the members
present at the meeting shall be necessary for the adoption of such
amendments.

BY-LAWS.

1. The initiation fee shall be three dollars.[1] The annual
membership fee shall be three dollars, payable not later than the
first day of February in each year.

Footnote 1:

The requirement that an initiation fee be paid is not yet
enforced.

2. Payment of fifty dollars in advance at one time shall constitute
a life membership. Life members shall be exempt from further
membership dues.

3. The Executive Council shall provide for each regular meeting of
the society an address, essay, or paper dealing with some topic in
the society’s line of work.

4. A copy of all original productions read before the society shall
be requested for deposit in the society’s archives.

5. The annual field-day program shall include an oration, poem, and
dinner. Other features of an appropriate nature may be added.

6. A fraternal spirit shall be cultivated with other American
historical bodies. The society shall also keep in touch with
historical organizations in Ireland, France, and other countries.

7. Any person elected to membership in this society who fails to pay
his initiation fee within one year from the date of his election
shall, having been duly notified by the Secretary-General, be
considered as having forfeited his right to membership and his
election shall be canceled.

8. A member, neglecting for two years to pay his annual fee, shall
be notified of such omission by the Secretary-General. Still
neglecting for three months to pay the dues, such delinquent member
shall be dropped as no longer belonging to the society.

9. The stated meetings of the society shall be held in January,
April, July, and October. The President-General upon receiving a
request in writing, signed by ten members, asking for a special
meeting, shall cause the said meeting to be convened forthwith.

10. Ten members shall constitute a quorum at any meeting of the
society, except stated meetings when fifteen members shall be
necessary.

11. The general order of business at meetings of the society shall
be as follows:

_a._ Minutes of previous meeting.
_b._ Report of Executive Council on candidates for membership.
_c._ Balloting on candidates for membership.
_d._ Reports of officers and committees.
_e._ Unfinished business.
_f._ New business.
_g._ Adjournment

12. When not otherwise provided, _Cushing’s Manual_ shall be the
authority on points of procedure at meetings of the society.

13. No part of these by-laws shall be amended, altered, or repealed,
unless proposition is submitted in writing covering the proposed
amendment at least thirty days before the meeting when it is to be
acted upon, when, if two-thirds of the members present and voting
express themselves in favor of the change, the same shall be made.

After the reception and introduction of those present, dinner was served. Hon. Thomas J. Gargan presided, having as his guest Paul B. Du Chaillu, the noted explorer, author of _The Viking Age_, _The Land of the Midnight Sun_, and numerous other works.

Upon the conclusion of the dinner, Mr. Gargan arose and said:

“In the name of the committee who have issued the call for the
organization of an American Historical Society, whose special line
of research shall be the history of the Irish element in the
composition of the American people, I congratulate you on the
success of this initial movement and bid you a cordial welcome to
this meeting.

“But little has yet been done to show how much the sons of Ireland
and their descendants have contributed to the settlement, to the
civilization and reclamation of this country, as also to its
liberation from oppression.

“In our proposed work we will discard the legendary and the
mythical. We recognize that we are living in a scientific age at the
end of the nineteenth century, the age of the microscope and the
X-ray, and we ask for the acceptance of no historical data that will
not bear the modern search-light and that is not sufficiently
proven.

“We claim that due credit has not been given to the Irish
contributions. That through prejudice or through gross ignorance
there has grown up a myth about the Scotch-Irish. Of all the myths
that have crept into history this is the most mythical. Why any man
should be ashamed of his honorable Irish ancestry surpasses my
comprehension and subjects the man who attempts to deny it to the
scorn and contempt of all honest and intelligent men.

THOMAS J. GARGAN
BOSTON, MASS.
]

JAMES JEFFREY ROCHE
BOSTON, MASS.
]

JOHN D. CRIMMINS
NEW YORK CITY
]

JOSEPH SMITH
LOWELL, MASS.
]

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

“Descendants of Irishmen may well feel proud of the honorable part
which the Irish race has borne in the settlement and development of
the country. As early as 1649, Cromwell, by his cruel policy,
transported 45,000 of them beyond the seas. A large number came to
Barbadoes. Many of them afterwards came to the continent of North
America.

“The revolution of 1688 in England, and the acts of British
Parliament to discourage manufactures in Ireland, drove 100,000
operatives out of Ireland, and a writer of that time says multitudes
of them went to America.

“In 1729 a writer stated that 3000 males left Ulster yearly for the
American colonies. And the arrivals at the port of Philadelphia for
1729 are set down as: English and Welsh, 267; Scotch, 43; German,
343; Irish, 5655, or a proportion of ten Irish immigrants to one
from all other European nations. This constant influx continued,
though not in so great proportion. So we see what an important
factor they were in the settlement of the colonies.

“James Logan, of Lurgan, Ire., came over with William Penn, and
complaint was made against him that public Mass was permitted in the
colony.

“The name of Logan has through all our history been honorably
identified with every step of our progress. In 1729 several families
came from Longford, Ire., who were landed at Cape Cod, but made
their way to New York. Among them was Charles Clinton, whose three
children became historical men in the annals of New York. The colony
of Maryland was largely settled from Ireland; the Carrolls, whose
names are indissolubly associated with American history, coming to
the colony in 1689.

“In 1710 we find in Virginia along the Blue Ridge, in what are now
the counties of Patrick and Rockbridge, the McDowells,
Breckenridges, McDuffies, McGruders, and others, and the two rivers
Mayo, and the towns called McGaheysville, Healysville,
Kennedysville, McFarland, Lynchburg, and Kinsdale,—all names that
tell us plainly what was the origin of the settlers.

“In 1737 an Irish settlement was established on the Santee River in
South Carolina, and the historian of that time says none has
furnished so many settlers to this province as Ireland.

“In 1746 Daniel Boone commenced the settlement of Kentucky, and had
with him Hugh McGrady, also Harland and McBride.

“In the Massachusetts Bay Colonies, prejudices against natives of
Ireland existed almost from the settlement of the colony. There were
restrictions as to land, and in 1720 the General Court warned
settlers from Ireland to leave the colony within seven months.

“As you all know, in 1737 the Charitable Irish Society was founded
here in Boston by twenty-six natives of Ireland, Robert Duncan
heading the list. William Hall was the first president, and in that
list of names are the founders of many distinguished Boston
families, some of whom, I am sorry to say, are not inclined to own
their origin, or choose rather to call themselves Scotch-Irish, an
appellation which their ancestors would have despised. We find at
Concord the burial place of Hugh Cargill, born in Ballyshannon, who
came to this country, in 1744, a poor emigrant, acquiring no mean
estate, leaving as a legacy the Stratton farm to the town of Concord
to be used for the poor.

“There also came to Massachusetts the Limerick schoolmaster, John
O’Sullivan, a name illustrious in our country’s annals. One of his
sons was General Sullivan, of Revolutionary fame. One of his lineal
descendants, Mr. Russell Sullivan, the well-known author, is one of
the signers of our roll. There were Higginses and Reillys at
Plymouth and along the shores of Cape Cod.

“One of the Indian transfers of land was to one of the Reillys.

“One of the most distinguished Irishmen who came to New England was
George Berkely, a native of Kilkenny. Born near Thomaston, he came
here to found a college for the civilization of the Indians. He is
best remembered by his poems. Those of you who have visited the
national capitol at Washington will see in fresco on the walls at
the foot of the stairway portrayed by the brush of the artist in
almost speaking pictures the story of the settlement and
civilization of the United States, and you will see inscribed the
lines which gave the artist inspiration, written by George Berkely:

Westward the course of empire takes its way;
The four first acts already past,
A fifth shall close the drama with the day:
Time’s noblest offspring is the last.

“Yet we should not be vainglorious. We are but representatives of
many nations who from the earliest settlement of the country have
helped to plant here free institutions, but we are not intruders,
nor are we here by the tolerance of any party. We live here under
the constitution and laws of the country, and are vitally interested
in its well-being and future prosperity. We, of this generation,
decline to accept that series of lies which English historians and
their imitators have agreed upon as truthful history of what the
Irish have done in this country or any other country.

“We propose to investigate facts and ask for their impartial
consideration.

“The object of this association is to call to mind those noble types
of men and women that the Irish race have sent here, that we may
receive credit for our fair share in the development and maintenance
of a government founded upon manhood.”

Hon. John C. Linehan spoke briefly, saying: “I think there is not a
prouder title than that of American citizen. I am proud of it. I
glory in it. But as I believe that a man who cannot love his mother
cannot love his wife, a man who is false to the land of his birth
can never be true to the land of his adoption. New Hampshire
presents a rich field for the society’s research.

“Our first governor was an Irishman. Darby Field, an Irish soldier,
discovered the White Mountains, and there was not a battle of the
French and Indian wars in which Irish blood was not spilt just as
freely as in the battles of the Civil War.

“If we do our work, the American people, of whatever birth, will put
the present Scotch-Irish myth where it belongs.”

Joseph Smith, secretary of the Lowell Police Board, urged work on
the part of every member. “We cannot deal in hurrah business,” he
said. “We must produce the cold documents and facts that no one can
dispute, and eliminate from history its imaginary and fictitious
bluffs. All must work in investigation in their own towns and
vicinity. We must organize in every town and city, and every year
have a meeting of this parent society to garner and publish our
discovered and compiled facts. This cold documentary evidence cannot
be disputed, and falsehood and fiction will cease.”

Osborne Howes, the seventh in line from an Irish settler of Cape
Cod, said it was not so much a matter of self-laudation, but to
create a spirit in the people. He believed in the necessity of a
race living up to its ideal, and the higher the ideal could be
placed the better for all of the race; they will have something to
look forward to, something to eliminate.

Paul Du Chaillu heartily endorsed the purpose as a most laudable
one. “But don’t be self-laudable,” he advised, “you want the facts,
the truth; unearth the truth for truth’s sake; present it to the
world and don’t be afraid of opposition. Defy it.”

Charles A. De Courcey, of Lawrence, spoke of the feeling and
experience and slurs cast upon every school child of Irish parentage
in the past, and to some extent to-day. “We were foreign. We did not
feel at home. But we began to know. We began to feel at home. We
learned of our race’s participation in the up-building of the
nation. We will prove our part in America’s history; then the
children as Americans can feel as Americans.”

The Rev. John J. McCoy, in an able speech, declared: “The records
are so honorable that, although it is rather late to make the start,
we all ought to find very pleasant work in assisting to look them
up.”

Editor George H. Moses, of the _Concord Monitor_, Senator Chandler’s
paper, ex-Mayor Hugh J. Carroll, of Pawtucket, and Hon. P. J.
Flatley, of Boston, made speeches, urging the conduct of the
research with true historic spirit.

Mr. Flatley, in his impromptu speech, handled the “Scotch-Irish”
myth without gloves.

The following officers were elected:

Rear-Admiral Richard Worsam Meade, U. S. Navy (retired), President-General; Thomas Hamilton Murray, Pawtucket, R. I., Secretary-General; Hon. John C. Linehan, Concord, N. H., Treasurer-General; Thomas B. Lawler, Worcester, Mass., Librarian Archivist; Hon. Theodore Roosevelt, New York; James Jeffrey Roche, Boston; Augustus St. Gaudens, New York; Hon. Thomas J. Gargan, Boston; Dr. Thomas Dunn English, Newark, N. J.; Prof. Maurice F. Egan, Washington; Edward A. Moseley, Washington; Robert Ellis Thompson, Philadelphia; T. Russell Sullivan, Boston; Joseph Smith, Lowell, Executive Committee.

The vice-presidents are: Massachusetts, Osborne Howes, Boston; Connecticut, Joseph Swords, Hartford; Maine, James Cunningham; Rhode Island, M. J. Harson, Providence; Vermont, T. W. Maloney; New York, Gen. James R. O’Beirne; New Jersey, Hon. William McAdoo; District of Columbia, J. D. O’Connell, Washington; Pennsylvania, Gen. St. Clair Mulholland, Philadelphia; South Carolina, Hon. Matthew C. Butler; Georgia, Hon. Patrick Walsh; Ohio, Rev. George W. Pepper, Cleveland; Michigan, Thomas A. Weadock, Detroit; New Hampshire, T. B. Sullivan, Concord.

The position of historiographer has been left vacant until a subsequent meeting of the executive body.

Mr. Joseph Smith, of Lowell, in behalf of the committee appointed to prepare a constitution and by-laws, submitted a report, and the same met with the unanimous approval of the gathering. The preamble is as follows:

Believing that the part taken in the settlement, foundation, and up-building of these United States by the Irish race has never received proper recognition from historians, and inspired by love for the republic, a pride in our blood and forefathers, and a desire for historic truth, this society has met and organized.

Its mission is to give a plain recital of facts, to correct errors, to supply omissions, to allay passions, to shame prejudice, and to labor for right and truth.

While we, as loyal citizens of this republic, are earnestly interested in all the various phases of its history, we feel that we should be false to its honor and greatness, and recreant to our own blood, if we did not make a serious effort to leave to those generations which follow us a clearer and better knowledge of the important work done by men and women of the Irish race on this continent. People of this race—men and women born on Irish soil—have been here from the first, prompted in their flight by the motives common to all immigration,—dissatisfaction with the old order of things and the resolve to obtain a freer and better life in the new land under new conditions.

And so we have come together—natives of Ireland, American sons of Irish immigrants, and descendants of immigrants even unto the seventh, eighth, and ninth American generations—duly to set forth and perpetuate a knowledge of these things.

In the days to come, that lie in the womb of the future, when all the various elements that have gone and are going to make the republic great are united in the American,—the man who in his person will represent the bravest elements of all the old races of earth,—we desire that the deeds and accomplishments of our element shall be written in the book of the new race, telling what we did, and no more; giving us our rightful place by the side of others.

To accomplish this is the purpose of this organization; it is a work worthy of the sympathy and aid of every American who can rise above the environment of to-day and look into the broad future. Fidelity, truth, honor are the watchwords of such a purpose, and under their noble influence should our work be done.

Thomas Hamilton Murray, secretary of the meeting, was then introduced and stated that letters expressive of interest in the organization, acknowledging an invitation or giving an expression of opinion, had been received from a large number of people. The list of writers included the following:

HON. GEORGE F. HOAR,
United States senator from Massachusetts.

REAR-ADMIRAL RICHARD W. MEADE, U. S. N.
(Retired), Philadelphia, Pa., and Washington, D. C.

HON. THOMAS DUNN ENGLISH,
Newark, N. J.

DR. THOMAS ADDIS EMMET,
New York City.

SAMUEL SWETT GREEN,
Worcester, Mass. (of the American Antiquarian Society).

HENRY STODDARD RUGGLES,
Wakefield, Mass. (of the Sons of the Revolution).

HON. DANIEL H. HASTINGS,
Governor of Pennsylvania.

PRESIDENT TYLER,
Of the college of William and Mary, Virginia.

PRESIDENT LEE,
Of Washington and Lee University, Virginia.

PRESIDENT MORRISSEY,
Of the University of Notre Dame, Indiana.

REV. DR. CONATY,
Rector of the Catholic University, Washington, D. C.

PROVOST HARRISON,
Of the University of Pennsylvania.

H. B. ADAMS,
Professor of American and Institutional history, Johns Hopkins
University.

W. M. SLOANE,
Professor of history, Princeton College, New Jersey.

EX-GOVERNOR WALLER,
Of Connecticut.

GEN. FRANCIS A. WALKER,
Boston, Mass.

EDWARD A. MOSELEY,
Washington, D. C.

REV. J. GRAY BOLTON, D. D.,
(Presbyterian), Philadelphia, Pa.

REV. CYRUS TOWNSEND BRADY,
Philadelphia, Pa. (Protestant Episcopal archdeacon of Pennsylvania).

REV. GEORGE W. PEPPER,
(Methodist), Cleveland, O.

REV. GEORGE C. BETTS,
(Protestant Episcopalian), Goshen, N. Y.

REV. THOMAS J. SHAHAN,
Catholic University, Washington, D. C.

HON. PATRICK WALSH,
Augusta, Ga. (ex-United States senator).

HON. THOMAS A. E. WEADOCK,
Detroit, Mich. (ex-member of Congress).

COL. D. S. LAMSON,
Weston, Mass.

JOHN P. DONAHUE,
Wilmington, Del. (national commander, Union Veteran Legion).

HON. JOHN COCHRANE,
President of the New York Society of the Cincinnati.

REV. W. A. MCDERMOTT,
(“Walker Lecky”) Redwood, N. Y.

LETTERS OF WARM APPROVAL.

The following are the letters that were received:

_From Admiral Meade._

PHILADELPHIA, Dec. 8, 1896.

DEAR MR. ROCHE:—Your note of November 26 with its enclosure has only
just reached me here. In reply I would say that you are at liberty
to enroll my name as you desire. My ancestor, Robert Meade, who died
in this city in August, 1754, was an Irish gentleman, who, having to
choose between his conscience and his native land, chose to leave
his native land for the sake of conscience and to cast in his lot
with the people of the New World. He was one of the “Wild Geese.”
His son, George Meade, born in this city, Feb. 27, 1741, died here
in 1808. His life has been written for the volumes of the American
Catholic Historical Society of this city. He was a patriot of the
finest type, and his name is on the Roll of Honor in Independence
Hall in this city.

Since then four generations have borne the name of Richard Worsam
Meade, and all, I believe, with honor. My father’s younger brother,
George Gordon Meade, is sufficiently well known to the country in
connection with Gettysburg. In the life of George Meade, alluded to
above, you will see what _I_ say about “Irishmen.”

My father’s mother was Margaret Butler, of this city, and she also
traced her ancestry to a famous strain of Norman-Irish blood.

No, sir! None of the Meades or Butlers are ashamed of their Irish
lineage! Rather the contrary do we rejoice that our forefathers came
from the Emerald Isle, the land of dauntless men and pure women, and
that they represented the best blood of the Island.

Very truly yours,
R. W. MEADE, 3d,
Rear-Admiral, U. S. N.

_From the Governor of Pennsylvania._

January 11, 1897.

MY DEAR SIR:—It would give me great pleasure to unite with yourself
and other gentlemen who are interested in recording the relation and
influence of Americans of Irish birth or lineage to the history of
our country, were it possible for me to be away from the Capitol on
the 20th inst. I am in entire sympathy with the movement and hope to
render assistance along the lines indicated in your letter. My
father was born in Londonderry and came to this country when a
youth. I believe I am entitled to membership in the proposed
organization.

Very truly yours,
DANIEL H. HASTINGS.

_From the Rev. Dr. Shahan._

WASHINGTON, D. C., Jan. 18, 1897.

DEAR CAPTAIN TOBIN:—I regret to say that it will be practically
impossible to go to Boston. I cannot very well leave all the work I
have on hand, and I must go back again the following week, for
Monday, the 25th, to Hartford. But I am entirely in favor of the
good work, and I hope that from the beginning it will be a success.
I regret again very much that so many duties all crowd in on the end
of January, and make it impossible to be with so many men of one
mind and one race next Wednesday. If members are proposed, please
put me down as one.

Yours sincerely,
THOMAS J. SHAHAN.

Judge Smith, of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania, wrote:

“I have just read the letter which you kindly sent me, giving in
outline the scope and purpose of the proposed Historical Society and
bearing the names of many distinguished citizens. I am very much
pleased with the project and gratified to see that so many eminent
gentlemen have become interested in the movement, and regret that
official duties will prevent my attendance at the initial meeting.
That the undertaking is needful and timely, the letter well
demonstrates, and the broad foundation indicated will undoubtedly
attract the moral and material support of all American citizens who
want nothing but the truth recorded and preserved in the archives of
history. May success attend the noble work of vindicating the worth
and memory of a superior race!”

Henry Stoddard Ruggles, of Wakefield, wrote:

“Your proposal to found a society devoted to the preservation of
records of the services of Irishmen in the colonization and
subsequent history of America meets my approval. Although the
biographies of some of the early pioneers of that race have been
carefully and fully treated, owing to the devotion of their
descendants to their memory, only a very small part has ever been
written of the history of the stock as a whole, and some of their
achievements have, through prejudice, been ascribed to another
people. Many Protestants of Irish derivation are claiming a Scotch
lineage for their immigrant ancestor, which he would have
repudiated; and yet they are often innocent of intent to mislead; so
thoroughly in certain quarters has the theory been nursed, that
Protestant Irishmen, particularly those from the northern province,
are invariably descended from the Scotch blood. As an American in
the ninth American generation, who, by the services of three great
grandfathers in the armies of the Revolution, holds membership in
both the ‘Sons of the Revolution’ and ‘Sons of the American
Revolution,’ and as a member of the ‘Essex Institute’ and ‘Roxbury
Military Historical Society,’ both devoted to historical research, I
naturally desire that all branches of our country’s history should
receive the attention they deserve. That a race so prolific, so
inwrought with the old stock of the land, so productive of men of
mark and merit, should till now remain without a representative
society to defend its record and its heroes, is most surprising.
That it is soon to have such we may rest assured from the names of
its sponsors, who are a guaranty of success.”

_From Rt. Rev. Dr. Conaty._

WORCESTER, Nov. 20, 1896.

MY DEAR SIR:—I am in full accord with a movement toward the
establishment of an American Historical Society, according to the
lines projected by you. The object is most praiseworthy, and the
results will be most valuable. It is a shame for us that so much
valuable matter has been lost because of no medium of salvation. Let
us save what we can, and gather together the records of our race in
the fields of literature, patriotism, business, and professional
life. The story has not been fully written; but when this has been
done, it will be found that our people have done their share in the
work of civilization, liberty, and letters in the great Republic,
for the preservation of which so many generously gave their lives.

You have my best wishes, and you can depend upon my earnest
coöperation.

Yours very truly,
THOMAS J. CONATY.

_From Dr. Thomas Addis Emmet._

NEW YORK, Jan. 4, 1897.

DEAR SIR:—I am too much occupied with my professional engagements to
be able to get away from home at this season, and I will therefore
not be able to attend the meeting for organizing the society on
January 20. But I am in close sympathy with the movement, and
believe that there exists a large and promising field for an Irish
Historical Society in this country. This opinion is based on the
fact that during a long life I have devoted the greater part of my
leisure time to the study of American history. Until recently I
possessed probably the largest library and the largest collection of
autographic documents bearing on American history ever held by one
individual. From my knowledge thus gained, I am firmly of the
conviction that the Irish, by birth or descent, have contributed
during the past two hundred years, and from every station in life,
more in number, more brain work and muscle for the development of
the country at large than has been furnished by every other
nationality of the world combined.

With some experience in getting up such an undertaking, I will take
the liberty of making a suggestion: The success of the proposed
society will rest entirely, I believe, on one feature—putting it in
the hands of young men, who must be put forward with the
responsibility to do the work. It is but proper that the older men
should make the first move, give it their support and contribute
hereafter so far as they may be able to do; but unless the young men
become interested in the undertaking, and sufficiently to be willing
to do the work, it will prove a failure.

Yours very truly,
THOMAS ADDIS EMMET.

_From Hon. E. A. Moseley._

WASHINGTON, January 6.

DEAR SIR:—I am very glad indeed to know that there will be an
American Historical Society whose special line of research will be
the history of the Irish element in this country, and I will
cheerfully aid in the work as far as I can.

I am ninth in descent from Lieut. Thaddeus Clark, who came from
Ireland and died in Portland, May 16, 1690. He was lieutenant of a
company of men engaged in the defense of Falmouth, now Portland,
during the Indian War. He fell into ambuscade with his company while
making a reconnoitre, and was killed with twelve of his men.

I am eleventh in descent from Deputy-Governor George Cleeves, who
was the founder of Portland, formerly Falmouth. I have the
impression that he was an Irishman also.

I am sixth in descent from Lieut. John Brown, of Belfast, Me., who
came with his father from Londonderry, Ire., and was one of the
settlers of Londonderry, N. H. He was chairman of the first Board of
Selectmen of Belfast, Me., chosen Nov. 11, 1773–75. He removed from
Londonderry, N. H. While residing in Londonderry, he had been a
commissioned officer in the Provincial Army, and had served in the
French War. He was one of the Committee of Safety and Inspection.

If I had the time for research, I feel that I could find others of
my ancestors who came from Ireland.

With kindest regards, sincerely yours,
EDWARD A. MOSELEY.

_From the National Commander of the Union Veteran Legion._

WILMINGTON, Del., January 20.

RESPECTED SIR:—I am in hearty sympathy with your proposed
organization, and should feel myself honored by being considered a
member of it, and will work to the best of my ability to accomplish
the desired purpose in the limited field presented to me in this
state of Delaware. I am now engaged in convention at Dover,
Delaware, framing a new constitution for our state, and will have
more leisure when that has been accomplished. In the meantime I beg
to assure you of my sincere thanks and high appreciation at the
honor conferred upon me by yourself and honorable colleagues in so
worthy a movement, and have the honor to remain,

Very truly,
JNO. P. DONAHOE,
National Commander.

_From Samuel Swett Green, Librarian of Worcester._

“Thank you for sending me a circular regarding the historical
society, which it is in contemplation to form for the purpose of
promoting the study of the work which has been done by Irishmen in
furthering the interests of the American Colonies and the United
States. It is natural and commendable for residents of the United
States, born in foreign countries or descended from persons born
outside of this country, that, while esteeming the institutions of
this land and having a patriotic interest in its welfare, they
should at the same time retain warm affection for the mother country
and a strong interest in the doings of its sons. Because such
persons love a new country, there is no reason why they should cease
to love the old country. They would show a lack of right feeling
were they to do so. I heartily favor the formation of societies by
studious people interested in the history of different elements of
our population, and should think that Americans of Irish origin
would find the study of the history of the Irish in this country
especially interesting and profitable. They would find, I should
think, a rich return in striving to bring to light incidents in
their history by forming a society with this purpose in view.”

_From Ex-U. S. Senator Patrick Walsh._

AUGUSTA, Ga., Sept. 8, 1896.

DEAR SIR:—I am in receipt of your favor of August 31, enclosing
proof of an article in reference to the formation of an
“American-Irish Historical Society.” I have read the announcement
with pleasure, and I most cordially endorse the object in view. The
history of the Irish race in America should be written. In peace and
in war citizens of Irish birth have always been faithful to the
United States. I regret to say that I do not very well see, at this
time, how I can be present at your first meeting, but I beg to
assure you of my most hearty approval of the proposed American-Irish
Historical Society.

Yours very sincerely,
PATRICK WALSH.

_From Theodore Roosevelt._

NEW YORK, Jan. 13, 1897.

MY DEAR MR. ROCHE:—I regret extremely that I cannot be present at
the opening meeting of the Association. All these associations do
good. We are a new people, derived from many race strains, and
different from any one of them, and it is a good thing to have
brought before us our diversity in race origin. Like most New
Yorkers, whose American ancestry goes back for more than two
centuries, I have an ancestral right to belong to several societies
of this kind, and I enjoy equally attending the dinners of the
Hollander, the Huguenot, the Scotchman, and the Irishman. It seems
to me the one lesson to be remembered always by those who belong to
these associations is that in time their descendants will most
surely have the right to belong to many other similar associations;
for in time the different strains of blood will all be blended
together, English and Irish, German and French. When that time
comes, and before it, the chief thing for all of us to keep in mind
is that we must be good Americans, purely as such, no matter what be
our creed or our ancestry in Europe.

Very sincerely yours,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT.

_From Senator Hoar._

WORCESTER, Mass., Nov. 12, 1896.

DEAR MR. MURRAY:—I think your plan for an historical society is
excellent. The facts in regard to this most important contribution
to our national life ought to be collected and preserved. If, as I
am sure they will, they are collected and preserved in the true
historic spirit, without concealing or slurring over, or
exaggerating anything, they will be of great value. Let no Irishman
be ashamed of his origin or the humble condition from which so many
of his countrymen came. The Irish race has done a great service to
America. They made a splendid contribution toward saving our
national life during the Rebellion. The story of their generosity
and affection for the kindred they left behind is one of the most
touching and stirring in history. But they have had, have now, and
will continue to have for a good while to come, grave faults. To say
this is only to say that they are human. Do not be afraid to record
their faults as well as their virtues, and the faithful portraiture
will be one well deserving a place in our nation’s gallery.

I am, with high regard, faithfully yours,
GEORGE F. HOAR.

_From the Protestant Episcopal Archdeacon of Pennsylvania._

PHILADELPHIA, Jan. 8, 1897.

MY DEAR SIR:—I have seen a notice of the meeting called for the
evening of the 21st of January, at the Revere House, Boston, for the
organization of an American Historical Society, whose special line
of research is to be the history of the Irish element in the
composition of the American people.

Although unable to be present, to my great regret, I very much
desire to be counted one of the charter members of the society when
it is organized. I am a member of the Society of the Sons of the
Revolution, and my name, as well as my family history, indicates my
Celtic descent, a derivation of which I am very proud.

I think the purposes of such a society are admirable, and if I can
do anything to further its objects I shall be delighted. Kindly
advise me of the receipt of this letter at your convenience, and
oblige,

Very sincerely yours,
C. T. BRADY,
Archdeacon of Pennsylvania.

_From Dr. Thomas Dunn English._

NEWARK, N. J., January 11.

DEAR SIR:—My age and consequent infirmities prevent me from
attending too many night meetings in a month. I have promised to be
present on the 16th at the annual dinner of the Alumni of the
University of Pennsylvania, and on the 25th to attend the Burns
celebration of the Newark Caledonian Club. This is about as much as
I can attend to without endangering my health. I regret, however, my
enforced absence, because I have a cordial sympathy with the
proposed movement. As a descendant on my father’s side through over
two centuries of American ancestors from Norman-Irish stock, and
more immediately on my mother’s side from the Gaelic, I naturally
take an interest in all that concerns the honor and reputation of my
lineage. I therefore beg of you to place my name on the list of
original members when you organize.

I have a further interest in the matter as a native American
desiring that our federal and state historical records should be
accurate and complete. Writers covering the part played by Irishmen
in this country’s history generally confine themselves to services
rendered during a revolutionary and post-revolutionary wars; and
these the enemies of Ireland constantly depreciate, and the friends
of Ireland sometimes exaggerate. Both sides lose sight of the fact
that very much is due to Irish efforts in the colonization of the
country and in its civil and social development. The society
proposed will be able to show how much the Quaker Irish in
Philadelphia and its vicinity, the Catholic Irish in Maryland, and
bodies and individuals of them elsewhere on the seaboard did to
develop our civilization and promote our progress. The society will
have a rich and poorly worked mine of historical wealth in another
quarter. The Appalachian and Alleghanian ranges and their immediate
valleys found large numbers of Irish settlers among the pioneers,
and from Londonderry in New Hampshire to Murphy and Coleraine in
Georgia, there extends a long line of settlements where many
customs, terms, phrases, and modes of thought and action attest the
country of the founders. “The dark and bloody ground” of Kentucky
has among its residents so many with Hibernian names, though the
sept mark of O’ has been dropped in many cases, the Macs being more
adherent, that in calling off the assessment rolls in some quarters
it would seem to the hearer as though he had dropped in upon the
meeting of some Irish society.

With my best wishes for the thorough success of the proposed
organization,

I am yours truly,
THOMAS DUNN ENGLISH.

_From Gen. Francis A. Walker._

BOSTON, Nov. 25, 1896.

MY DEAR SIR:—Your letter of the 18th inst., enclosing a cutting
relating to the proposed new historical society, arrived during my
absence from the city. As regards the desirability of thorough
investigation into the early history of the Irish element of our
American population, there can be no question whatever. The
confusion that has arisen regarding the several constituents of the
Irish immigration—as witnessed, for example, in the general use of
the word Scotch-Irish, applied indifferently to persons of pure
English, pure Scotch, and pure Irish blood—shows abundantly the need
of careful dispassionate research; and all should rejoice to see the
work undertaken in the most effective way.