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Presentation traces Irish immigrants' role in New Rochelle and spotlights Patrick E. O'Connor
Summary
Barbara Davis delivered a historical account of Irish immigration to New Rochelle—from 1840s arrivals and settlement patterns through Civil War service—and profiled Patrick E. O'Connor, an Irish-born veteran who became a local official and was buried with military honors.
Barbara Davis provided a historical spotlight that connected 19th-century Irish immigration to New Rochelle's civic development.
Davis traced the arrival of Irish immigrants in the 1840s following the potato famine, saying that "between 1845 and 1855, more than 1,500,000 adults and children would leave Ireland to come to America." She described early settlement patterns that concentrated Irish families in the Southeast neighborhood around Drake and Wayman avenues and noted that Saint Matthew's (later Blessed Sacrament) served as the community's first Catholic parish.
Davis recounted episodes of anti-Irish discrimination in local newspapers and described how many Irish enlisted or served as substitutes during the Civil War. She spoke about the famed 69th regiment and said New Rochelle veterans joined mutual benefit societies, including the Irish Benevolent Society, which she said continues today.
The presentation included a biographical profile of Patrick E. O'Connor, an Irish immigrant who studied at the University of Dublin, served in the Civil War (including action at Fair Oaks), later practiced law on Main Street, served as a sewer commissioner after the city's 1899 consolidation, and was remembered locally as "Judge O'Connor." Davis said O'Connor participated in the post-assassination pursuit of John Wilkes Booth, served as an honor guard at Lincoln's funeral, and was buried at Beechwood Cemetery with full military honors.
Davis framed these stories as part of the broader American experience and said she is highlighting relatively unsung New Rochelleans as part of the city's 250th-anniversary observance.
