Thomas 'the Zouave' Delaney This hand-colored daguerrotype is of my great-grandfather Thomas Delaney. According to notes left by my mother, he was “born in Ireland in 1843 and died in New York City in 1887.” An historical anecdote in this connection is that he went off to the Civil War as an eighteen-year-old private in the Fifth New York Volunteer Infantry (Zouaves), one of … [Read more...] about Photo Album
American Civil War
Corner of Ireland in America
The Irish Mansion in Greeneville, Tennessee. William Dickson left County Antrim, Ireland at the age of 16 for a better life in Greeneville, Tennessee. He succeeded. By 1796, when he was 21, he was commissioned by President George Washington to be the town’s first postmaster, a lifetime appointment. He also amassed a considerable fortune as a merchant. This mountainous region … [Read more...] about Corner of Ireland in America
Gettysburg: America’s Preeminent Battlefield Shrine
When you go to Gettysburg, you trod hallowed ground where incredible courage under fire by Union and Confederate troops enshrined them in honor, glory and history. You do much more than make a trip. You make a pilgrimage. Gettysburg is a sleepy crossroads town. Situated in hilly Cumberland Valley fields in Pennsyl-vania, it is a musket volley or two short of 215 miles … [Read more...] about Gettysburg: America’s Preeminent Battlefield Shrine
Meagher of the Sword Honored in Brooklyn
A gravestone honoring Irish Patriot Thomas Meagher, a Fighting 69th Brigade commander and former acting governor of Montana Territory, was unveiled at the Green-Wood Cemetery, in Brooklyn, New York on April 19, 2008. The Green-Wood Historic Fund erected the gravestone to Meagher, whose body was never found after he went missing on the Missouri River in 1867, and placed it next … [Read more...] about Meagher of the Sword Honored in Brooklyn
The Fenian Invasion of Canada
Irish veterans of the American Civil War launched attacks on Canada in an effort to win independence for Ireland. It was 4 a.m., but the men of the 17th Regiment were wide-awake. They'd encountered no opposition crossing the water, and they expected little trouble trouncing the enemy when they came face to face. They'd been waiting for this moment for a long, long time. … [Read more...] about The Fenian Invasion of Canada