CT Irish-American Historical Society Unveils Heritage Trail Website

June 22, 2019 - Hamden, CT -  Today the Connecticut Irish-American Historical Society unveiled a new website that celebrates the profound impact that Irish-Americans have had on Connecticut's past. The “Connecticut Irish-American Heritage Trail” (www.ctirishheritage.org) provides a moving history of the Irish Diaspora in Connecticut while encouraging visitors to explore over one hundred historical sites, events and organizations related to Connecticut’s Irish population and its rich history.

The website was made possible by a grant from the Government of Ireland, as well as support from the Connecticut State Historic Preservation Office.

Upon arriving at the websites home page users can easily drill down into the site by major categories which include History of the Irish in Connecticut, Secular Structures, Religious Structures, Monuments and Other Sites, Parades and Events, as well as Societies and Clubs.  Pressing the Search button on any page will display a historical map of Connecticut, letting the user drill into the sites historical inventory by county.

The site features maps and photographs of everything from interesting gravestones to ancient homes, churches, waterways and industrial buildings, and provides key historical data to enable history buffs or weekend wanderers to understand the deep Irish roots of Connecticut.  

Whether actually visited or just enjoyed on a computer in the living room, the sites along the trail are fascinating. Examples include:

  • The Soldiers and Sailors Civil War Arch in downtown Hartford. Its designer was George Keller, a native of County Cork, who also designed the main monuments commemorating two of the Civil War’s major battles: Gettysburg and Antietam.
  • The gravestone of Mary Dixon Kies in Killingly which honors the daughter of Scots-Irish immigrants. In 1809, she became the first woman to receive a patent from the U.S. government. Her invention was a method of using silk thread to hold cross hatching on bonnets. The silk was very sturdy and the process was very cost effective making it possible to mass produce hats. 
  • The Father Michael McGivney monument at the Knights of Columbus international headquarters in downtown New Haven honors the priest who in 1882 with a small group of Irish immigrants organized the now million-member K. of C.  
  • The Monte Christo cottage in New London which was the summer home in his youth of Eugene O’Neill,  America’s most famous playwright. O’Neill’s Irish immigrant father became famous playing the roll of Edmund Dantes, in the play “The Count of Monte Cristo.”


CONTACT:

Connecticut Irish-American Historical Society
P.O. Box 185833
Hamden, CT 06518

Email: ctiahs@gmail.com

 

 


[ Top ] [ Back ]