Charlestown Online

[corps]

For those that dont have any idea what the Green Square Mile and memorial is about (how could you not) please read this weeks Charlestown Patriot. The proposed inscription on the celtic cross is very moving. My mom was tearing up when she read it at the dinner table. I am curious who wrote it? Great job to all involved and those from the town who have contributed to this.

Additional thoughts, could addaitional footage from the dedication ceremony be included in an updated GSM cd. This would only be fitting.
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corps

[TheCanMan]

Hello to All:

Ed Callahan and Arthur Hurley asked me to post one final reminder concerning the "Dedication & Blessing" of "The Children of the Famine Memorial." This takes place on SUNDAY, September 13, right after the "Jubilee 150 Anniversary Mass" at Saint Francis de Sales Church. (The Mass begins at 11:00 a.m.)

Bishop Robert F. Hennessey, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Boston will officiate at the Mass and will participate in the Dedication & Blessing ceremonies. At the conclusion of the Mass, all are invited to join in a procession from the Church to the main Gate of the Cemetery where the Dedication program will be held. Please note these are community events open to all residents and friends of Charlestown.

The Dedication will feature several musical selections including a Gaelic rendition of Ireland's National Anthem, "The Soldiers Song" by Ms. Katie McD. Our own Laurel McGoff will sing "The Star Bangled Banner" and Ms. Julia and Ms. Alanna Tryder as well as Mike Murphy of the BH P&D will lend their considerable talents to the event as well. Among the featured Guests offering remarks will be Mr. Michael Lonergan, the newly installed Counsel General of Ireland for New England.

Much effort has been extended over the past fifteen months to make this an outstanding and memorable occasion for all of Charlestown. Please show your support by taking the time to attend the noted events on the 13th.

[cellaigh]

I wanted to say a fabulous job was done by the committee to erect the Children of the Famine memorial, as well as Father Mahoney's part in making it all happen.
It was a great moment in Charlestown's Irish History.
Thank you for memorializing the legacy of the Irish People, and reminding us that we should never forget the courageous souls who came before us.

[TheCanMan]

Hello to All:

The news article below was published in the October 2 edition of the Derry Journal in Ireland:
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Historic Event in Boston

Published Date: 02 October 2009
The unveiling of the Celtic Cross monument in honour of the Children of the Famine at Bunker Hill Catholic Cemetery, Charlestown, Boston on Sunday 13th September was part of the 150th anniversary celebrations at St Francis de Sales Parish. The cemetery is located on the summit of historic Bunker Hill behind the St Francis de Sales Church, where earlier the long serving and popular Pastor Fr Dan Mahoney had welcomed Thomas M. Menino, the Mayor of Boston, Michael Lonergan, Consul General of Ireland.

Charlestown, situated between the Charles and Mystic rivers, is an area of one square mile, populated increasingly through the 1840s like nearby Boston by Irish immigrants, mostly unskilled farm labourers, attracted by opportunities of employment. They gravitated to the waterfront piers, loading and unloading merchant ships, shifting freight with horses and carts, or labouring in or on the Midddlesex Canal, the State Prison, and the Navy Yard. They worked nearly every construction site in Boston – moved hills, made roads, and laid tracks. They were hard working and resourceful – they had to be – and they virtually built and rebuilt Charlestown, as well as much of nearby Boston.

The Charlestown Historical Society, aware that the Irish had no recorded history there, set about researching, recording and telling this rich history. They conducted interviews, collected photographs and stories from the past. They even sent a camera crew to Ireland in 2006, shot scenes and conducted interviews in places associated with Charlestown - Inishowen, Derry, Belfast among them. The result was a one-hour documentary film, “The Green Square Mile....The Story of the Charlestown Irish” which was shown for the first time to a packed hall in Charlestown in November 2006 and had its Irish premiere in St Mary’s Hall, Clonmany in January 2007.

It was also the Charlestown Historical Society who spearheaded the Celtic Cross project. They decided to use the proceeds from the sale of the Green Square Mile DVD and accompanying booklet to fund an Irish Famine Memorial at St Francis de Sales cemetery. They formed a committee, held monthly meetings, decided on a Celtic Cross, determined the elements that would be featured, selected a location in the cemetery, and edited a Dedication-Inscription. Further contributions were made by those local Charlestown people who had financially assisted the Green Square Mile project and appeals for more funds got a great response. The eight-foot traditional Celtic Cross of Vermont granite featuring icons associated with Irish immigrant experience stands on a supporting platform to enhance its visual impact and is beautifully landscaped with paving stones and shrubs. The entrance to the Memorial and the cemetery is by a new wrought- iron gate, mounted at the end of the passageway at the side of St Francis de Sales Church and it is visible from Bunker Hill Street. The selected location affords a panoramic view of Boston harbour.

After the Mass, Bishop Hennessey, Fr Mahoney, and the officiating priests led the procession of distinguished guests and congregation of parishioners and former parishioners to the adjoining cemetery for the unveiling of the Celtic Cross. Edward Callahan, Vice President of the Charlestown Historical Society welcomed everyone and gave a brief resume of the history of the cemetery.



The Irish and American National Anthems Amhrán an bhFiann and the Star Spangled Banner were sung, and the following distinguished guests made their remarks – Arthur Hurley, President Charlestown Historical Society, Dr Dan Casey, editor of the Souvenir booklet, Michael Lonergan, Consul- General of Ireland, Thomas M. Menino, Mayor of Boston, Eugene L. O’Flaherty, State Representative, and Rabbi Samuel Chiel, Newton, MA. Marius Harkin, who has strong family ties with Boston and a member of Clonmany’s Mc Glinchey Summer School committee, was also invited to speak in Irish at the event as many of the Famine children who died would have been Irish speaking.

The Archbishop then unveiled the Celtic Cross, blessed it and read the Dedication- Inscription on the adjoining Memorial Stone which was edited by Jim Walsh and other committee members: “Dedicated to the sacrifice and courage of the children of the famine here interred who perished on the very threshold of the dream, and to those who followed, for they dared to live the dream and lay the footprints for our life and times in this “The Green Square Mile”.

Finally, Fr Dan Mahoney said the Famine Memorial was another milestone in the history of St Francis de Sales Parish. He expressed his gratitude to Bishop Hennessey, the distinguished public officials, invited guests and all those who attended the day’s ceremony. He asked those present to show their appreciation to the various organisations and Parish committees responsible for this great occasion. The large crowd of six hundred people gathered around the Cross and in the cemetery overlooking the Mystic River applauded in appreciation and gratitude. The people then adjourned to Bishop Lawton Hall in the basement of the Church where refreshments were served by the Parish Social Club.