One of the main resources added to this site at an early stage was the list of Irish-born Medal of Honor recipients. Drawn from a number of different sources, I ...
Spotlight
The Irishman They Couldn’t Kill: Wounded Six Times at First Bull Run
Irishman John Donovan served with the 2nd Wisconsin Infantry in the first ...
Face to Face with the Fenians: Mugshots of American Civil War Veterans, Part 2
Part 1 of this series examined the mugshots of ten American Civil ...
Appeal: The Blockade Runner Minna and The Malcomsons of Co. Waterford
One of the roles of the Irish in the American Civil War ...
Irish American Civil War Trail
Readers of this site may have seen a recent post entitled Keeping Memory Alive of the Irish in the American Civil War. This highlighted the efforts of a number of like-minded individuals who wish to promote Irish involvement in the American Civil War in Ireland. The aim is to develop a Civil War Trail and Memorial to [...]
‘Faugh A Ballagh!’: The 17th Wisconsin at Corinth
The morning of 3rd October 1862 had not gone well for Major-General William Starke Rosecran’s Union forces. Holding the northern Mississippi town of Corinth, they had been attacked around 10am by Confederate forces of Major-General Earl Van Dorn’s Army of West Tennessee. By early afternoon, pressure on the Federal advanced position had grown so great that [...]
Irish Colonels: Michael Kerwin, 13th Pennsylvania Cavalry
Michael Kerwin was born in Co. Wexford on 15th August 1837. He emigrated with his parents to the United States at the age of 10, settling in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. There he was educated in a private academy and trained as a lithographic printer. In his spare time he spent a number of years involved with [...]
The USS Kearsarge and the ‘Queenstown Affair’, Co. Cork, 1863
On the morning of 3rd November 1863, the Federal sloop of war USS Kearsarge steamed into Queenstown harbour, Co. Cork. Anchoring to the east of the Spit Light, members of her crew crowded the deck to get a look at the town. While they waited to hear if any of them would be lucky enough [...]
‘I Feel Like I’m Deserted’: The Impact of One Soldier’s Death in Corcoran’s Irish Legion
On 8th September 1864, First Lieutenant Patrick McCarthy of Company C, 182nd New York Infantry, sat down to write a letter to the father of one of his comrades. The young man found himself with the unpleasant task of providing the family with details of their son’s death. Two weeks previously, on 25th August, his [...]
Christmas as a Prisoner of War, Richmond, 1863
Private Michael Dougherty of Falcarragh, Co. Donegal, served in the ranks of the 13th Pennsylvania Cavalry during the American Civil War. His bravery in combat would be recognised in 1897, when he was awarded the Medal of Honor. However, as Christmas Day 1863 approached the only thing on Michael Dougherty’s mind was survival, as he [...]
Medal of Honor: Private James Allen, 16th New York Infantry
On 24th April 1861, 17 year-old James Allen enlisted in the army at Potsdam, New York. Joining Company F of the 16th New York Infantry, he would see action in all the major battles of the Army of the Potomac from Bull Run to Chancellorsville. He was discharged at the end of his term on [...]
Face to Face with the Fenians: Mugshots of American Civil War Veterans, Part 1
The Fenian movement in America was extremely active before, during and immediately after the American Civil War. It recruited Irishmen with the aim of ‘striking a blow’ for Ireland when the opportunity arose. Many high profile Irish officers during the war were members, particularly in the Union ranks. Some returned to Ireland in 1866 to [...]
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