Patrick Joseph McCarthy (September 12, 1848 – March 13, 1921) was the 24th mayor of Providence, Rhode Island, and the first Providence mayor born in a foreign country.
Early life
Patrick McCarthy was born in Geevagh,[1][2]County Sligo, Ireland,[3] on September 12, 1848. His family came to the United States to escape the Great Famine in 1850.[4] The family was quarantined on Deer Island in Boston Harbor, and both Patrick's parents died there.[4] Patrick and his five brothers were separated into different orphanages, adoption agencies, and homes of relatives.[3][5] Young "P.J.", as he was known, lived with various extended relatives and poor houses, until a wealthy Bostonian agreed to fund his education.[4]
He ran for the Providence Mayor's office on a progressive reform ticket in 1906, as a long shot candidate.[5] He was a populist, and attacked the local trolley monopoly, tax policies, and educational barriers.[4] He was in favor of expanding suffrage.[4] He was in favor of eight-hour workdays for city workers, retirement pay for teachers, and pensions for police and firefighters.[3]
McCarthy died on March 13, 1921, and he is buried at St. Francis Cemetery, in Pawtucket.[4] A large, ornate Celtic cross marks his resting place.[4][5] After his death, the New England elite pointed to McCarthy as an example of how Irish immigrants could succeed in America if they worked hard.[5]
His portrait in Providence City Hall was restored in 2012, and for a time hung above the mantle in the office of then-mayor Angel Taveras.[6]
^Society, American-Irish Historical; Murray, Thomas Hamilton; Lawler, Thomas Bonaventure; McGowan, Patrick F.; Lee, Thomas Zanslaur; Daly, Edward Hamilton; Coyle, John G.; McSweeney, Edward Francis; Murphy, John Joseph (1921-01-01). The Journal of the American Irish Historical Society ... The Society.
