From Honey Fitz to Sweet Caroline: A Century of Fenway

Mayor John F. "Honey Fitz" Fitzgerald waves to the fans at Fenway Park, 1912

 

Read the article by Michael Quinlin in the June/July 2012 issue of Irish America Magazine entitled From Honey Fitz to Sweet Caroline: A Century of Fenway.

And read this story in the Irish Echo entitled Fenway Park Marks a Very Green Century.

And finally, here's a profile of Charles E. Logue, the Irish immigrant from County Derry who built Fenway Park, breaking ground on September 25, 1911, and finishing the park by April, 1912 for the opening of the Red Sox season.

Fenway Park is one of 20 landmarks on Boston's Irish Heritage Trail.

Fenway Park - an Irish-American Landmark for 100 Years

"The very first Opening Day at Fenway Park, April 20, 1912, had the appearance of an old-fashioned Irish field day.   Bucky O’Brien was on the pitcher’s mound. Umpire Tommy Connolly was behind home plate, and ace sports reporter Timothy Murnane was scribbling for the Boston Globe.  Mayor John “Honey Fitz” Fitzgerald, the grandfather of President John F. Kennedy, threw out the first pitch, officially kicking off the first major league game to take place at Fenway Park. ..."

Read the entire story in this week's Irish Echo.

Read about Charles E. Logue, the immigrant from County Derry, who built Fenway Park.

Fenway Park is located along Boston's Irish Heritage Trail, a three-mile walk over 300 years of Boston Irish history.  

For year round details on Irish cultural activities in Massachusetts and the New England region, visit IrishMassachusetts.com.

For visitor information, go to MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com.

John McDermott wins the first Boston Marathon in 1897

The first Boston Marathon was held on April 19,1897, inspired by the first modern Olympic Games held the previous year in Athens, Greece. 

The race was sponsored by the Boston Athletic Association, and the initial field consisted of fifteen runners, of which ten finished the race. John J. McDermott of the Pastime Athletic Club of New York won the race, finishing in two hours, fifty-five minutes and ten seconds.

Thomas E. Burke, who won first place in the 100 and 440 yard races at the Athens Olympics in 1896, was the official starter of the race.

The race started in Ashland and finished at Irvington Oval near Copley Square in Boston, which had a 220 yard track.  There BAA officials had organized an entire track and field meet in the spirit of the Olympic Games the previous year.

Among the most talked about races was the 100 yard dash, which had a stellar field that included Tom Burke of Boston University, J.S. Quinn  and W.J. Holland from Boston College, Frank Quinlan from Fordham University, and D.C. Byers of Yale.  Holland won the race, and his BC teammate Quinn took second.

McDermott apparently lost nine pounds running the race, and afterwards said, "This will probably be my last long race...look at my feet," wrote The Boston Globe in its April 20, 1897 story.  McDermott returned to Boston in 1898 and finished fourth.

For more on Boston's Irish history and heritage, visit IrishHeritageTrail.com.

Johnny Kelley - Boston's Great Marathon Man

Photo by Bill Brett

For the 116th running of the Boston Marathon taking place on Monday, April 16, 2012, our thoughts turn to John Adelbert  Kelley, who holds the record for running more Boston Marathons than any other athlete. 

Kelley was born in 1907 in West Medford, outside of Boston, and traces his ancestry to County Wexford.  "My father's people left to go to Australia," he told The Boston Globe in 1981, when he was preparing for his 50^th race.  "The boat stopped in Boston and they never left." 

Kelley ran his first marathons in 1928 and 1932 but did not finish either race.  He ran again in 1933 and has competed in every single race through 1992!  He finished in the top 10 eighteen times, taking first place in 1935 and again in1945.  He owns the record for the most races started (61) and the most finished (58).  His best time was two hours and thirty minutes, posted in 1943.  He was 84 when he ran his last race in 1992, posting a time of Five hours and fifty-eight minutes.

 

He was christened Johnny "The Elder" Kelley, when John J. Kelley (no relation) emerged as a champion in the 1950s, winning the race in 1957. 

In 1993 the Boston Athletic Association erected a statue honoring Johnny Kelley on Heartbreak Hill in Newton.  The twin statues depict Kelley in 1935 and again in 1995, holding hands as they cross the proverbial finish line.

 

 For more on Boston Irish history and heritage, visit IrishHeritageTrail.com or visit IrishMassachusetts.com.

For tourist information, visit MassVacation and BostonUSA.com.

Take a Tour of the Boston Irish Heritage Trail Today

Kevin White Statue at Faneuil Hall

The Boston Irish Tourism Association is offering guided walking tours of the Boston Irish Heritage Trail in celebration of St. Patrick's Day.  The tours runs on Sunday, March 18, 2012, starting at 12:30 p.m. daily at the Boston Common Visitor Center at 147 Tremont Street in Downtown Boston.

Cost of the tour is $15 per adult, $8 for children ages 6-12, and free for children under five.

The 75 minute walking tour by an experienced tour guide covers 13 of the 20 stops along the way (sites 1-13 on the map).  You’ll discover the Irish role in the Revolutionary War, learn about the 19th century Famine generation and the Irish part in the Civil War.  And you’ll discover famous and infamous politicians - from Curley and White to Collin and the Kennedys - who put their indelible stamp on the history of the city and the nation.

Reserve your spot on the tour by filling out the reservation form.  Or, you can also purchase tickets the day of the tour at the front desk of the Boston Common Visitors Information Center, but tickets could be sold out by then.

The Irish Heritage Trail was created by BITA in 2000 as a way to celebrate and learn about Boston's unique Irish-American culture and heritage. For more information,  contact irishmassachusetts@comcast.net.

For a schedule of St. Patrick's Day cultural activities in greater Boston and throughout the region, visit IrishMassachusetts.com.

For visitor information, go to MassVacation.com or BostonUSA.com.

St. Patrick's Day Weekend: Guided Tours of Boston Irish Heritage Trail

 

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by taking a guided tour of the Boston Irish Heritage Trail.

The tour is offered on Saturday, March 17 and Sunday, March 18, 2012 at 12:30 p.m., starting at the Boston Common Visitor Information Center.  

Tickets are $15 for adults and $8 for children ages 6-12. Children under six are free. You can purchase tickets at the Visitor Information Center on Boston Common or make your reservation online.

The 75 minute walk led by an experienced tour guide takes you on 300 fascinating years of Boston’s unique Irish history and heritage.  

You’ll discover the Irish role in the Revolutionary War, learn about the 19^th century Famine generation and the Irish part in the Civil War.  And you’ll discover famous and infamous politicians - from Curley and White to Collin and the Kennedys - who put their indelible stamp on the history of the city and the nation.

 

For more information, call 617 696 9880 or visit IrishHeritageTrail.com. 

Discover 300 Years of History on the Boston Irish Heritage Trail - Guided Tours on March 14-18

Curley Statues, Union Park 

The Boston Irish Tourism Association is offering guided walking tours of the Boston Irish Heritage Trail in celebration of St. Patrick's Day.

The tours run from Wednesday, March 14 through Sunday, March 18, 2012, starting at 12:30 p.m. daily at the Boston Common Visitor Center at 147 Tremont Street in Downtown Boston.

Cost of the tour is $15 per adult, $8 for children ages 6-12, and free for children under five.

The 75 minute walking tour by an experienced tour guide covers 13 of the 20 stops along the way (sites 1-13 on the map).  You’ll discover the Irish role in the Revolutionary War, learn about the 19th century Famine generation and the Irish part in the Civil War.  And you’ll discover famous and infamous politicians - from Curley and White to Collin and the Kennedys - who put their indelible stamp on the history of the city and the nation.

Reserve your spot on the tour by filling out the reservation form.  Or, you can also purchase tickets the day of the tour at the front desk of the Boston Common Visitors Information Center.

The Irish Heritage Trail was created by BITA in 2000 as a way to celebrate and learn about Boston's unique Irish-American culture and heritage.

 

For more information, call 617 696 9880, or contact irishmassachusetts@comcast.net. 

For a schedule of St. Patrick's Day cultural activities in greater Boston and throughout the region, visit IrishMassachusetts.com.

For visitor information, go to MassVacation.com or BostonUSA.com.