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Irish ancestry Politicians in Missouri

  James Patrick Aylward (1885-1982) — also known as James P. Aylward — of Kansas City, Jackson County, Mo. Born in Peoria, Peoria County, Ill., September 10, 1885. Democrat. Lawyer; chair of Jackson County Democratic Party, 1918-36; Missouri Democratic state chair, 1934-40; member of Democratic National Committee from Missouri, 1934-44; Vice-Chair of Democratic National Committee, 1939. Catholic. Irish ancestry. Member, Phi Alpha Delta. Died in Kansas City, Jackson County, Mo., July 22, 1982 (age 96 years, 315 days). Interment at Calvary Cemetery, Kansas City, Mo.
  Relatives: Married to Clara E. Stanley; father of James Patrick Aylward Jr..
  See also Wikipedia article — Find-A-Grave memorial
  James Patrick Aylward Jr. (1918-2011) — also known as James P. Aylward, Jr.; Jim Aylward — of Kansas City, Jackson County, Mo. Born June 20, 1918. Democrat. Major in the U.S. Army during World War II; lawyer; delegate to Democratic National Convention from Missouri, 1956, 1960, 1968; Jackson County Tax Collector, 1971-74; candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Missouri, 1972. Catholic. Irish ancestry. Died, in Grace Hospice, Kansas City, Jackson County, Mo., April 17, 2011 (age 92 years, 301 days). Interment at Calvary Cemetery, Kansas City, Mo.
  Relatives: Son of James Patrick Aylward and Clara (Stanley) Aylward; married to Betty Bourk.
  See also Find-A-Grave memorial
  William Marshall Boyle Jr. (1903-1961) — also known as William M. Boyle, Jr.; Bill Boyle — of Kansas City, Jackson County, Mo. Born in Leavenworth, Leavenworth County, Kan., February 2, 1903. Democrat. Lawyer; Director, Kansas City Police, 1939; Chairman of Democratic National Committee, 1949-51; investigated in 1951 by the Senate Investigating Committee over his acceptance of fees from the American Lithifold Corporation of St. Louis, in return for using his influence as Democratic national chair to obtain loans for the company from the U.S. Reconstruction Finance Corporation; claimed to have been vindicated, but ultimately resigned under fire. Irish ancestry. Died in Washington, D.C., August 30, 1961 (age 58 years, 209 days). Burial location unknown.
  Relatives: Son of Clara Boyle; married to Genevieve Hayde.
  See also Wikipedia article
  Thomas Miles Bresnehen (1860-1926) — also known as Thomas M. Bresnehen — of Brookfield, Linn County, Mo. Born in Linn County, Mo., April 16, 1860. Democrat. Lawyer; delegate to Democratic National Convention from Missouri, 1904 (member, Committee to Notify Vice-Presidential Nominee); postmaster at Brookfield, Mo., 1914-19. Catholic. Irish ancestry. Died suddenly, from a heart attack, in Brookfield, Linn County, Mo., January 27, 1926 (age 65 years, 286 days). Interment at St. Michael's Cemetery, Brookfield, Mo.
  Relatives: Son of Thomas Bresnehen and Honora (Dailey) Bresnehen; married 1886 to Isabelle Hanscom.
  See also Find-A-Grave memorial
  Charles H. Cashin (1880-1961) — of Stevens Point, Portage County, Wis. Born in Kansas City, Jackson County, Mo., November 16, 1880. Democrat. Lawyer; delegate to Democratic National Convention from Wisconsin, 1936, 1940, 1944; member of Wisconsin Democratic State Central Committee, 1944; U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, 1944-51. Catholic. Irish ancestry. Member, American Bar Association; Elks. Died in Stevens Point, Portage County, Wis., February 27, 1961 (age 80 years, 103 days). Interment at St. Stephen Cemetery, Stevens Point, Wis.
  Relatives: Son of Patrick Henry Cashin and Mary Elizabeth (Hayden) Cashin; married, October 7, 1922, to Leona M. Geisler.
  See also Find-A-Grave memorial
  James J. Eagan (1926-2000) — also known as "The Jolly Green Giant" — of Florissant, St. Louis County, Mo. Born in St. Louis, Mo., March 4, 1926. Served in the U.S. Navy during World War II; lawyer; mayor of Florissant, Mo., 1963-2000. Catholic. Irish ancestry. Died, of an adverse reaction to a prescription drug, in St. John's Mercy Medical Center, St. Louis, Mo., November 2, 2000 (age 74 years, 243 days). His body was donated to science.
  David Wilfred Fitzgibbon (1905-1982) — also known as David W. Fitzgibbon — of St. Louis, Mo. Born in St. Louis, Mo., October 11, 1905. Democrat. Lawyer; member of Missouri state house of representatives from St. Louis City 5th District, 1933-34. Irish ancestry. Died in St. Louis, Mo., April 7, 1982 (age 76 years, 178 days). Burial location unknown.
  John J. Fitzpatrick (1910-1986) — of Detroit, Wayne County, Mich. Born in St. Louis, Mo., March 20, 1910. Democrat. Accountant; member of Michigan state house of representatives, 1949-66 (Wayne County 1st District 1949-54, Wayne County 6th District 1955-64, 25th District 1965-66); defeated, 1946 (Wayne County 1st District), 1966 (25th District), 1967 (19th District), 1968 (25th District), 1974 (17th District). Catholic. Irish ancestry. Member, Knights of Equity. Died in 1986 (age about 76 years). Burial location unknown.
  Relatives: Married 1939 to Olivia Perez.
  John Hagar Flanigan (1857-1915) — also known as John H. Flanigan; "Fire Alarm Flanigan" — of Carthage, Jasper County, Mo. Born in Almont, Lapeer County, Mich., July 3, 1857. Republican. Lawyer; member of Missouri state house of representatives from Jasper County Eastern District, 1889-90. Irish ancestry. Member, Knights of Pythias. Died in Carthage, Jasper County, Mo., January 24, 1915 (age 57 years, 205 days). Interment at Park Cemetery, Carthage, Mo.
  Relatives: Son of James Flanigan and Olive Maria (Hager) Flanigan; married, May 6, 1883, to Mary F. Leedy; father of John Hagar Flanigan (1889-1974).
  See also Find-A-Grave memorial
  Harold Joseph Patrick Gibbons (1910-1982) — also known as Harold J. Gibbons — of Kirkwood, St. Louis County, Mo. Born in Archibald Patch, Lackawanna County, Pa., April 10, 1910. Democrat. Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Missouri, 1952, 1956. Irish ancestry. Member, Teamsters Union; NAACP; American Civil Liberties Union. The site of the original Sportsman's Park baseball stadium in St. Louis, now a neighborhood playground, was named "Harold J. Gibbons Field" for him. Died, from complications of a ruptured aortic aneurysm, in Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, Calif., November, 1982 (age 72 years, 0 days). Interment at Memorial Park Cemetery, Jennings, Mo.
  See also Find-A-Grave memorial
  Michael Joseph Gill (1864-1918) — of St. Louis, Mo. Born in New York, December 5, 1864. Democrat. Glass blower; glass manufacturing business; U.S. Representative from Missouri 12th District, 1914-15; defeated, 1898 (10th District), 1912 (12th District), 1916 (12th District). Catholic. Irish ancestry. Died, from influenza and bronchial pneumonia, in St. John's Hospital, St. Louis, Mo., November 1, 1918 (age 53 years, 331 days). Interment at Calvary Cemetery, St. Louis, Mo.
  Relatives: Son of Michael Gill and Margaret (O'Toole) Gill; married, May 27, 1891, to Agnes Strubel.
  See also congressional biography — Govtrack.us page — Find-A-Grave memorial
  John Joseph Glennon (1862-1946) — also known as John J. Glennon — of St. Louis, Mo. Born in Kinnegad, County Westmeath, Ireland, June 14, 1862. Democrat. Catholic priest; Archbishop of St. Louis, 1903-46; offered prayer, Democratic National Convention, 1904. Catholic. Irish ancestry. Died in Dublin, Ireland, March 9, 1946 (age 83 years, 268 days). Entombed at Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis, St. Louis, Mo.
  Relatives: Son of Matthew Glennon and Catherine (Rafferty) Glennon.
  The community of Glennonville, Missouri, is named for him.
  See also Wikipedia article — Find-A-Grave memorial
Robert E. Hannegan Robert Emmet Hannegan (1903-1949) — also known as Robert E. Hannegan — of St. Louis, Mo. Born in St. Louis, Mo., June 30, 1903. Democrat. Lawyer; delegate to Democratic National Convention from Missouri, 1940; speaker, 1944; U.S. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, 1943; Chairman of Democratic National Committee, 1944-47; U.S. Postmaster General, 1945-47; part owner of the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team, 1947-49. Catholic. Irish ancestry. Member, American Bar Association; Sigma Nu Phi. Died suddenly from a heart ailment, in St. Louis, Mo., October 6, 1949 (age 46 years, 98 days). Interment at Calvary Cemetery, St. Louis, Mo.
  Relatives: Son of John Patrick Hannegan and Anna (Holden) Hannegan; married, November 14, 1929, to Irma Protzmann.
  See also Wikipedia article
  Image source: Truman Library
  Richard C. Kerens (1842-1916) — of St. Louis, Mo. Born in Killberry, County Meath, Ireland, 1842. Republican. Served in the Union Army during the Civil War; railroad builder; member of Republican National Committee from Missouri, 1884-1900; member, Arrangements Committee, Republican National Convention, 1896 ; U.S. Ambassador to Austria-Hungary, 1910-13. Catholic. Irish ancestry. Died in Merion, Montgomery County, Pa., September 4, 1916 (age about 74 years). Entombed at Calvary Cemetery, St. Louis, Mo.
  Relatives: Son of Thomas Kerens and Elizabeth (Gugerty) Kerens; married, June 2, 1867, to Frances Jane Jones.
  The city of Kerens, Texas, is named for him.  — The community of Kerens, West Virginia, is named for him.
  See also Wikipedia article — U.S. State Dept career summary
  Daniel Kerwin (1826-1907) — also known as "Honest Dan" — of St. Louis, Mo. Born in County Kildare, Ireland, August 13, 1826. Democrat. Blacksmith; manufacturer; proprietor, Anchor Iron Works and Bolt Factory; delegate to Democratic National Convention from Missouri, 1880; member of Missouri state senate 34th District, 1887-90. Catholic. Irish ancestry. Died in Kirkwood, St. Louis County, Mo., November 3, 1907 (age 81 years, 82 days). Interment at Calvary Cemetery, St. Louis, Mo.
  Relatives: Son of James Kerwin and Mary (Reeves) Kerwin; married 1854 to Mary E. Knight.
  Thomas E. Kinney (b. 1871) — of St. Louis, Mo. Born in St. Louis, Mo., 1871. Democrat. Merchant; member of Missouri state senate 31st District, 1905-12; candidate for U.S. Representative from Missouri 12th District, 1910. Irish ancestry. Burial location unknown.
  Thomas Francis Lillis (1861-1938) — also known as Thomas F. Lillis — of Kansas City, Jackson County, Mo.; Leavenworth, Leavenworth County, Kan. Born in Lexington, Lafayette County, Mo., March 3, 1861. Republican. Catholic priest; bishop of Leavenworth, Kans. (1905-10) and Kansas City, Mo. (1913-38); offered prayer, Republican National Convention, 1928. Catholic. Irish ancestry. Died in Kansas City, Jackson County, Mo., December 29, 1938 (age 77 years, 301 days). Entombed at Mt. St. Mary's Cemetery, Kansas City, Mo.
  Relatives: Son of James Lillis and Margaret (Jordan) Lillis.
  See also Wikipedia article — Find-A-Grave memorial
  Michael Knowles McGrath (1833-1913) — also known as Michael K. McGrath — of St. Louis, Mo. Born in County Cork, Ireland, September, 1833. Democrat. Served in the Confederate Army during the Civil War; secretary of state of Missouri, 1875-89; member of Missouri state house of representatives from St. Louis City 6th District, 1913; died in office 1913. Irish ancestry. Died January 28, 1913 (age 79 years, 0 days). Burial location unknown.
  Peter R. Morrissey (1859-1895) — of St. Louis, Mo. Born in St. Louis County, Mo., August 14, 1859. Democrat. Saloon keeper; arrested in December 1886 on federal charges of vote fraud; found guilty in April 1887, but released because the indictment did not specify that the ballots were for a federal office; indicted again soon after, but the charges were dropped in November; indicted for naturalization fraud in 1889, but not convicted; member of Missouri state senate 31st District, 1893-95; died in office 1895. Catholic. Irish ancestry. While in bed, he was shot twice with his own pistol, and killed, by his mistress, Maud Lewis, in her "house of ill repute", in St. Louis, Mo., May 13, 1895 (age 35 years, 272 days). After a dramatic and highly publicized trial, Maud Lewis was convicted of second degree murder and sentenced to fifteen years in prison; she was pardoned by Gov. Lon Vest Stephens in January 1901. Interment at Calvary Cemetery, St. Louis, Mo.
  See also Find-A-Grave memorial
  Jack O'Shea (b. 1895) — of St. Louis, Mo. Born in Ireland, April 1, 1895. Democrat. Merchant; member of Missouri state house of representatives from St. Louis City 1st District, 1937-38, 1941-42. Irish ancestry. Burial location unknown.
  Relatives: Married, June 1, 1924, to Daisy Schupp.
  James S. Rooney (b. 1902) — of Liberty, Clay County, Mo. Born in Liberty, Clay County, Mo., August 4, 1902. Democrat. Lawyer; Clay County Prosecuting Attorney, 1931-36; circuit judge in Missouri 7th Circuit, 1937-47. Irish ancestry. Burial location unknown.
  Relatives: Son of Patrick M. Rooney and Margaret (Somers) Rooney; married, January 7, 1937, to Frances Murphy.
  Terence John Scanlon (1931-1992) — also known as Terry Scanlon — Born in St. Joseph, Buchanan County, Mo., July 26, 1931. Democrat. Businessman who owned Pizza Hut restaurant franchises, a beer distributorship, and was publisher of the Wichita Business Journal; Kansas Democratic state chair, 1977-79. Irish ancestry. Died, of pancreatic cancer, in St. Francis Medical Center, Wichita, Sedgwick County, Kan., January 15, 1992 (age 60 years, 173 days). Interment at Calvary Cemetery, Wichita, Kan.
  See also Find-A-Grave memorial
  George F. Shannon (c.1785-1836) — also known as "Peg Leg" — of St. Charles, St. Charles County, Mo. Born in a log cabin in Washington County, Pa., about 1785. Youngest member of the Lewis and Clark expedition, 1804-06; wounded in a skirmish with Indians in 1807 and lost a leg; lawyer; member of Kentucky state house of representatives, 1820-24; circuit judge in Kentucky, 1820; U.S. Attorney for Missouri, 1829-34. Irish ancestry. Member, Freemasons. Died, in a hotel at Palmyra, Marion County, Mo., August 30, 1836 (age about 51 years). Interment at Massey Mill Cemetery, Near Palmyra, Marion County, Mo.
  Relatives: Son of George David Shannon and Jane (Milligan) Shannon; brother of Thomas Shannon, James Shannon and Wilson Shannon; married, September 18, 1813, to Ruth Snowden Price; granduncle of Isaac Charles Parker.
  Political family: Shannon-Shelby family.
  Shannon County, Mo. is named for him.
  See also Wikipedia article
  James Shields (1806-1879) — of Springfield, Sangamon County, Ill.; Belleville, St. Clair County, Ill.; Rice County, Minn.; San Francisco, Calif.; Carrollton, Carroll County, Mo. Born in Altmore, County Tyrone, Ireland (now Northern Ireland), May 10, 1806. Democrat. Lawyer; member of Illinois state house of representatives, 1836; member of Illinois Democratic State Committee, 1839-41; Illinois state auditor of public accounts, 1841-43; in 1842, when the Springfield paper published letters from "Aunt Becca" ridiculing him, Shields demanded to know who wrote them; Abraham Lincoln (then a Springfield lawyer) acknowledged responsibility, and Shields challenged him to a duel, which was averted only through the intervention of friends; justice of Illinois state supreme court, 1843-45; Commissioner of the General Land Office, 1845-47; general in the U.S. Army during the Mexican War; U.S. Senator from Illinois, 1849, 1849-55; U.S. Senator from Minnesota, 1858-59; general in the Union Army during the Civil War; candidate for U.S. Representative from Missouri, 1868; member of Missouri state house of representatives, 1874, 1879; U.S. Senator from Missouri, 1879. Catholic. Irish ancestry. Died in Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa, June 1, 1879 (age 73 years, 22 days). Interment at St. Mary's Cemetery, Carrollton, Mo.; statue at Courthouse Grounds, Carrollton, Mo.; statue at State Capitol Grounds, St. Paul, Minn.
  Relatives: Nephew of James Shields (1762-1831).
  The community of Shieldsville, Minnesota (which he founded), is named for him.  — The World War II Liberty ship SS James Shields (built 1943 at Terminal Island, Los Angeles, California; scrapped 1971) was named for him.
  See also congressional biography — Govtrack.us page — Wikipedia article — Find-A-Grave memorial
  Martin Ward (1874-1914) — of St. Louis, Mo. Born in Missouri, May 5, 1874. Democrat. Bartender; elected Missouri state house of representatives from St. Louis City 3rd District 1914, but died before taking office. Irish ancestry. Died, from heart disease, in St. Louis, Mo., November 26, 1914 (age 40 years, 205 days). Interment at Calvary Cemetery, St. Louis, Mo.
  Relatives: Son of Martin Ward and Margaret (Curley) Ward.
  See also Find-A-Grave memorial
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