The Irish of Medina County

Jeff Schmaltz - NASA Earth Observatory

 By Kathy Petras

The people of Ireland were among the earliest settlers in America, falling only behind the English in immigration during the colonial years. 

Indeed, the first St. Patrick's Day Parade on this continent was in 1601 when the Irish vicar, Ricardo Artur, organized a parade in St. Augustine, Florida, which was then a Spanish colony. Then, in 1737 and 1762, homesick Irish soldiers in the English army marched in St. Patrick's Day Parades in 1737 in Boston, and 1762 in New York City.

Destitution in Ireland. Failure of the potato crop illustration
was published in The Pictorial Times on 22 August 1846
Image courtesy Researchgate.net.

The potato blight in Ireland during the 1840's launched a renewed wave of immigration to America when millions of Irish left their homeland. As destitute as they were, they were better off than the millions who could not even afford the fare to leave. One third of the immigrants coming to the U.S. were Irish between 1820 and 1860.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries the influx of Irish immigrants created a powerful political force in cities. They helped immigrant Irish get jobs, become naturalized and VOTE! And with this new pride and power came celebration of Irish culture, food and music. 

It's impossible to say who the first Irish man (or woman) was who entered Medina County, but it is safe to say that they were among the earliest settlers. The early histories of the county Pioneer History of Medina County (1861) and The History of Medina County and Ohio (1881) are almost silent on the topic except for a few nameless individuals:

 

Page 479 of the 1881 History of Medina County
and Ohio. The man lost his life and his name, 
apparently.

History of Medina County and Ohio, page 538.

This Irishman, last name "Clark", accompanied Justus Warner who pioneered Liverpool Township in 1811!

No "Clark" appears in the 1820 Census for Liverpool Township.  And without his first name, his identity would be difficult to find in land records.

These few examples show why the first Irish person in Medina may never be known.

What we are able to tell is, that by 1850, 216 people who had been born in Ireland then resided in Medina County. While we might want to assume that these Irish-born immigrants came to Medina as a result of the potato famine, a sampling of the individuals indicates that a large portion had been in the U.S. for 10 years or more and only a very small number had immigrated in the last 5 years.

The "born in Ireland" population in Medina, even in 1850 at its height, was never more than 1%.

Censuses of Medina County, showing residents reporting "born in Ireland"
1940 is the most recent census available. The 1950 Census becomes available later this year.

Also, the Irish immigrants in 1850 did not settle evenly throughout the county. Brunswick, which ranked 6th in overall population, had the most Irish-born residents. Homer had the next most Irish residents which is surprising because it ranked 16th in population (out of 17). The top five townships with Irish populations were:

• Brunswick - 38 people
• Homer - 23 people
• Litchfield - 22 people (12th in overall population ranking)
• Medina - 36 people (first in overall population ranking)
• Montville - 12 people (last in overall population ranking)

But by the time the 1881 History of Medina County and Ohio was published, the descendants of those early pioneer Irish were eager to claim their heritage with numerous claims of "of Irish descent", "born in County Donegal, Ireland", "of Irish stock", "native of Ireland" and "of Irish extraction."

Many Irish surnames are familiar in Medina, including, Dague, Martin, Burke, Warner, Berry, Munson and Canavan.

And while we can't track recent "Irish born" Medina County residents, we do know that 16% claimed some Irish ancestry in 2019...

2019 American Community Survey from Census.gov

Although Medina County doesn't host a St. Patrick's Day Parade, Medinians have celebrated the day for over 100 years.

SAINT PATRICK'S DAY IN MEDINA THROUGH THE DECADES

This tiny snippet in the 14 March 1879 Medina Gazette
informs us that they knew when St. Patrick's Day was.

Medina Gazette, 15 March 1907

This 1907 article may be one of the first events commemorating St. Patrick's Day in Medina. "The Story of Ireland by One Who Knows It" by Father J.R. Kenny. As reported in the 1910 Census for Medina County, Father John R. Kenny was born in Ireland in 1871 and came to the U.S. in 1902. He was a naturalized citizen. 

Medina County Naturalization Records.
John O'Rourke Kenny's Petition to become a
 naturalized citizen no. 4031

This is Father Kenny's Petition to become a citizen. He first filed his papers in 1903 in Erie Co., New York. He died in Cleveland as the pastor of St. Patrick's Church on Bridge Avenue. His memorial on FindaGrave.com lists 3 other male relatives who were also priests.

14 March 1913 Medina Sentinel  from
Newspaper Archives March 14,  Page 5 

By 1913, St. Patrick's Day was an excuse for a party. The W.CT.U. - Women's Christian Temperance Union - utilized the Town Hall for their "social". Note the error in their announcement - Feb. 14 instead of March 14.

 

Medina County Gazette from Newspaper Archives
April 19,1935, page 7

During the height of the Depression, Medina housewives were urged to use green in their color scheme for their St. Patrick's Day meal. Their suggested meal for the 1935 event included celery, green olives, creamed lobster, Shamrock rolls, Emerald Isle Salad and green tea. Creamed lobster in the middle of the biggest economic depression that this country has ever known?

 Medina County Gazette 9 Mar 9,1951, p. 5 

By the 1950's advertisers had claimed  

St. Patrick's Day for their own purposes,

 a trend that won't go away. 

Medina County Gazette, 15 Mar., 1969, p-4

This "ad" from 1969 took the form of an old Irish Blessing.

The Lodi Advertiser February 14th, 1973, p. 5 

These two items from the 1970's:

The first reminds us that "We are all 

Irish on St. Patrick's Day"

Medina County Gazette from Newspaper Archives
 February 23,1979  Page 32

And the second is a fun event at the Medina County Community Center, at the Medina County Fair Grounds.

These two articles from 1986 shared space on the newspaper page with articles about debris still being found after the space shuttle Challenger explosion.

Medina Gazette 8  March 1986

Medina Gazette 11 March 1986

A dubious addition to St Patrick's Day celebrations, green beer, was being offered at the Medina Bowling Lanes in 1995:

Medina Gazette 16 March 1995 

In 2002, The Gazette ran a word scramble contest featuring local businesses some of which no longer exist. How many can you make out?

Medina Gazette,  12 March 2002. 
This is just months after the 9/11 attacks. The war in Afghanistan was just heating up.

This rather bad scan of a 2012 ad for the On Tap restaurant was probably originally in color, green of course! Their celebration included Karaoke, corned beef and cabbage and Killians beer.

Medina Gazette 13 March 2012 

And remember, we are all Irish on Saint Patrick's Day!

Including this "Irish Lass".   DNA tests estimate that I have as much as 29% Irish ancestry, thanks to my 4X great grandmother, Fair Sabra Connolly, and my JOHNSON forebears.