St. Patrick Cemetery Tour - Saturday, October 6

Join us for our Annual Historical Walking Tour

Saturday, October 6th at

St. Patrick Cemetery

1251 Gorham Street, Lowell, MA.

Find out how the first generation of Irish pioneers

lived and died.  The tour is free of charge.

Coffee and refreshments will be provided at 9:30 AM

next to the office area at the main gate entrance.

10:00 A.M.     Hibernian Dedication Ceremony

10:30 A.M.      Historical Walking Tour

Tour goes on rain or shine.

Wear comfortable walking shoes.

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If you're really in a mood for being outside around the birds and trees, maybe you'd want to join us on Saturday, September 29 at 9 a.m. for the annual clean up.  Because most of the historic stones are laid flat, Mother Nature does her best to cover them with sod, leaves, geese droppings, etc..  These stones were laid flat in the 1920 and 30s.  As the decades pass, they sink a little lower into the ground so it becomes necessary to edge around them.  Bring a corn broom if you can.  They're soft and won't harm the stones.  When I was in Tyrone I spent many hours on my knees digging.  Feeling is just beginning to return to my lower extremities.  For those who are able to bend down and get up again, a set of knee pads would be helpful.  We start early because the sun really warms up the yard.  We're usually out of there by 11. 

 I want to give a tip of the hat to one of the great volunteers who was so helpful in the first days of our research at St. Pat's Cemetery.  Jim McNamara recently passed away.  Jim and Mary were among those volunteers who spent weeks on Saturday mornings uncovering and recording information from the early, slate stones.  I recall walking Yard One when it was overgrown wondering how to approach the task, and Jim had the brainstorm idea to walk the Yard and poke holes looking for hidden stones. He was a man on a mission.   It worked!  He located dozens of hidden slates.  And because of him our story continues to grow today.  God's peace, Jim.