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“Jesus Christ is the firstborn from the dead; glory and kingship be His for ever and ever.” Revelation 1:5
Historian's Corner
Kelly Grimaldi, Historian, Albany Diocesan Cemeteries
Our lives these days seem to revolve around issues such as the economy, high unemployment, shrinking nest-eggs and increased healthcare costs to name to name several. Life is tough for many people. I do not mean to downplay the hardships some of us are enduring today, but perhaps we need to consider life has not gotten harder – we have become less resilient. Imagine for a moment there were no government funded social welfare programs, no unemployment benefits, no government subsidies, bailouts or other safety nets to keep us from hitting rock bottom. Our ancestors had none of these advantages we take for granted today. Life was truly tough and yet they faced down hardships like we can never imagine. For example, my great-grandmother was one of millions of victims of the flu epidemic that raged throughout the world in 1918. She was only 32 years old and pregnant with her ninth child when she got sick and died. With no wife to care for the children, her husband, who worked six days a week, 12 – 14 hours a day as a brick layer, was forced to send my grandmother and five of her brothers and sisters to the Catholic run St. Vincent’s Orphan Asylum until they each reached the age of nine.
Once a child reached nine years old they could work or at least take care of themselves. My grandmother did exactly that. She never talked about why she lived in a Catholic orphanage for six years, nor did she ever complain. It was hard getting any information from her because, as far as she was concerned, her childhood was perfectly normal and therefore, nothing much to discuss. She did not understand how, from my perspective, her idea of normal was light years away from my thinking. She voiced her recollections of the past in a nonchalant manner as though she had no idea of the great hardship her family endured. She never spoke of bad times. I always thought that perhaps the bad things were too painful to talk about but I was wrong – bad times were, well… normal, not just for her, but for most people of her class.
Immigrant families were the backbone of the working class in Albany and surrounding towns and many of their descendants still live in the Capital Region. To celebrate their untold contribution to the ethnic history of the United States, Historic St. Agnes Cemetery will offer a free lecture and glimpse into the past through the words of local author and historian Margaret Lynch-Brennan. Dr. Lynch-Brennan, author of The Irish Bridget, will lead us on the path to understanding the hardships and endurance of ordinary, working class people with a focus on Irish women and their role in domestic service from 1840 – 1930. All are welcome. The details of this lecture are listed below:
Topic: “The Irish Bridget” The Story of Irish Immigrant Women in Domestic Service
Refreshments will be provided. Contact Kelly Grimaldi to reserve your seat(s): 463-0134 or email KellyAnn.Grimaldi@rcda.org
Speaker: Margaret Lynch-Brennan, Ph.D.
Date: February 17, 2011 from 6:30 – 7:30 PM
Location: St. Joseph’s Provincial House, 385 Watervliet-Shaker Road, Latham 12110 http://www.csjalbany.org/index.cfm/HospitalityCenter/
There is no cost (donations to the St. Agnes Cemetery’s Heritage Society are appreciated).
Past Historian Articles:Current
4-9-2012
4-2-2012
12-2011
10-2011
9-2011
2-2011
1-2011
6-2010
Artwork by Joe Mele.
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