Irwin Gravesites Spring Grove Cemetery Cincinnati, Ohio

Pictured here are the Irwin Graves and below, the Gravestone for Archibald Irwin.
You may visit these in the historic Spring Grove Cemetery.  You SHOULD go visit.
Images courtesy of Bonnie Speeg

Along The Ohio River Front in Cincinnati, Ohio we find the reminder of what was once a thriving business in a pioneer city, founded by John Irwin's father William and brother Archibald.

There is a short alleyway just yards from where the Fosters, Irwins, Findlays and others, worked and resided.  The street sign is posted here and currently in the possession of Bonnie Speeg.
Perhaps a rededication will one day return it to its role as historic navigator.



John's brother, Archibald, is memorialized in his Obituary below.
Courtesy of Bonnie Speeg

And here is the Obituary for John Irwin, brother of Archibald Irwin, Esq.  John died in Berlin Crossroads, Ohio which was a famous station on the Underground Railroad and first settled by the descendants of Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemmings.  John's wife, Hannah Combs Irwin, died the year after.  Berlin Crossroads, Ohio is re-discovering its own history and have started their own Facebook page which is full of rich history.  They can be found on Facebook as Berlin X Roads.

Berlin Crossroads Ohio where John and Hannah Combs lived in 1850.

Irwin & Foster Steam-Powered Packet Boat Firm Takes A Trip To Texas

Remember that this is a multiple page Irwin Family chronology, so be sure to click through everything for all the history postings.  Archive List appears on the right.

John Irwin, the 3rd grandfather of Patrick Burns Irwin, left a family in Cincinnati for a move to Appalachia Ohio, after the 1824 death of his father William Irwin.  The Cincinnati relatives were merchants, founders and boosters of the growing city and employed in the business of moving people and product up and down the big rivers of the USA.  The Irwin family assets were hammered by the infamous Panic of 1819.  Google it for more information but know that Cincinnati was one of the hardest hit cities in the young USA.  Things began to improve in 1822 but John Irwin may have seen greener pasture far removed from city life.  Or maybe Cincinnati was such a bankrupt mess that it was time for John to get out while the getting was good.

This is a photo of a classic, steam-powered packet boat.  It carried people, cattle, bales of cotton from southern plantations, produce of every description and machinery required in the settlement of western lands.  This is how the Irwin's made their living.  It was risky.  There was a lot of competition, it all turned on the unlawful institution of slavery and the boats frequently caught fire and sank.

Irwin & Foster Firm was located at #4 Cassilly Row, otherwise known as Old Rat Row.  This was the rough and tough waterfront district of Cincinnati.  John's brother Archibald was in business with Dunning Foster.  Dunning was the brother of American Composer, Stephen Foster and the young Foster worked for the Irwin & Foster firm as a bookkeeper on the riverboats.
The famous song, Oh Susanna, was written during Foster's bookkeeping days with the Irwins.

So, the Foster family packed the artist Stephen off for Cincinnati.
The prospect there seemed a good one. He was to enter the office of his older brother, Dunning McNair Foster, who was in partner­ship with Archibald Irwin, Jr.
Dunning had engaged a room for Stephen in the boarding house where he now lived. 
This was the home of Mrs. Jane Griffin, a widow who was a communicant of St. Paul's Church; a circumstance which, as the Fosters were devout Episcopalians, doubtless pleased Mrs. Foster much better than Dunning's earlier quarters at the Broadway Hotel. The boarding house was on tree-shaded Fourth Street, in a good neighborhood and within easy walking distance of the Irwin & Foster office.

The sign Stephen saw as he stood before the door at No. 4 Cassilly's Row, East Front Street, near the wharf, read IRWIN & FOS­TER, AGENTS. 
They were designated as commission and forwarding merchants and steamboat agents. Stephen soon learned pre­cisely what that title meant. 
It meant com­petition with the half dozen firms in Cassilly's Row and other office buildings along the river front for freight and passenger business.
Each firm represented several steamboat companies
Irwin & Foster Agents today, is the present site of the Guilford Public School, Fourth Street between Broadway and Ludlow, and near the University Club.

This is a story about our Cincinnati Irwin's in business with the family of Stephen A. Foster, the songwriter of "Beautiful Dreamer" and other old hit tunes.

In soliciting the trade of local manufacturers and merchants and the patronage of the trave­ling public, the young partners—they were still in their twenties—had made a good start. Dunning Foster, after several years as a clerk on an Ohio River steamboat, had brought river experience as well as good looks and affability to his work as a solicitor. The energy and stability of Irwin & Foster, however, were supplied by Archibald Irwin, Jr. 

"Archibald Irwin, Esq." had come from Pennsylvania in the early 1820's and had won success as a commission merchant.  He was treasurer of the Little Miami Railroad Company which did not achieve legal incorporation until 1836.  

Archibald, Jr., displayed the Scotch Presbyterian qualities of his father and of their relatives, prominent in industry and in law. 
He saw to it that Irwin & Foster sailings always had top place in the steam­boat advertisements in the newspapers. He was a vigorous figure in the movement of the river men in the fall of 1848 to support General Zachary Taylor for the Presidency.
When the new clerk and bookkeeper turned to the steamboat advertisements in the local newspapers he found that of nineteen announcements, Irwin & Foster ranked second in number only to Rogers & Sherlock among the local steamboat agents. 
Right at the top of the column were five separate notices that Irwin & Foster boats were sailing for Pitts­burgh, St. Louis and points on the Arkansas.River. 
Later the list expanded to include Louisville, Nashville, Memphis and far-off New Orleans. There must have been fascina­tion for Stephen in these destinations and in the picturesque names of boats which he entered on the bookkeeping ledgers: Northern Light, Taglioni, Chalmetto, Talisman, Ohio Belle, Planet, Gladiator, Schuylkill, South Amer­ica, Bolivar, Germantown, Clipper, Messenger, Hibernia, Mary Stevens, Declaration, and Tele­graph.

The Telegraph—bound for the Southland! A melody had been bubbling in Stephen's brain which called itself "Oh! Susanna." So he had the Black narrator of the song shout "I jumped aboard de Telegraph." 

On certain spring mornings as he looked down the olive-green river from the office windows, Stephen Foster would doubtless have liked to jump aboard too.
Then Archibald Irwin or Dunning would hand him bills of lading, mute reminders that passenger travel was only one part of this business and of life. He would neatly write on the books the shipments for Pittsburgh on the daily packet service: "10 hhds Sugar, 13 feacks Wool, 10 tons Sundries"; "13 brls 'Potatoes, 2.5 do Whisky, ao tons Sundries"; '"100 brls Lime, 5 do Alcohol, 1 do Oil, 6 tons Sundries"; and "120 brls Whisky, 18 do Lard Oil, 7 hhds Bees Wax."

Bonnie Speeg is the owner-keeper of a journal, hand-written in 1843 by one of the Irwins, and she has been kind enough to share some of the history of the neighborhood with us.  
"The Steamboat Commissioner, Archibald Irwin (Irwin & Whiteman), resided on the site of what is now Guilford School, from 1820 to1850; he was the employer of Stephen Foster.
Without the job procured by his brother to work at Irwin & Foster, "Oh Susannah" could not be claimed to have been written in our city.
The Irwin family is part of the Stephen Foster biography by Ken Emerson titled "Doo-Dah!" (1998) 
Irwin's sister Jane Findlay lived around the corner on Broadway and Arch Street. (presently the police station). 
Jane's niece, Jane Findlay, married William H. Harrison II and escorted her father-in-law to Washington, D.C. when he was inaugurated.
Jane Harrison returned to Cincinnati and interacted between the Irwins and Findlays often between Arch Street and Lytle and Fourth.
Irwin and his daughter walked with John Quincy Adams to Mt. Adams, in 1843, for the laying of the Observatory Cornerstone.
Archibald Irwin became Railroad Director (prior to Strader) in 1850..he lived on Arch Street."


These boats hauled freight where the going rate was $0.05 per 100 pounds for long journeys and $0.25 per 100 pounds for short trips.  They did a lot of commerce with the southern plantation owners and therefore, abolition of slavery was a hotly contested issue within the city of Cincinnati and abolitionist politics were often considered "bad for business".  John's wife, Hannah, was a woman of color so she was probably considered "bad for business" as well.

John Irwin's tombstone records that he and his first cousin James Irwin rode one of these boats south to fight in the Mexican American War.  James died in Mexico and John returned to his family, who then lived in Lawrence County Ohio.  A new baby William was born to Hannah while John was away at war.  What an adventure!  And by coincidence, Texas was a stop on their journey to Mexico.  Camp Irwin was named for the fallen cousin James Irwin.

CAMP IRWIN. Camp Irwin, also called Camp Placedo, was a Mexican War encampment established in October 1846 on Placedo Creek near the Port Lavaca-Victoria Road, twelve miles west of Port Lavaca in Victoria County Texas. 
It was named for James R. Irwin, Chief Quartermaster of Winfield Scott's army during the Mexico City campaign, and it served as a rendezvous for troops assigned to Gen. John E. Wool's Center Division and as a temporary military supply depot

Birth:	James Irwin born Dec. 1, 1800 Franklin County Pennsylvania, USA
Death:	Jan. 10, 1847 Distrito Federal, Mexico
United States Military Officer. He was born in Franklin County, Pennsylvania and was the son of Archibald and Mary Irwin. He served in the US Army as an Assistant Quarter-Master General. He died from pneumonia in 1847 in Mexico City during the Mexican-American War. His grave was removed to Spring Grove on July 30, 1858.  Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum is the historic burial grounds for the Cincinnati Irwin's.

A bit more about James Ramsey Irwin

Drum Castle

Take The Virtual Inside And Outside Tour Of Drum Castle.  Paste this address in your browser and you should be good to go.  Your ancestral home is now a museum and can be toured during the warm months of the year.  Head to Aberdeen and have a look-see.

http://www.nts.org.uk/Learn/virtual_drumcastle.php

Archibald Irwin House Mercersburg, Pennsylvania

Archibald Irwin House Mercersburg PA is where John's father William Irwin was born. Archibald died in Mercersburg Franklin County Pennsylvania on January 23, 1798. 

William Irwin was born 1766 Mercersburg PA and died July 16 1824 Cincinnati Ohio. He is buried in the historic Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum and was husband to Mary "Polly" Smith and father to John Irwin born 1801 in Mercersburg.

This building belonged to and was built by Archibald Irwin, the son of James Irwin. Archibald was also known as Ensign Archibald Irwin of the Reverend John Steele's Company of Armstrong's Battalion in 1756 during the French and Indian War.

They had a place that became known as "Irwinton Mills" out on the West Branch of the Conococheague. 
Today the same place is known as "Anderson Mill." 

A log house there that still stands and is in good condition, and was built in 1732. A wonderful stone house was completed around 1768. This Irwin family was connected with both Presidents Harrisons. 

James Irwin, Archibald's father was born @ 1700,  and was a Scotch-Irish immigrant who came to Pennsylvania in 1729 with seven other Irwins from the Glencoe County Antrim Northern Ireland area. The Irwins operated mills, a bleaching plant and a smith shop back in Ireland. James Irwin in 1748 owned 540 acres in Peters Twp. just north of present day Mercersburg, Pennsylvania. By 1766 he owned a mill valued at three pounds 12 shillings and by 1769 the value of the mill was 10 pounds six shillings.

During the Revolutionary War, Archibald Irwin's oldest son, James, began to do commissary duty for the Western Army at Irwinton's Mills. James Irwin organized pack horse trains to carry flour, meat and other provisions to Pittsburgh for the Western Army. James Irwin acted as an assistant commissary under the appointment of Col. George Morgan, who was Commissary General for the Western Army, whose headquarters were at Pittsburgh.

Large quantities of flour were made at Irwinton's Mill, packed in kegs, each weighing about one hundred pounds, to be sent west. Flour was brought in from Washington County, Maryland. Large numbers of beef cattle were driven to Irwinton's plantation to be purchased, slaughtered and processed in a recently erected slaughter house, and sent to the Western Armies. James Irwin stated that the Pittsburgh Quarter Master Department had four brigades of pack horses each containing about one hundred horses, with one horse master and twelve riders to each brigade, to carry provisions west for the Army. The mill must have been busy and crowded, with one hundred pack horses being loaded, and with their drivers and horse master preparing for a trip over the mountains to Pittsburgh.

Archibald Irwin died in 1798 and the plantation was given to his youngest son, Archibald Irwin II.

Archibald Irwin's oldest daughter, Jane, married William Henry Harrison, Jr., son of the General and President William Henry Harrison, at Irwinton Mills in 1824. Jane Irwin Harrison was mistress of the White House during the brief administration of the first President Harrison in 1841. Archibald Irwin's daughter, Elizabeth, married John Scott Harrison.
In 1889 Benjamin Harrison, the oldest son of Elizabeth Irwin Harrison, became President of the United States.

Anderson's Mill / Irwinton Mill

Franklin Co. | Pennsylvania | USA | Orig. mill 1760, rebuilt 1856

Township: Montgomery Twp. | Watersource: West Branch Conococheague Creek.

The old grist mill is located at 9717 Anderson Road along-side the West Branch of the Conococheague Creek. The Irwinton Homestead is near the mill as are the "Hays Fording" Double Arch Stone Bridge and the Witherspoon s "Red" Covered Bridge.

A Driving Tour Of Irwin County In Southern Franklin County PA French And Indian War Era

http://www.explorefranklincountypa.com

Request A Vistor's Guide!

Father James Irwin And Son Archibald Irwin Support The Revolutionary War

Final Resting Place For James Irwin

Had John Irwin chosen to remain in Cincinnati with his Irwin Family, he would most likely have joined the Irwin merchant business or partnered with brother Archibald in the Irwin & Foster Steamboat Agency/Firm.  View top photo, 6th building from left with big awning.

John Irwin's Father, William Irwin as he appears in the records of The Cincinnati Directory 1819
Irwin, William (Merchant) 34 Main St., Cincinnati, Ohio (Male),
(Morgan#1114)   
Search: Cincinnati. Directory. The Cincinnati Directory,
Containing the Name (Cincinnati, 1819) Page 127.        
Search Irwin, William (Board of Directors, Farmers and Mechanicks' Bank) 34
Main St., Cincinnati, Ohio (Male), (Morgan#1114)        
Search: Cincinnati.Directory. 
The Cincinnati Directory, Containing the Name (Cincinnati,1819) Page 46.  Search Irwin, William (President, Farmers and Mechanicks' Bank) 34 Main St.,
Cincinnati, Ohio (Male), (Morgan#1114)
William Irwin Bank President Signature

William Irwin's Friends and Business Peers Were:

William Henry Harrison was a major general in the War of 1812 and returned home to Ohio a hero. He was elected to two important offices, serving in the House of Representatives from 1816-1819 and in the U.S. Senate from 1825-1828. 

James Findlay, former mayor of Cincinnati, served in the House from 1825-1833. Findlay’s brother William was Governor of Pennsylvania and then its U.S. Senator from 1821-27, while Harrison was in the same body. The Harrisons and Findlays were related by marriage, both having intertwined with a very early Ohio pioneer family named Irwin. 

Archibald Irwin Sr. had a son William, a daughter Jane who married James Findlay, and another son Archibald Jr. 

This second Archibald had two daughters who married sons of the future president: Jane Irwin married William Henry Harrison, Jr. in 1824 and Elizabeth Irwin married John Scott Harrison, his younger brother, in 1831. Jane was brought up by her aunt, Mrs. James Findlay, and remained close to her. Elizabeth became the mother of Pres. Benjamin Harrison. 

In the 1840 election, William Henry Harrison was elected President of the United States. When March 4, 1841, the time for the Harrison inauguration, arrived, the new President's wife was unable to go to Washington because of illness. So her daughter-in-law Jane, the wife of William Henry Jr., went instead, taking along her aunt, Mrs. Findlay. Thus it was that Jane Harrison served as First Lady, while her aunt lived in the White House with her. 

Their tenure there was short, as Pres. Harrison caught pneumonia at the inauguration and died April 4, only a month after he became chief executive. James Smith was a business partner of Gen. Findlay, their firm Smith & Findlay operating one of the early stores in Cincinnati. He was highly thought of, and was elected the first sheriff of Hamilton County (which includes Cincinnati). During a portion of this time he was collector of revenue in the Northwest Territory for the U.S. government. He was also captain of the first militia company raised in Cincinnati, and when the War of 1812 broke out, went to the front as paymaster of the First Regiment, to assist in paying off the troops on the frontier. He saw action in Fort Meigs when it was besieged by the British and Indians.

 In order to serve as paymaster,  James Smith was required to provide security in the form of a surety. William Irwin, brother of Archibald Irwin Jr. and Jane Findlay, acted in this capacity on his behalf. Irwin’s liability was ongoing until Smith’s account could be settled, and by 1821 the time to do that had arrived. Irwin was apparently called upon to advance money per his surety agreement and needed as much time as he could get to provide the funds. Thus he called upon his friend and future relative, William Henry Harrison, fresh from Washington and with plenty of friends and influence there, to aid him. The result is the following letter.

William Henry Harrison January 22, 1821. "You forgot to give me an answer to the application I made to you in behalf of Mr. W. Irwin of Cincinnati. The Secy. of the Treasury has referred him to you to fix the time which shall be given him to procure the vouchers necessary to settle the account of Pay Master James Smith whose security he is. Mr. Irwin is a particular friend of mine & a very worthy man. I must beg of you to indulge him with as long time as possible." P. S. "Be pleased to drop a line to Mr. Irwin on the subject."
The recipient of this letter was very likely one of the chief auditors of the Treasury Department, as a person in that position would have had the responsibility of handling matters such as this.  An interesting letter of Harrison, indicating he was not above intervening with government officials to assist his friends and relatives. William Irwin died just a few years later in 1824, perhaps of surprise or aggravation at having to actually make a surety payment on behalf of the usually-reliable Smith. Amount was $2,995.

H John Irwin chose to leave the city after the death of his father, William, in 1824, and marry Hannah Combs in June of 1825 in the wilds of Adams County Ohio.  Hannah had Combs relatives living adjacent to Serpent Mound during the 1820's.  Serpent Mound is significant because it was and still is considered a sacred place by Native American People.
Hannah and her Meigs Township, Adams County, Combs relatives included Francis Combs, John Combs and Thomas Combs, all descended from the Combs family of historic Tonoloway Settlement, Hampshire County Virginia and Charles County Maryland.

Combs connections are found as early as 1608 and from there, throughout the development of the colonies.  As pioneer people, they married freely with Native people and into Native tribes, like Hannah's  Chickasaw, who were known for sheltering, indenturing and including escaped people of color into their indigenous communities.  Slavery was also the economic foundation of Charles County Maryland where the Combs were a leading Catholic, planter family.

The first Combs arriving in Maryland were Catholic.  In England, Catholics could not hold office and suffered multiple persecutions.  Combs and 200 other families were recruited by Lord Cecil Calvert, a powerful Catholic, to leave England settle the new colonial lands.  Because they refused to take the Oath of Supremacy, the Combs were forbidden to leave England and got around this problems by hiding on the Isle of Wright and boarding ship after London Harbor was cleared.  They arrived in Charles County, Maryland in 1676.

Hannah was of a multi-racial background and probably not entirely safe in Cincinnati where racial tension was high, race riots were frequent and slave bounty hunters were a daily fact of life.  Elsewhere on this blog you will read the story of her being accosted by White women on the streets of Jackson Ohio for being an obviously "Indian" woman in the company of a handsome White man, her husband John Irwin.  Hannah's reply was rapid fire.

John's Brother, Archibald Irwin

Irwin, Archibald (Merchant, Commission, Irwin Archibald) Ludlow bw 3rd and 4th, Cincinnati, Ohio (Male)	Cincinnati. Directory. The Cincinnati Directory for 1842. Charles Cist, Compiler. (Cincinnati, 1842) Page 185.
Irwin, Archibald (Merchant, Irwin and Whiteman) Cincinnati, Ohio (Male)	Cincinnati. Directory. Cincinnati Directory, for the Year 1829. (Cincinnati, 1829) Page 67.
Irwin, Archibald (Councilman First Ward, Cincinnati City Council) Cincinnati, Ohio (Male)	Cincinnati. Directory. Cincinnati Directory, for the Years 1836--7. (Cincinnati, 1836) Page 201.
Irwin, Archibald (Merchant, Commission, Irwin and Whiteman) Ludlow Near 4th, Cincinnati, Ohio (Male)	Cincinnati. Directory. Cincinnati Directory, for the Years 1836--7. (Cincinnati, 1836) Page 90.
Irwin, Archibald ( (Merchant, Commission, Irwin and Whiteman) Ludlow W Side bw 3rd and 4th, Cincinnati, Ohio (Male)	Cincinnati. Directory. Cincinnati, Covington, Newport and Fulton Directory, for 839-1840. (Cincinnati, 1840) Page 233.
Irwin, Archibald, Jr. (Member) Cincinnati, Ohio (Male)	Western Art Union. Cincinnati. Transactions of the Western Art Union, for the Year 1849. (Cincinnati, 1849) Page 26.
Irwin, Archibald ( (Merchant, Irwin and Whiteman) Ludlow bw Third and Fourth, Cincinnati, Ohio (Male)	Cincinnati. Directory. Cincinnati Directory for 1825. (Cincinnati, 1825) Page 53.
Irwin, Archibald (Member) Cincinnati, Ohio (Male)	Western Art Union. Cincinnati. Transactions of the Western Art Union, for the Year 1849. (Cincinnati, 1849) Page 26.
Irwin, Archibald (Merchant, Commission, Irwin and Whiteman) Ludlow bw 3rd and 4th, Cincinnati, Ohio (Male)	Cincinnati. Directory. Cincinnati Directory, for the Year 1831. (Cincinnati, 1831) Page 82.
Irwin, Archibald (Business, Merchant, Commission) Broadway bw Front and 3rd, Cincinnati, Ohio (Male)

John Irwin Lineage

Son, David Irwin, died at Antietam and son John Irwin was captured by Confederates and hung.




  So, John and Hannah lost two sons to the Civil War but son Joseph Combs Irwin did return.

Combs, Hannah married

Irwin, John

Jun 30, 1825 Adams County, Ohio.

Combs, Hannah married

Irwin, John

Jun 30, 1825 Adams County, Ohio.

Final Resting Place of John Irwin and Hannah Combs Irwin In Keenan Cemetery

Latitude:	39.0772949
Longitude:	-82.5507165    Lick Twnship Jackson CO Ohio

Andrew Dude Irwin's Parents and Grandparents Back In Jackson County Ohio

Family Search lists John's Christening as May 26, 1801 which may actually be his birthdate. UPPER WEST CONOCOCHEAGUE PRESBYTERIAN,MERCERSBURG,FRANKLIN,PENNSYLVANIA

Andrew William "Dude" Irwin Father Of Joseph F. Irwin

Andrew William "Dude" Irwin was father to Joseph Combs Irwin who was father to Patrick Burns Irwin, my Dad. Great Grandfather Dude was born in Berlin Crossroads Ohio and died in Rendville Ohio. He is located on Findagrave.com (http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=127867502).

Dude's wife Alice Hagerty died of many childbirths. Her brother, who lived with them, died of black lung-tuberculosis, a common disease in the old & contemporary coal mines.
Their children were Mary 1891, Joseph 1892, Thomas 1893, Grace 1895, William 1897, Flora 1901, Twins Nellie & Donald 1903, and Rosa 1905.

Meet Joe Irwin WWI Veteran Of The Meuse-Argonne

Meet Joseph Irwin, WWI, CO A 8 Infantry ONG (Co A 146 Infantry) to Discharge Private, First Class February 19, 1918. Meuse-Argonne, Defensive Sector, Wounded In Action, September 30, 1918. American Expeditionary Forces June 15, 1918 to March 31, 1919. Honorable Discharge April 13, 1919. His training was at Camp Sherman Chillicothe, Ohio.

Grandpa Joseph Irwin was husband to Mary Burns Irwin and Father to Pat, Joe, Mary, Liz and Nancy.    His parents were Andrew Irwin and Alice Hagerty/Haggerty.  

Andrew was the son of Joseph Combs and Martha Ward Irwin.

Irwins Old And New Mary & Joe

By 1927 Joe Irwin was working on the railroad and a bitter coal miners strike was underway. The mine owners were out to destroy the UMWA and the railroaders were forced to haul laborers and coal not sanctioned by the unions.
Grandma Mary Irwin helped establish a Ladies Auxilliary in support of the trainmen.
Mary Burns Irwin was no stranger to coal mining politics.

Her father, Patrick Burns was born May 7, 1858 in Scotland and died August 5,1900 in Rendville. He was a coal miner and died of lung ailment/pneumonia. The (June 16th) 1900 Census shows Patrick as a patient at a hospital that probably treated TB and other lung disease, in Columbus, Ohio Precinct A, City Ward 14. 

Census Record indicates he both immigrated and was married in 1883, that his birthplace was Scotland but his father and mother were both born in Ireland.  Here on the Census,his birthdate reads August of 1858. 
Patrick Burns' grave is undiscovered but family narrative is that he was buried "on a hill". His death threw the family into deep financial poverty and Grandma Mary Burns Irwin reported that she and her mother dealt with it by taking in laundry, while Aunt Sarah Burns Edwards lived for awhile as a servant in a New Lexington home.

Mary's mother was Elizabeth McGinnis Burns born 1857 in Scotland, died April 2, 1929 and was buried in Maplewood Cemetery, New Lexington with her daughter Elizabeth Burns McVay. 

Elizabeth and Patrick Burns lived in Rendville on Smoky Row Road, now State Route 13.  They had 5 children: Sarah who married the infamous miner and railroader "RC" Robert C. Edwards, known for maintaing his handsome black hair with the use of stove polish.  Euphemia, also known as Fame was married to German-born August Steffen. Patrick who died in WWI service. Elizabeth who married Orville Clifford McVay.  Mary who married Joseph Irwin.

Sarah Burns (Edwards)is listed in the 1900 Census as a 16 year old girl living with Perry and Mary Pfadt Evans as a "servant". Sarah's birthday is recorded as December 3,1884.  She may have been employed by Evans Family or receiving room & board in exchange for household assistance.  Sarah was the eldest and might have helped support the family after her father's death from lung disease in 1900. Sarah lists her father place of birth as Ireland on the census record and when Sarah marries Uncle R.C. Edwards, she records her father's name as Patty Burns.

Mary's brother, Patrick J. Burns was born 1890 in Rendville and died of pneumonia/influenza at Fort Benjamin in Harrison, Indiana after enlisting to serve in WWI.  He was buried in Maplewood Cemetery, New Lexington Ohio October 19, 1918. Before enlisting he worked on the railroad and sported a head of red hair.

Patrick J. Burns Assigns Comment
6 Co 2 Training Battalion 159 Depot Brigade to 10 July
1918 
2 Provisional Battalion Engineers to 23 Sept 1918; Co D 118
Engineers to death. 
Private Died of pneumonia 13 Oct 1918. 
Notified Mrs Elizabeth Burns, mother, Rendville, O.

Note: The American military experience in World War I and the influenza pandemic were closely intertwined. The war fostered influenza in the crowded conditions of military camps in the United States and in the trenches of the Western Front in Europe. The virus traveled with military personnel from camp to camp and across the Atlantic, and at the height of the American military involvement in the war, September through November 1918, influenza and pneumonia sickened 20% to 40% of U.S. Army and Navy personnel. These high morbidity rates interfered with induction and training schedules in the United States and rendered hundreds of thousands of military personnel non-effective. During the American Expeditionary Forces' campaign at Meuse-Argonne, the epidemic diverted urgently needed resources from combat support to transporting and caring for the sick and the dead. Influenza and pneumonia killed more American soldiers and sailors during the war than did enemy weapon.

Youngest Daughter Nancy.  What A Joy Of A Human Being!


Mary Alice Irwin in the 1940 Census

Mary

Middle Name:

Allice

Last Name:

Irwin

Age at Time of Census:

17

Gender:

Female

Race:

White

Ethnicity:

American

Est. Birth Year:

1923

Birth Location:

Ohio Map

Enumeration District:

64-18

Residence:

Corning Village, Monroe Township, Perry, OH Map

Relationship to Head of Household:

Daughter

Other People in Household:

Pat Irwin

19 yrs, Male

Joe Irwin

18 yrs, Male

Joe Irwin

47 yrs, Male

Mary Irwin

43 yrs, Female

Elizbeth Irwin

10 yrs, Female

Nancy Irwin

  5 yrs, Female

MARY ALICE IRWIN CONWAY SMITH PRESENT DAY!

"LIZ" ELIZABETH IRWIN MEYER AND HER HUSBAND BILL ON THEIR WEDDING DAY

Pat and Betty Irwin 1948

Uncle Joe Irwin

AMM 2/c U.S. Navy Born March 21, 1922

Entered Service September 15, 1942 Norfolk, VA; Pensacola Florida; Pacific Theatre

Prisoner of War in Japan

Awarded Good Conduct Medal

Uncle Joe And Aunt Ginny (Virginia Kramer) Irwin

On the night of 9 March 1944, 400 miles south of Iceland, the Leopold, while investigating a radar target, was torpedoed amidships, and later broke in two and sank.  The Joyce, four miles distant at the time, was designated rescue ship.  Twice, while dead in the water picking up the 28 survivors, the Joyce got underway precipitately to evade torpedoes, the screws of which were detected by sonar.  Eleven of the crew received the Navy and Marine Corps Medal, and the commanding officer, LCDR Wilcox, and two men received commendations from the commander in chief, Atlantic Fleet, for their outstanding performance of duty on this occasion.  

Pat Irwin is standing behind minister with his head bowed.  Ensign Patrick B. Irwin U.S. Coast Guard was awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for his heroic conduct while serving on the JOYCE, diving into the frigid waters, rescuing survivors and participating in the fire fight.

An opportunity to retaliate for the loss of the Leopold was afforded the Division on the next outward voyage.  On the morning of 16 April 1944, while taking her station in the convoy, the SS Pan Pennsylvania, one of the world's largest gasoline tankers, was torpedoed and set aflame.  After picking up thirty-one survivors, including the master, the Joyce located the submarine [the U-550] by sonar and brought it to the surface with one pattern of eleven depth charges.  

With the aid of the Peterson and the Navy-manned USS Gandy (DE-764; Leopold's replacement), the submarine's guns were quickly subdued.  Her crew thereupon abandoned and scuttled her.  Thirteen of the submarine's company were picked up by the Joyce, including the commanding officer, although one later died of wounds he received during the fire-fight.  

LCDR Wilcox received the Legion of Merit and the USSR Order of the Fatherland War, 1st Class, and LT  John L. Bender, USCGR, Nelson W. Allen, SOM 2/c, USCGR, and Winston T. Coburn, SOM 2/x, USCGR, received the Bronze Star Medal.  

The Joyce made eleven round trips across the Atlantic, celebrating VE Day in mid-ocean on her last return voyage.  Her ports of call were Casablanca (12/22/43), Londonderry (3/11/44; 4/26/44; 6/10/44; 7/21/44), Loch Ewe, Scotland and Londonderry (8/31/44), Liverpool (10/17/44); Glasgow, Scotland (12/4/44); Falmouth, England (1/21/45); Portsmouth (1/25/45); Le Havre, France (3/11/45); Southampton (3/12/45); and Birkenhead, England (4/28/45).

The above photo was provided by CAPT Robert Wilcox, USCG (Ret.), the Joyce's commanding officer during her battle with the U-550.  CAPT Wilcox wrote the following description on the back of the photo: 

"Funeral services on board USS Joyce (DE-319) in North Atlantic Ocean, 18 April 1943, for ex-German Navy Machinist Wanz who died aboard Joyce from wounds received in fire fight between U-550 and USS Joyce, Gandy and Peterson on 16 April 1944.

Crewmembers of Joyce and U-550 attended ceremony conducted by C.O. of Joyce, LCDR Robert Wilcox, USCG, on voluntary basis.  It was well attended.  Former U-550 crew members are off camera below U.S. flag-draped body."

FIRST HAND ACCOUNTS From The Joyce Crew Members

"We hadn't fired more than a few rounds," said Cleveland Parker, Chief Commissary Steward, the highest ranking man rescued, when another sub, lying in wait off our port quarter, threw a torpedo into us."  

Troy S. Gowers, Seaman 1/c, was at his gun station when the torpedo struck.  "When the fish exploded" he said "I was blown right out of my shoes and into a life net a dozen feet away.  I crawled back to my station and since the electric power was off, I tried to work the gun manually, but she was jammed.  Then came the order to abandon ship.  I helped release a life raft on the starboard side and jumped into the water.  

The water was almost freezing and the wind felt even colder.  When I pulled myself aboard the raft there were 18 or 19 of us!  When we were finally picked up there were only three or four."  A storm was blowing and the waves started to break over the small life raft.  

Gowers and Joseph N. Ranyss, Seaman I/c crawled around to the men sitting still, trying to keep them awake.  "But those that were freezing knew it."

Gowers said "One Boy said 'I'm. dying, I can't hold out any longer' and in a minute he was gone".  Finally the Coast Guardsmen left on the raft saw a ship, Joyce, which had dropped behind for rescue work.  The Joyce saw them but couldn't stop to pick them up at that moment because a U-boat was firing torpedoes at her.  The men on the raft watched in despair as the ship slowly pulled out of sight. 

LEOPOLD BREAKS IN HALF

Meanwhile another survivor, W. G. O'Brien, Seaman 1/c, was still aboard the Leopold.  He watched the fore part of the ship break away about 3/4 of an hour after the explosion and then had walked to the stern of the vessel where 40 of the ship's crew and officers had congregated.  There he heard about one man who had been pinned under a heavy galley range by the explosion.  The man had pleaded with an officer to shoot him and, when the officer refused, he begged him to leave a gun by his side so that he could shoot himself.  But they freed him from the wreckage and lowered him to a boat.  He died before they picked him up.

ROLLS OVER AND FINALLY SINKS

O'Brien helped pull three men out of the water.  One was the commanding officer, CDR Kenneth Phillips, who had been blown off the ship by the explosion.  The stern of the Leopold was now setting deeper and deeper into the water.  The storm was getting stronger.  An officer went below deck and came back with medical whisky and blankets.  Then they saw the Joyce and signaled it with a flashlight.  "She came within 50 yards of us," O'Brien said "and her skipper hollered through a megaphone 'We're dodging torpedoes. God bless you.  We'll be back.'  And then they went away.  In a little while the stern of the Leopold rolled straight over to the port side and a lot of the men were thrown off.  The Captain was one of then and I didn't see him again.  The ship stayed like that for about one hour and a half, all the time getting lower in the water.  The waves were about 50 feet high and one by one, the men were washed off.  I'd see a big wave coming and close my eyes arid hold my breath until the stern raised out of it.  In one of these the water didn't go down, and I realized that the stern had finally gone for for good.  So I let go and my life jacket carried me to the surface.  After a while I saw a life raft and struck out for it."

ONLY 28 SURVIVORS

All of the Leopold's 13 officers and 158 of her complement of 186 enlisted men were lost.  There were only 28 survivors, all enlisted men.

POSTSCRIPT

The Joyce rescued the 28 survivors later that morning and then sank the Leopold's bow, which was still barely afloat and pointing towards the sky, with gunfire.  The Joyce then rejoined the convoy which made the United Kingdom without further incident.  Chief Cleveland Parker, in the above account, claimed that another submarine, other than the one Leopold had picked up on radar, was the one that torpedoed her.  In fact, Leopold's radar had picked up the U-255 which, as she dived, fired an acoustic torpedo at Leopold, one of the first instances of this new German weapon being used successfully in combat.  There was no other U-boat in the area.  The U-255 then fired more torpedoes at the Joyce, none of which hit the destroyer escort.  The U-255 evaded Joyce's counterattack and returned safely to France.