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| Joseph McGarrity |
Freedom fighter or terrorist? One might as easily ask the same question about Menachim Begin, Nelson Mandela or, for that matter, Patrick Henry. The answer depends mostly on which side you're on. McGarrity was an unrepentant believer in armed struggle against what he believed to be an occupying power. In the service of that struggle, McGarrity was untiringly devoted. He was well acquainted with all the major nationalist figures of the time—DeValera, Collins, Pearse. In retrospect, that seems admirable, even enviable. Yet, his dedication to the cause of Irish freedom also led him to meet with Luftwaffe Commander Hermann Goering in 1939. So, in the end, we have no choice but to let history decide.
Timeline
- Born in Carrickmore, County Tyrone, on March 4, 1874
- 1892. Immigrates to the United States, settling in Philadelphia, at age 16
- 1893. Joins Clan-na-Gael
- Naturalized 1897
- 1903-1918. Operates Joseph McGarrity & Co., a wholesale wine business, at 144 North 3rd St.
- Feb. 21, 1914. Pádraig Pearse travels to the United States. He meets with Joseph McGarrity and receives a pledge of support for the Irish Volunteers. McGarrity also keeps Pearse's St. Enda's School open with a $100 contribution. Back home in Ireland, Pearse later writes to McGarrity: "I shall always think of you as the personification of generosity and of Philadelphia as its home."
- July 26, 1914. Irish nationalist Erskine Childers sails into Howth Harbor, County Dublin. He successfully delivers 1,500 Mauser rifles and 49,000 rounds of ammunition, purchased in Germany, to waiting volunteers—a purchase partially financed by McGarrity.
- 1915. McGarrity sends £300 to Pearse to keep St. Enda's from closing.
- March 1918. McGarrity founds the weekly Irish Press.
- December 1920. McGarrity meets with Eamonn DeValera, president of the revolutionary Dáil Éireann. McGarrity accedes to DeV's request that he (McGarrity) serve as trustee for Republic of Ireland government funds in the event of Dev's arrest, imprisonment or death.
- Jan. 27, 1921. IRA organizer Michael Collins requests 500 Thompson submachine guns. McGarrity receives the memo and arranges to purchase 500 of the guns, along with ammunition. Most of the guns are confiscated by U.S. agents in Hoboken. A few years later, the government returned the guns to Clan na Gael after payment of a fine. (McGarrity arranges to have the guns shipped to the IRA in the 1930s.)
- 1922. Following the split over the Anglo-Irish Treaty, with civil war looming, McGarrity travels to Dublin to try to bring DeValera and Collins together. Nothing is resolved.
- 1936. With nationalist Seán Russell, he is believed to have developed plans for a bombing campaign in England.
- 1936-38. McGarrity provides financial support for Irish republican Moss Twomey.
- Dec. 30, 1938. McGarrity is indicted by a federal grand jury in New York on a charge that he illegally used U.S. mails "in furtherance of the Irish Hospital Sweepstakes," according to an FBI report. He was never brought to trial, the report notes, as the postal inspector was unable to identify him.
- Jan. 15, 1939. The Irish Republican Army declares war on England and launches what becomes known as the Sabotage Campaign, bombing targets throughout the country. The declaration, posted throughout Ireland, reportedly was written by Joseph McGarrity.
- 1939. McGarrity reportedly petitions Hermann Goering for aid for the IRA.
- McGarrity dies at his home, 4909 Wynnefield Ave. in Philadelphia, August 5, 1940.
A very special thanks to Bente Polites, special collections librarian at Villanova University's Falvey Memorial Library, where she oversees the McGarrity special collection.
—Jeff Meade
