Edwin Daniel McGuinness (17 May 1856 – 21 April 1901) was

Providence Providence often refers to: * Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion * Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in Christianity * Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...

's first

Irish Catholic Irish Catholics are an ethnoreligious group native to Ireland whose members are both Catholic and Irish. They have a large diaspora, which includes over 36 million American citizens and over 14 million British citizens (a quarter of the British ...

mayor.

Personal life

Edwin Daniel McGuinness was born in

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...

, on May 17, 1856, son of Bernard McGuinness and Mary Higgins, both Irish immigrants. He attended public schools, and received a Bachelor of Arts degree from

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

in 1877. He went on to receive his law degree in 1879 from

Boston University Law School Boston University School of Law (Boston Law or BU Law) is the law school of Boston University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top law schools in the United States and considered an e ...

. He was admitted to the Rhode Island Bar in that same year and joined with John Doran (later a justice with the Rhode Island superior court) to form the firm of McGuinness & Doran. McGuinness married Ellen T. Noonan of Providence on November 22, 1881. She was the daughter of Timothy and Ellen Noonan. They had one daughter.

Political life

McGuinness was elected

city alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many Jurisdiction, jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council membe ...

of Providence (1889 – 1893). He ran for mayor in 1893 and was defeated by

Frank F. Olney Frank Fuller Olney (March 12, 1851 – October 24, 1903) was the 18th mayor of Providence, Rhode Island. He served from 1894 until 1896. Personal life Frank Olney was born March 12, 1851, in Jersey City, New Jersey to Elam Ward Olney and Helen Fu ...

; he ran again in 1895 and won. In the 1896 campaign, McGuinness carried every single election district in the city. Although he ran on the Democratic ticket, he was known for running a non-partisan administration. A major issue during McGuinness's terms as mayor was a conflict with the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad Company. They had contracted to build rainsheds on their new station in Providence, but failed to fulfill this obligation. McGuinness refused to let the station open until the rainsheds were built. It was said to be a bitter fight between the mayor and the railroad. Regrettably the political responsibility took a toll on his health and he suffered a

nervous breakdown A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitti ...

during his second term as Mayor. McGuinness took ill in 1898, and even a trip south could not restore his health. He died at his home in Providence on April 21, 1901, at the age of 45. He was buried in St. Francis Cemetery, Pawtucket. In 2007 he was inducted into the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame.
Mayor Edwin D. McGuinness ~ Inducted

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McGuinness, Edwin D. American people of Irish descent Mayors of Providence, Rhode Island 1856 births 1901 deaths Burials in Rhode Island Brown University alumni Rhode Island Democrats Rhode Island lawyers Boston University School of Law alumni American Roman Catholics