Thomas D'Arcy McGee (13 April 18257 April 1868) was an Irish-Canadian politician, Catholic spokesman, journalist, poet, and a

Father A father is the male parent of a child. Besides the paternal bonds of a father to his children, the father may have a parental, legal, and social relationship with the child that carries with it certain rights and obligations. A biological fat ...

Canadian Confederation Canadian Confederation () was the process by which three British North American provinces—the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick—were united into one federation, called the Name of Canada#Adoption of Dominion, Dominion of Ca ...

. The young McGee was an

Irish Catholic Irish Catholics () are an ethnoreligious group native to Ireland, defined by their adherence to Catholic Christianity and their shared Irish ethnic, linguistic, and cultural heritage.The term distinguishes Catholics of Irish descent, particul ...

who opposed

British rule The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or dire ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, and was part of the

Young Ireland Young Ireland (, ) was a political movement, political and cultural movement, cultural movement in the 1840s committed to an all-Ireland struggle for independence and democratic reform. Grouped around the Dublin weekly ''The Nation (Irish news ...

attempts to overthrow British rule and create an independent

Irish Republic The Irish Republic ( or ) was a Revolutionary republic, revolutionary state that Irish Declaration of Independence, declared its independence from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in January 1919. The Republic claimed jurisdict ...

. He escaped arrest and fled to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in 1848, after which some of his political positions reversed. He remained ardently Catholic, but his Irish nationalism moderated. He became disgusted with American republicanism,

Anti-Catholicism Anti-Catholicism is hostility towards Catholics and opposition to the Catholic Church, its clergy, and its adherents. Scholars have identified four categories of anti-Catholicism: constitutional-national, theological, popular and socio-cul ...

, and

classical liberalism Classical liberalism is a political tradition and a branch of liberalism that advocates free market and laissez-faire economics and civil liberties under the rule of law, with special emphasis on individual autonomy, limited governmen ...

. McGee became intensely

monarchist Monarchism is the advocacy of the system of monarchy or monarchical rule. A monarchist is an individual who supports this form of government independently of any specific monarch, whereas one who supports a particular monarch is a royalist. C ...

ic in his political beliefs and in his religious support for the embattled

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX (; born Giovanni Maria Battista Pietro Pellegrino Isidoro Mastai-Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878. His reign of nearly 32 years is the longest verified of any pope in hist ...

. He moved to the

Province of Canada The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in British North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report ...

in 1857 and worked hard to convince fellow

Irish Canadians Irish Canadians () are Canadian citizens who have full or partial Irish heritage including descendants who trace their ancestry to immigrants who originated in Ireland. 1.2 million Irish immigrants arrived from 1825 to 1970, and at least half o ...

to cooperate with Canadian

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

s in forming a self-governing Canada within the

British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...

. His passion for Confederation garnered him the title: 'Canada's first

nationalist Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation,Anthony D. Smith, Smith, A ...

'. McGee also vocally denounced the activities of the

Fenian Brotherhood The Fenian Brotherhood () was an Irish republican organisation founded in the United States in 1858 by John O'Mahony and Michael Doheny. It was a precursor to Clan na Gael, a sister organisation to the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB). Membe ...

, a

paramilitary A paramilitary is a military that is not a part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. The Oxford English Dictionary traces the use of the term "paramilitary" as far back as 1934. Overview Though a paramilitary is, by definiti ...

secret society A secret society is an organization about which the activities, events, inner functioning, or membership are concealed. The society may or may not attempt to conceal its existence. The term usually excludes covert groups, such as intelligence ag ...

of exiled

Irish Republicans Irish republicanism () is the political movement for an Irish republic, void of any British rule. Throughout its centuries of existence, it has encompassed various tactics and identities, simultaneously elective and militant and has been both w ...

who resembled his younger self politically, in Ireland, Canada, and the United States. McGee succeeded in helping achieve Confederation in 1867, but was assassinated by the Fenian Brotherhood, which considered McGee guilty of Shoneenism, in 1868. Montreal Fenian Brotherhood member Patrick J. Whelan was convicted of McGee's murder and executed.

Early life

Widely known as D'Arcy McGee, he was born on 13 April 1825 in Carlingford, Ireland, and raised as a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

. From his mother, the daughter of a

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

bookseller he learned the

history of Ireland The first evidence of human presence in Ireland dates to around 34,000 years ago, with further findings dating the presence of ''Homo sapiens'' to around 10,500 to 7,000 BC. The receding of the ice after the Younger Dryas cold phase of the Qua ...

, which later influenced his writing and political activity. When he was eight years old, his family moved to

Wexford Wexford ( ; archaic Yola dialect, Yola: ''Weiseforthe'') is the county town of County Wexford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the ...

, where his father, James McGee, was employed by the Irish coast guard (then under

His Majesty's Coastguard His Majesty's Coastguard (HMCG) is the section of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency responsible, through the Secretary of State for Transport to Parliament, for the initiation and co-ordination of all maritime search and rescue (SAR) within th ...

and likely at the Wexford Town Station near Customs House Quay. In Wexford he attended a local hedge school, where the teacher, Michael Donnelly, fed his hunger for knowledge and where he learned of the long history of opposition to

British rule in Ireland British colonial rule in Ireland built upon the 12th-century Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland on behalf of the English king and eventually spanned several centuries that involved British control of parts, or the entirety, of the island of Irel ...

, including the

Irish Rebellion of 1798 The Irish Rebellion of 1798 (; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ''The Turn out'', ''The Hurries'', 1798 Rebellion) was a popular insurrection against the British Crown in what was then the separate, but subordinate, Kingdom of Ireland. The m ...

. In 1842 at age 17, McGee left Ireland with his sister due to a poor relationship with their stepmother, Margaret Dea, who had married his father in 1840 after the death of his mother 22 August 1833. In 1842 he sailed from Wexford harbour aboard the brig ''Leo'', bound for the United States. On the ''Leo'' he wrote many of his early poems, mostly about Ireland. He soon found work as assistant editor of

Patrick Donahoe Patrick Donahoe (born Munnery, County Cavan, Ireland, 17 March 1811; died Boston, U.S.A., 18 March 1901) was a publisher who founded influential magazines for the Irish Catholic community in his adopted country. Early life Patrick Donahoe was b ...

's '' Boston Pilot'', a Catholic newspaper in Boston, Massachusetts. He specialized in articles expounding the movement for Irish

self-determination Self-determination refers to a people's right to form its own political entity, and internal self-determination is the right to representative government with full suffrage. Self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international la ...

led by

Daniel O’Connell Daniel(I) O’Connell (; 6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847), hailed in his time as The Liberator, was the acknowledged political leader of Ireland's Roman Catholic majority in the first half of the 19th century. His mobilisation of Catholic Irelan ...

. He became the lead editor in 1844, While writing widely as well on Irish literature and politics. He advocated the union of Canada into the United States, saying, "Either by purchase, conquest, or stipulation, Canada must be yielded by Great Britain to this Republic." In 1845, he returned to Ireland where he became politically active and edited ''

The Nation ''The Nation'' is a progressive American monthly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper ...

'', the voice of the Young Ireland movement. In 1847, he married Mary Theresa Caffrey; they had six children but only two daughters survived their father. His involvement in the

Irish Confederation The Irish Confederation was an Irish nationalist independence movement, established on 13 January 1847 by members of the Young Ireland movement who had seceded from Daniel O'Connell's Repeal Association. Historian T. W. Moody described it as "t ...

and

Young Irelander Rebellion of 1848 The Young Irelander Rebellion was a failed Irish nationalist uprising led by the Young Ireland movement, part of the wider Revolutions of 1848 that affected most of Europe. It took place on 29 July 1848 at Farranrory, a small settlement about ...

resulted in a warrant for his arrest. McGee escaped disguised as a priest and returned to the United States.

United States

In the United States, he achieved prominence in Irish-American circles and founded and edited the New York-based ''Nation'' and the Boston-based ''American Celt''. He also wrote a number of history books. In common with several other Young Ireland ''émigrés'', McGee espoused

proslavery thought Proslavery is support for slavery. It is sometimes found in the thought of ancient philosophers, religious texts, and in American and British writings especially before the American Civil War but also later through the 20th century. Arguments in ...

and defended the continuation of

slavery in the United States The legal institution of human chattel slavery, comprising the enslavement primarily of List of ethnic groups of Africa, Africans and African Americans, was prevalent in the United States of America from its founding in 1776 until 1865 ...

. In the 4 August 1849 edition of the ''Nation'', McGee attacked supporters of the abolitionist

Daniel O'Connell Daniel(I) O’Connell (; 6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847), hailed in his time as The Liberator, was the acknowledged political leader of Ireland's Roman Catholic majority in the first half of the 19th century. His mobilisation of Catholic Irelan ...

in the United States, writing that "Their task is to liberate their slaves, not to travel across the Atlantic for foreign objects of sympathy." McGee eventually grew disillusioned with democracy,

republicanism Republicanism is a political ideology that encompasses a range of ideas from civic virtue, political participation, harms of corruption, positives of mixed constitution, rule of law, and others. Historically, it emphasizes the idea of self ...

and the United States. Historian David Gerber traces a dramatic transformation from the

revolutionary who sought a peasant rebellion to overthrow British rule in Ireland. Gerber writes: :After 1851, however, he veered increasingly toward the opposite pole, espousing an

ultramontane Ultramontanism is a clerical political conception within the Catholic Church that places strong emphasis on the prerogatives and powers of the Pope. It contrasts with Gallicanism, the belief that popular civil authority—often represented by ...

conservatism.... Catholic dogma and triumphalism, anti-Protestantism, cultural nationalism, and

social conservatism Social conservatism is a political philosophy and a variety of conservatism which places emphasis on Tradition#In political and religious discourse, traditional social structures over Cultural pluralism, social pluralism. Social conservatives ...

were the framework of McGee's thought during the 1850s. He emigrated to Montreal in 1857, believing Canada was far more hospitable to the Catholic Irish than was the United States. He downplayed the importance of the

Orange Order The Loyal Orange Institution, commonly known as the Orange Order, is an international Protestant fraternal order based in Northern Ireland and primarily associated with Ulster Protestants. It also has lodges in England, Grand Orange Lodge of ...

in Canada. He remained a persistent critic of American institutions, and of the American way of life. He accused the Americans of hostile and expansionist motives toward Canada and of desiring to spread its republican ideas over all of North America. McGee worked energetically for continued Canadian devotion to the

, seeing it as necessary to protect Canada from American influence.

Canada

In 1857, he set up the publication of the ''New Era'' in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

. In his editorials and pamphlets he attacked the influence of the

and defended the

right to representation in the assembly. In terms of economics he promoted modernisation, calling for extensive economic development by means of railway construction, the fostering of immigration, and the application of a high protective tariff to encourage manufacturing. Politically active, he advocated a new nationality in Canada, to escape the

sectarianism Sectarianism is a debated concept. Some scholars and journalists define it as pre-existing fixed communal categories in society, and use it to explain political, cultural, or Religious violence, religious conflicts between groups. Others conceiv ...

of Ireland. In 1858, he was elected to the

Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada The Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada was the lower house of the Parliament of the Province of Canada. The Province of Canada consisted of the former province of Lower Canada, then known as Canada East (now Quebec), and Upper Canada ...

and worked for the creation of an independent Canada. McGee earned a law degree at

McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

and was called to the bar in 1861. McGee became the minister of agriculture, immigration, and statistics in the Conservative government which was formed in 1863. He retained that office in the Great Coalition, and was a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

delegate to the

Charlottetown Charlottetown is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Prince Edward Island, and the county seat of Queens County, Prince Edward Island, Queens County. Named after Queen Charlotte, Charlott ...

and

conferences of 1864. At Quebec, McGee introduced the resolution which called for a guarantee of the educational rights of religious minorities in the two Canadas.

Fenians

Moderating his radical Irish nationalist views, McGee denounced the

in America that advocated a forcible takeover of Canada from Britain by the United States. Following

, McGee was elected to the

1st Canadian Parliament The 1st Canadian Parliament was in session from November 6, 1867, until July 8, 1872 (4 years and 252 days). The membership was set by the 1867 federal election from August 7 to September 20, 1867. It was prorogued prior to the 1872 election. ...

in 1867 as a

Liberal-Conservative Liberal conservatism is a political ideology combining conservative policies with liberal stances, especially on economic issues but also on social and ethical matters, representing a brand of political conservatism strongly influenced by libe ...

representing the riding of Montreal West. However, he had lost much of his Irish Catholic support. On 5 November 1867 McGee delivered an oration titled "The Mental Outfit of the New Dominion." The address surveyed the literary status of Canada on the eve of the first Dominion Parliament. McGee's views were a combination of Tory principle, revelation, and empirical method. He suggested a national literature inspired by the creativity and ingenuity of the Canadian people.

Assassination

On 7 April 1868, McGee participated in a parliamentary debate that went on past midnight. After finishing, he walked back to the boarding house where he was staying. McGee was opening the door to Mrs. Trotter's Boarding House in Ottawa when he was shot in the head by someone waiting for him on the inside. Several people came running to the scene; however, there was no sign of the assassin. It was later determined that McGee was assassinated with a shot from a handgun by Patrick J. Whelan. McGee was given a state funeral in Ottawa known to be one of the largest funerals in Canadian history. He was interred in a crypt at the

Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery (, ) is a rural cemetery located in the borough of Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, which was founded in 1854. The entrance and the grounds run along a part of Côte-des-Neiges Ro ...

in Montreal. His funeral procession in Montreal drew an estimated crowd of 80,000, out of a total city population of 105,000. Patrick J. Whelan, a

Fenian The word ''Fenian'' () served as an umbrella term for the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and their affiliate in the United States, the Fenian Brotherhood. They were secret political organisations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries ...

sympathiser and a Catholic, was accused, tried, convicted, and hanged for the crime on 11 February 1869 in Ottawa. The jury was decisively swayed by the forensic evidence that Whelan's gun had been fired shortly before the killing, together with the circumstantial evidence that he had threatened and stalked McGee. Historian David Wilson points out that forensic tests conducted in 1972 show that the fatal bullet was compatible with both the gun and the bullets that Whelan owned. Wilson concludes: :The balance of probabilities suggests that Whelan either shot McGee, or was part of a hit-squad, but there is still room for reasonable doubt as to whether he was the man who actually pulled the trigger. Conspiracy theorists questioned his guilt, suggesting that he was a scapegoat for a Protestant plot. The

government of Canada The Government of Canada (), formally His Majesty's Government (), is the body responsible for the federation, federal administration of Canada. The term ''Government of Canada'' refers specifically to the executive, which includes Minister of t ...

's Thomas D'Arcy McGee Building stands near the site of the assassination. The case is dramatised in the Canadian play ''Blood on the Moon'' by Ottawa actor/playwright Pierre Brault. Patrick J. Whelan was hanged in front of an audience of 5,000 people. The assassination of McGee is also a major component of ''Away,'' a novel about Irish immigration to Canada by Canadian novelist

Jane Urquhart Jane Urquhart, LL.D (born June 21, 1949) is a Canadian novelist and poet. She is the internationally acclaimed author of seven award-winning novels, three books of poetry and numerous short stories. As a novelist, Urquhart is well known for her e ...

Impact of the assassination

P. M. Toner argues that the assassination was an important historical marker in Irish-Canadian history. He argues that the Fenian element among the Canadian Catholic Irish was powerful in the 1860s. The reasons for Fenian influence included McGee's failure to rally moderate Irish support before his death, and the fact that no convincing moderate leader replaced McGee after his death. In addition the Catholic bishops proved unable to control the Fenians in either the US or Canada. A final factor explaining the influence of the Fenians was the courting of the Irish Catholic vote by Canadian non-Catholic politicians. Behind all these reasons was Canadian fear of the 'Green Ghost': American Fenianism. After 1870, the failure of American Fenian raids into Canada, followed by the collapse of American Fenianism, led to the decline of Canadian Fenian power.

Honours

A monument to McGee stands at Tremone Bay, in north

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county of the Republic of Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is the northernmost county of Ireland. The county mostly borders Northern Ireland, sharing only a small b ...

, Ireland near the bay from which he escaped to North America in 1848. There is a monument to him in his native

Carlingford, County Louth Carlingford (; ) is a coastal town and civil parish in northern County Louth, Ireland. For the purposes of local government, the town is part of the Dundalk Municipal District. It is situated on the southern shore of Carlingford Lough with S ...

, unveiled during a visit in 1991 by then

Prime Minister of Canada The prime minister of Canada () is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the Confidence and supply, confidence of a majority of the elected House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons ...

Brian Mulroney Martin Brian Mulroney (March 20, 1939 – February 29, 2024) was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and politician who served as the 18th prime minister of Canada from 1984 to 1993. Born in the eastern Quebec city of Baie-Comeau, Mulroney studi ...

and Irish

Taoiseach The Taoiseach (, ) is the head of government or prime minister of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the President of Ireland upon nomination by Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...

Charles Haughey Charles James Haughey (; 16 September 1925 – 13 June 2006) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who led four governments as Taoiseach: December 1979 to June 1981, March to December 1982, March 1987 to June 1989, and June 1989 to February 1992 ...

. His parents' grave in the grounds of Wexford's historic

Selskar Abbey Selskar Abbey () is a ruined Augustinian abbey in Wexford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Founded in the twelfth century, the abbey's full name was the Priory of St Peter and St Paul. The name is derived from Old Norse language, Old Norse '' ...

is marked by a plaque presented by the government of Canada. On 20–22 August 2012, the inaugural Thomas D'Arcy McGee Summer School was held in Carlingford, County Louth, Ireland to commemorate and celebrate his legacy. On Sparks Street, in

downtown Ottawa Downtown Ottawa is the central area of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It is sometimes referred to as the Central Business District and contains Ottawa's financial district. It is bordered by the Ottawa River to the north, the Rideau Canal to the east, ...

, the Thomas D'Arcy McGee Building is a prominent government-owned office building. D'Arcy McGee's Pub stands on the corner of Sparks and Elgin streets. McGee also has several schools named in his honour including: * D'Arcy McGee Catholic School (elementary,

Toronto Catholic District School Board The Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB, known as English-language Separate District School Board No. 40 prior to 1999) is an English-language public-separate school board for Toronto, Ontario, Canada, headquartered in North York. ...

, Toronto, Ontario); *Thomas D'Arcy McGee Catholic School (elementary, Ottawa-Carleton Catholic School Board, Ottawa, Ontario); * D'Arcy McGee High School, Western Quebec School Board (

Aylmer, Quebec Aylmer is a List of former municipalities in Quebec, former city in Quebec, Canada. It is located on the north shore of the Ottawa River and along Quebec Route 148, Route 148. In January 2002, it amalgamated into the city of Gatineau, which is ...

); * Thomas D'Arcy McGee Catholic High School in Montreal (closed in 1992). The

provincial electoral district (riding) of D'Arcy-McGee is named in his honour, as well as two villages in central

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

: D'Arcy and McGee, located approximately 20 kilometres apart. In 1986, a Chair of Irish Studies was set up in his honour at Saint Mary's University, Halifax. In 2005, the gun that was used to assassinate McGee was purchased at auction for $105,000 by the

Canadian Museum of Civilization The Canadian Museum of History () is a national museum on anthropology, Canadian history, cultural studies, and ethnology in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada. The purpose of the museum is to promote the heritage of Canada, as well as support related res ...

Electoral history

References

Sources

External links

* * * * *
Assassination of D’Arcy McGee
in th
''Dictionary of Canadian Biography''The Canadian Encyclopedia – Thomas D’Arcy McGee
* Michael Doheny.
The Felon's Track
'. Dublin, M H Gill & Son, 1920.
Radio documentary about the McGee murder, Canada's first political assassinationPhotograph: Thomas D'Arcy McGee, 1863
– McCord Museum
Photograph: Thomas D'Arcy McGee, 1866
– McCord Museum
Photograph: Thomas D'Arcy McGee, 1863–67
– McCord Museum
Photograph: Thomas D'Arcy McGee's Mausoleum, 1927
– McCord Museum {{DEFAULTSORT:McGee, Thomas DArcy 1825 births 1868 deaths Anti-American sentiment in Europe Anti-American sentiment in North America Assassinated Canadian politicians Assassinations in Canada Canadian nationalists Fathers of Confederation Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) MPs Irish emigrants to pre-Confederation Quebec Irish Roman Catholics Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Quebec Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada from Canada East Politicians from County Louth People from Carlingford, County Louth People murdered in Ontario Deaths by firearm in Ontario Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada) 19th-century Irish-language poets 19th-century Canadian poets Immigrants to the Province of Canada Politicians from County Wexford McGill University Faculty of Law alumni McGee family People murdered in 1868 Burials at Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery Writers of Irish descent Irish-language Canadian poets Newspaper founders Public historians 19th-century Irish lawyers Canadian lawyers Canadian Roman Catholic writers Writers from County Louth Lawyers from County Louth Lawyers from County Wexford Politicians assassinated in the 1860s Irish proslavery activists 19th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada Poets from Montreal