Patrick Joseph O'Dowd (1 March 1892 – 19 June 1968) was an Irish politician and medical practitioner. He was first elected to

Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( ; , ) is the lower house and principal chamber of the Oireachtas, which also includes the president of Ireland and a senate called Seanad Éireann.Article 15.1.2° of the Constitution of Ireland reads: "The Oireachtas shall co ...

as a

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil ( ; ; meaning "Soldiers of Destiny" or "Warriors of Fál"), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party (), is a centre to centre-right political party in Ireland. Founded as a republican party in 1926 by Éamon de ...

Teachta Dála A Teachta Dála ( ; ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish language, Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas, the parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The official Engli ...

(TD) for the

Roscommon Roscommon (; ; ) is the county town and the largest town in County Roscommon in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is roughly in the centre of Ireland, near the meeting of the N60 road (Ireland), N60, N61 road (Ireland), N61 and N63 road (Irelan ...

constituency at the June 1927 general election. He was re-elected at the September 1927 general election but lost his seat at the 1932 general election. He was elected again at the 1933 general election but again lost his seat at the 1937 general election.

Early life and career

O'Dowd was born in 1892 at Graffoge,

as the second son of James O'Dowd and Honoria (Nora) Shanagher. His parents were both teachers at the local national school where he began his education. He then attended

Summerhill College Summerhill College (aka The College of the Immaculate Conception) is a Roman Catholic voluntary secondary school for boys located in the town of Sligo in north-west Ireland. History The school was founded in 1857 by then-bishop of Elphin, Laur ...

in Sligo. He is said to have been the first registrant of the

National University of Ireland The National University of Ireland (NUI) () is a federal university system of ''constituent universities'' (previously called '' constituent colleges'') and ''recognised colleges'' set up under the Irish Universities Act 1908, and signifi ...

, having arrived from the country a day before it was due to open, in order to study medicine at

University College Dublin University College Dublin (), commonly referred to as UCD, is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 38,417 students, it is Ireland's largest ...

. Upon graduation as a physician, he worked for the Irish Dispensary System, a public health system that had been established in Ireland in the 1850s under the

Irish Poor Laws The Irish poor laws were a series of acts of Parliament intended to address social instability due to widespread and persistent poverty in Ireland. While some legislation had been introduced by the pre-Union Parliament of Ireland prior to the A ...

. His first clinic was the

dispensary A dispensary is an office in a school, hospital, industrial plant, or other organization that dispenses medications, medical supplies, and in some cases even medical and dental treatment. In a traditional dispensary set-up, a pharmacist dispense ...

Elphin, County Roscommon Elphin (; )Placenames Database of Ireland
(see archival records) is a small town in north

. After the Second World War, he moved to become the doctor at a dispensary in

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 ...

. O'Dowd is listed in the 1911 census of Ireland as being a speaker of Irish and English languages. His first wife, Evangela (Eva) Igoe, had strong

Irish republican 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 ...

sympathies and was a member of

Cumann na mBan Cumann na mBan (; but in English termed The Irishwomen's Council), abbreviated C na mB, is an Irish republican women's paramilitary organisation formed in Dublin on 2 April 1914, merging with and dissolving Inghinidhe na hÉireann, and in 191 ...

. O'Dowd was a medical officer with the

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various Resistance movement, resistance organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dominantly Catholic and dedicated to anti-imperiali ...

during the

Irish War of Independence The Irish War of Independence (), also known as the Anglo-Irish War, was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (1919–1922), Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and Unite ...

. Patrick and Eva O'Dowd would take their annual family holiday in a

Gaeltacht A ( , , ) is a district of Ireland, either individually or collectively, where the Irish government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home. The districts were first officially recognised ...

County Kerry County Kerry () is a Counties of Ireland, county on the southwest coast of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is bordered by two other countie ...

in order to maintain the family's ability to speak Irish.

Political life

In the 1920s and 1930s, O'Dowd stood for election and sat in the 5th Dáil,

6th Dáil The 6th Dáil was elected at the September 1927 general election on 15 September 1927 and met on 11 October 1927. The members of Dáil Éireann, the house of representatives of the Oireachtas (legislature) of the Irish Free State, are known as ...

and

8th Dáil The 8th Dáil was elected at the 1933 Irish general election, 1933 general election on 24 January 1933 and met on 8 February 1933. The members of Dáil Éireann (Irish Free State), Dáil Éireann, the house of representatives of the Oireachtas ( ...

. In 1937, he resigned from the

political party over a disagreement with its leader

Éamon de Valera Éamon de Valera (; ; first registered as George de Valero; changed some time before 1901 to Edward de Valera; 14 October 1882 – 29 August 1975) was an American-born Irish statesman and political leader. He served as the 3rd President of Ire ...

. He stood as an

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

at the 1937 general election but lost his seat. O'Dowd spoke frequently in the Dáil, mainly on issues of public health, Roscommon land allocation, and affairs of his constituents. In 1927, he supported William Redmond who proposed to the Government that a commission be established to investigate and report on the circumstances of the British ex-Servicemen in the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State (6 December 192229 December 1937), also known by its Irish-language, Irish name ( , ), was a State (polity), state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-ye ...

because of concerns regarding "alleged discrimination against them in regard to employment on public works or in regard to their general rights". O'Dowd played

contract bridge Contract bridge, or simply bridge, is a trick-taking game, trick-taking card game using a standard 52-card deck. In its basic format, it is played by four players in two Team game, competing partnerships, with partners sitting opposite each othe ...

representing Ireland on several occasions at the "Home Internationals" in the 1940s and 1950s. Eva O'Dowd died of breast cancer in 1947. O'Dowd married Kathleen Donohue of

Cavan Cavan ( ; ) is the county town of County Cavan in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The town lies in Ulster, near the border with County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland. The town is bypassed by the main N3 road (Ireland), N3 road that links Dublin ( ...

in 1950. He died of a heart attack in 1968.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Odowd, Patrick 1892 births 1968 deaths Fianna Fáil TDs Members of the 5th Dáil Members of the 6th Dáil Members of the 8th Dáil Politicians from County Roscommon People from Elphin, County Roscommon