January 22 is the birthday of Terence Vincent Powderly (1849-1924), a man not widely remembered in the twenty-first century, but a national celebrity, an ‘American Idol’ if you will, in the tumultuous era of the late nineteenth century. Born in Carbondale, Pennsylvania, to Irish-Catholic immigrants, Powderly was a reform minded Mayor of Scranton (1878-1884), head Read More
Posts with the tag: William McKinley
The Archivist’s Nook: T.V. Powderly – Labor’s ‘American Idol’
Posted in: The Archivist's Nook | Tags: Blogs, Catholic History, Clan na Gael, Immigration Bureau, Irish Land League, Knights of Labor, Labor Leaders, Mary Harris "Mother" Jones, Scranton, Terence Vincent Powderly, Theodore Roosevelt, University Archives, Washington, William McKinley | Comment
The Archivist’s Nook: A Brief Meditation on Presidents, Popes, and Power on the Eve of Pope Francis’ Visit
Believe it or not, U.S. Presidents once upon a time came to Catholic University for the most mundane of events. When the cornerstone for Caldwell (then Divinity) Hall was laid in 1888, President Grover Cleveland was there. When the University formally opened a year later, President Benjamin Harrison showed up for the festivities, despite the Read More
Posted in: The Archivist's Nook | Tags: 2015 Papal Visit, Al Smith, American Catholic, anti-Catholicism, Barack Obama, Benjamin Harrison, Caldwell Hall, Calvin Coolidge, George Bush, Pope Benedict, Pope Francis, Pope John Paul II, Roosevelt, Thomas Nast, University Archives, William McKinley | Comment