General Thomas Francis Meagher

Thomas Francis Meagher born in Waterford, Ireland, (b.1823) was an outstanding orator in Ireland. He spoke out about how his fellow Irishmen were being starved under the English King. He was sent to the penal colony in Tasmania to spend the rest of his life. In a few years he escaped the island and took a ship to the USA. He spent several years giving speeches and helping the Irish Immagrants in the USA. When the Civil War began he helped recruit a regiment of Irishmen into the infantry. He was soon given the rank of Brigadier General. While he survived the Civil War and lead the 69th Infantry, the renowned Irish Brigade in many battles for the Union, he died shortly after his appointment as the first governor of the Territory of Montana. Recent evidence suggests he was pushed off a boat headed up the Missouri River. His body was never found. His grieving wife Elizabeth stayed in Montana weeks searching for his body but they never found it. She moved back to New York,  longing for a final resting place for her husband. She was buried in Green-Wood Cemetery in 1906.

Green-Wood Cemetery's Historian Jeff I. Richman found the grave site of Meagher's wife and began thinking of a way to create a lasting tribute to Thomas F. Meagher. With the help of Peter Albert McKay from the Waterford S. B. & P Association, contributions made it possible to create this last monument and give a final resting place to Meagher near his wife.

Dedicated on Saturday July 1, 2017, marking 150 years ago since Thomas Francis Meagher death.