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11 Boston Sites for Celebrating the Irish on St. Patrick's Day

By Tom Acitelli
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By Tom Acitelli

Instead of getting fall-down drunk(er) on St. Patrick's Day tomorrow, why not mark the occasion with a stroll through Irish and Irish-American history in Boston? To that end, we've compiled this handy map of 11 spots around the city commemorating impactful people and events connected to Eire. These range from a presidential library to an Olympian monument to an unmarked cemetery in the Harbor. Put down the pint and get out there.


· Irish Heritage Trail [Boston Irish Tourism Association]
· Our Curbed Maps archive [Curbed Boston]

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Irish Famine Memorial

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The memorial commemorates the famine that started in 1845 that led not only to hundreds of thousands of deaths, but to a mass emigration to the U.S.

15 School Street, Boston, MA 02108

Commodore John Barry Monument

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The Irish-born John Barry (County Wexford, to be exact) was a the first commissioned officer in the U.S. Navy, having served during the Revolution.

Tremont Street & Temple Place, Boston, MA 02111

Thomas Cass Statue

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Born in Queen's County, Ireland, Cass saw extensive action in the Civil War, rising to colonel and dying in Boston of wounds sustained in the Battle of Malvern Hill.

Boston Public Garden, Boston, MA 02116

John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum

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The official presidential library dedicated to the only U.S. president of predominantly Irish descent is located next to UMass-Boston's main campus.

Columbia Point, Boston, MA 02125
(617) 514-1600
(617) 514-1600

Patrick Andrew Collins Memorial

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The memorial commemorates Boston's second Irish-born mayor, and includes a description of his rise from upholster to Harvard Law grad to City Hall.

Commonwealth Avenue Mall, 484 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02116

John Boyle O'Reilly Monument

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This commemorates the Irish resistance leader and later U.S. journalist who emigrated to Boston (via British banishment to Western Australia).

Boston, MA 02115

James Brendan Connolly Monument

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Connolly was the first Olympic champion (today's equivalent of gold medalist) from Boston, having won in the 1896 Games, the first of the modern era. He was one of 12 children of Irish immigrants.

Old Colony Avenue & Mount Vernon Street, Boston, MA 02125

Rest Haven Cemetery

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You can visit Deer Island, one of the major islands of Boston Harbor, but there's no proper marker yet for a cemetery holding the remains of scores of Irish immigrants who died at the quarantine station that was here. The island's now mostly dominated by a wastewater treatment plant.

Deer Island, Boston, MA 02152

Hibernian Hall

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For decades after its 1913 opening, the hall served as a hub of Irish-American life in Boston. It was nearly demolished in 1997, but remains as an arts center in Roxbury.

184 Dudley Street, Boston, MA 02119

Bunker Hill Catholic Cemetery

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This cemetery was immensely controversial when it opened in the 1830s. Local officials did not want Irish-Catholics buried on private land (the bishop of Boston had bought the acreage). It's now closed to the general public but viewable nonetheless.

303 Bunker Hill Street, Charlestown, MA 02129

Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Birthplace

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The daughter of a Boston mayor and the mother of a U.S. president (and the namesake of the famed ribbon of greenway) was born at this address in 1890.

4 Garden Court Street, Boston, MA 02113
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Irish Famine Memorial

15 School Street, Boston, MA 02108

The memorial commemorates the famine that started in 1845 that led not only to hundreds of thousands of deaths, but to a mass emigration to the U.S.

15 School Street, Boston, MA 02108

Commodore John Barry Monument

Tremont Street & Temple Place, Boston, MA 02111

The Irish-born John Barry (County Wexford, to be exact) was a the first commissioned officer in the U.S. Navy, having served during the Revolution.

Tremont Street & Temple Place, Boston, MA 02111

Thomas Cass Statue

Boston Public Garden, Boston, MA 02116

Born in Queen's County, Ireland, Cass saw extensive action in the Civil War, rising to colonel and dying in Boston of wounds sustained in the Battle of Malvern Hill.

Boston Public Garden, Boston, MA 02116

John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum

Columbia Point, Boston, MA 02125

The official presidential library dedicated to the only U.S. president of predominantly Irish descent is located next to UMass-Boston's main campus.

Columbia Point, Boston, MA 02125
(617) 514-1600
(617) 514-1600

Patrick Andrew Collins Memorial

Commonwealth Avenue Mall, 484 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02116

The memorial commemorates Boston's second Irish-born mayor, and includes a description of his rise from upholster to Harvard Law grad to City Hall.

Commonwealth Avenue Mall, 484 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02116

John Boyle O'Reilly Monument

Boston, MA 02115

This commemorates the Irish resistance leader and later U.S. journalist who emigrated to Boston (via British banishment to Western Australia).

Boston, MA 02115

James Brendan Connolly Monument

Old Colony Avenue & Mount Vernon Street, Boston, MA 02125

Connolly was the first Olympic champion (today's equivalent of gold medalist) from Boston, having won in the 1896 Games, the first of the modern era. He was one of 12 children of Irish immigrants.

Old Colony Avenue & Mount Vernon Street, Boston, MA 02125

Rest Haven Cemetery

Deer Island, Boston, MA 02152

You can visit Deer Island, one of the major islands of Boston Harbor, but there's no proper marker yet for a cemetery holding the remains of scores of Irish immigrants who died at the quarantine station that was here. The island's now mostly dominated by a wastewater treatment plant.

Deer Island, Boston, MA 02152

Hibernian Hall

184 Dudley Street, Boston, MA 02119

For decades after its 1913 opening, the hall served as a hub of Irish-American life in Boston. It was nearly demolished in 1997, but remains as an arts center in Roxbury.

184 Dudley Street, Boston, MA 02119

Bunker Hill Catholic Cemetery

303 Bunker Hill Street, Charlestown, MA 02129

This cemetery was immensely controversial when it opened in the 1830s. Local officials did not want Irish-Catholics buried on private land (the bishop of Boston had bought the acreage). It's now closed to the general public but viewable nonetheless.

303 Bunker Hill Street, Charlestown, MA 02129

Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Birthplace

4 Garden Court Street, Boston, MA 02113

The daughter of a Boston mayor and the mother of a U.S. president (and the namesake of the famed ribbon of greenway) was born at this address in 1890.

4 Garden Court Street, Boston, MA 02113