Before Boston College, third-level education for working-class Irish immigrants in Boston was generally unheard of.
The institution provided new opportunities that altered the trajectory of many lives and changed the way the upper-class viewed Irish immigrants.
The mission of Boston College was not to serve the upperclassmen, but rather to provide opportunities to the sons of the Catholic, working class. At the time of its birth, Massachusetts was overcome with Irish who had fled their Famine -ridden home in hopes of a better life.
However, an anti-Irish sentiment was prevalent in Boston at the time, rooted in religious prejudice.
Education was widely accessible to the sons of Puritans, but less so for the Catholics. Access to formal education was something that many immigrant families never saw as an option for their children. Boston College was founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus or Jesuits, who wanted to give the Catholic youth these same opportunities.
Christian Dupont, Associate University Librarian at the Burns Librarian told IrishStar.com: “Boston College was a very small school at the time - there were just a few hundred students, most of the faculty were priests and many of those priests were Jesuits, from Ireland.”
Its first home was in South Boston - a neighborhood most densely populated by Irish immigrants . According to research by Professor James M O'Toole, "three German names appear in the first enrollment register, together with two French names, but the others were all Irish - Doyles, Kennedys, McCloskeys, and O'Neills among them.”
Details from these early school registries give us information about the boys who attended in the early years. Many listed a mother as their sole guardian indicating that their father had passed. Others left after several months citing ‘business’ as their reasoning, indicating that they had to go and work instead of continuing their education .
Over the next several decades, Boston College moved to its current location in Chestnut Hill, and evolved to include students from all faiths and religions, with the addition of female students in 1970. It continued to shape the lives of many notable figures, including John F “Honey Fitz” Fitzgerald, grandfather of President John F Kennedy, Irish Republican runaway, author and editor John Boyle O’Reilly, and former Mayor of Boston, Marty Walsh.
At its roots, BC remains an institution that altered the trajectory of many lives, and even altered the social status of Irish immigrants in the city of Boston. They went from being working-class and suffering prejudice to becoming highly educated, professionals who went on to change things through jobs in government and public service.
Today, Boston College fosters strong relationships with Irish universities and has one of the most prominent Irish Studies programs in the world.
The Burns Library at Boston College houses some incredible pieces of history relating to the Irish who helped build the iconic institution and the alumni who carry on their legacy.
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