Growing
up, I recall at gatherings of friends and family that to keep the peace at
parties and holidays, you should avoid topics of religion or politics. I did not give it much thought at the time
and it seemed to make sense. As I grew
up, married, and had children of my own, I am less inclined to think that is so
necessary. In fact, I rather enjoy a
spirited, but respectful, discussion of different viewpoints. Different is not bad, it is, well…just
different.
In
my search of family history, I have uncovered a myriad of religious beliefs and
practices in my family tree from Lutherans on my Swedish and German side,
Catholic on my Irish side, and a mix of varying faiths: Anglicans, Baptist, Jewish, Presbyterian, Quakers
and Mormons. Nothing earth shattering
and I found it interesting to see how families grew and shifted their religions
and where they attended church.
However,
when I first encountered that I had a politician in my family tree, it stopped
me cold. What? In my family?
Granted, at family gatherings, it is not uncommon for a healthy debate
between the democrats and republicans in the room, or with the more “spirited”
discussion, between the liberals and conservatives. While head shakes are common, everyone leaves
without hurt feelings, and we remain a close family.
So
what stopped me cold when I uncovered a politician in the family tree was my concern
that he was shady or corrupt! Why that
was my first concern is clearly a sad statement and probably reveals a little
too much about me. I have always thought
that politicians like the limelight a bit too much and independent of party affiliation,
anyone can be negatively influenced by power…and, what started out as a honest
and sincere interest in making a difference in our communities can erode over
time. Clearly, not all politicians are
corrupt, I just don’t believe all that they have to say. So, what kind of
politician did I have in my family tree…?
The Politician:
Timothy
P. Donohue was born in County Kerry, Ireland in July 1839 to Florence Donohue
and Mary Archibald. The family, which
included at least one sister (Nora) and brother (Patrick) immigrated to Canada
when Timothy was a teenager around 1853.
Timothy made his way down to Boston in the late 1850’s and married
another Irish immigrant named Margaret Roche.
They married on November 10, 1860 and their first 3 (of 12) children
were born in Boston. Tim served, with
honors, in the Civil War from 8/27/1863 (when he enlisted in Company E, Third
Mass Heavy Artillery and served in forts near Washington D.C.) to 7/17/1865
(when he was discharged in Savannah, Georgia).
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Timothy and Margaret (Roche) Donohue, Sheldon Iowa |
After
the Civil War, Timothy and Margaret moved to Negaunee, Marquette, Michigan,
where their remaining 9 children were born. The 1870 census shows Timothy as a
blacksmith. Drawn to public life, he also served as constable and deputy
sheriff for 12 years. In June of 1878, they moved to a small but growing
community in Northwest Iowa -- Sheldon, O’Brien County, Iowa -- where he
settled as a farmer. While in Sheldon, he was an active Republican, often a
delegate to county and state conventions and served for 19 years as treasurer
of a district in Floyd Township (township of Sheldon).
In
1901, Timothy ran a campaign to serve as representative in the Twenty-ninth
General Assembly of Iowa, being a member of the lower house of the
Iowa Legislature from O'Brien County.
He was officially sworn in on January 13, 1902 and concluded his service
on January 10, 1904.
One of my all-time favorite finds
in researching genealogy was the newspaper article that commented on the
campaign between Timothy Donohue and his running mate, George Hakeman. You will note amongst the seemingly itemized
list of candidate attributes was drinking beer, “…Donohue likes to tickle his Adam’s apple with a schooner of foaming
beer; so does Hakeman.” I just had
to chuckle…in a modern day campaign, this would have had alarm bells going off…in
1901, apparently not so much.

Timothy died on April 14, 1916 having lost a battle with stomach cancer. In his obituary, he was described, amongst other descriptors as, “…a true blue republican, was fearless in politics, as in community life or as a private citizen.”
I
am pleased to say no corruption was found, only a dedication to community
service, his family, and a fondness for a schooner of ale.
With that I will leave you with the campaign article dated May 15, 1901 in the Davenport Dailey Republican (reprinted from The Sheldon Sun), titled, “The Two of Them” – I can’t imagine it really helped sway the constituency one way or another, but it put a smirk on my face:
With that I will leave you with the campaign article dated May 15, 1901 in the Davenport Dailey Republican (reprinted from The Sheldon Sun), titled, “The Two of Them” – I can’t imagine it really helped sway the constituency one way or another, but it put a smirk on my face:
Sheldon Sun:
George Hakeman is a candidate for representative; so is Tim Donohue. Donohue is about 64 years of age, so is Hakeman. Hakeman is tall, slim and imposing, so is Donohue. Donohue wouldn’t vote for a Democrat under any consideration; neither would Hakeman. Hakeman is not a pious man; neither is Donohue – he only thinks he is. Donohue likes to tickle his Adam’s apple with a schooner of foaming beer; so does Hakeman. Hakeman is well off; so is Donohue. Donohue is an old settler; so is Hakeman. Hakeman has raised a large family of excellent children; so has Donohue. Donohue is genial as a May day sunshine; so is Hakeman. Hakeman has been on O’Brien county supervisor; Donohue has been doorkeeper in the legislature – therefore Hakeman is well qualified for representative and, by the same token, so is Donohue. Donohue doesn’t want the office for the money there is in it; neither does Hakeman. Hakeman offered his young life as a sacrifice for his country; so did Donohue. Donohue will receive the hearty support of his precinct; so Hakeman will his. Hakeman hardly ever thinks a thing is so and so, but knows it; so does Donohue. Donohue is in the race to win; so is Hakeman.
LINK to Iowa Legislature History: Representative Timothy Donohue
George Hakeman is my great-great grandfather. This put a smirk on MY face as well, Terri... thank you for sharing it. Roger Hakeman
ReplyDeleteRoger, how nice to hear from you... I am glad that you enjoyed the article ; to date, it remains one of my favorites! Terri
ReplyDeleteHello, Terri - I just found this. Thank you. Could there be two Irish Timothy's that received Civil War medals of honor? Could this gentleman Timothy Donohue be my paternal great-great grandfather? Our family tree documents are scarce but my father said his father Albert's mother was Elenor (which I guess could have been Nora). We are very proud of his service in the Civil War and his Medal of Honor is widely acknowledged at the 69th Regiment Armory in Manhattan and among Civil War historians. Colonel James P Tierney is the historian at the 69th and he believes that Timothy and Patrick (who won the Victoria Cross and many others fighting for England) were brothers. I did not know about the Canada immigration. Would love to know more. - Diane
ReplyDelete