Killed By Torture? The Story of an 18-Year-Old Irishman’s Death at the Hands of his Officers, New Orleans, 1865

Irish in the American Civil War

In May 1860, 47-year-old Bridget Griffin stepped off the boat in the United States. Her husband John had died in their native Athlone in 1859, an event that likely precipitated her departure. With her was her 13-year-old son Patrick, a boy who grew to manhood during the years of the American Civil War. He would serve during that conflict, initially withthe 15th Massachusetts Light Artilleryand later in the 6th Massachusetts Light Artillery. June 1865 found him...