"Dennis 'Denny' O'Brien, Interview by Sam Reynolds and Feild Russell, 21 April 2018"
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- Title:
- "Dennis 'Denny' O'Brien, Interview by Sam Reynolds and Feild Russell, 21 April 2018"
- Date:
- 2018
- Interviewer:
- Sam Reynolds;Feild Russell
- Interviewee:
- Dennis O'Brien
- Description:
- Dennis "Denny" O’Brien discusses his upbringing as part of an Irish-American family. His maternal grandfather came over during the Famine and settled in Tennessee. His paternal grandfather came over from a small town outside of Cork in 1912, to Omaha, Nebraska, where he practiced law. His father was an Army officer, so he spent much of his childhood overseas, including Japan, where he attended high school. He eventually settled in Charleston after marrying a woman who’s family has been here for generation. He’s been a member of the Ancient Order of Hibernia and belongs to a number of Catholic organizations. He discusses stories passed on to him by his father, particularly about political events in Ireland, and how the events framed a lot of the anti-British sentiment among the Irish, including members of his family. His family identified primarily as American Irish, rather than Irish-American, and that their Catholic identity was prioritized above their Irish background. The Catholic Church played an important role in his upbringing, and Catholicism is something he has tried to pass on to his children as much as possible. For him, his family is, first and foremost, American with Irish heritage. While he states that the Irish presence is stronger and “more militant” in northern cities such as Boston, he argues that there is a significant Irish culture and community in Charleston.
- Collection Title:
- Irish Heritage Oral History Collection
- Contributing Institution:
- College of Charleston Libraries
- Media Type:
- Oral Histories
- Note:
- Dennis "Denny" O’Brien discusses his upbringing as part of an Irish-American family. His maternal grandfather came over during the Famine and settled in Tennessee. In 1912, his paternal grandfather came over from a small town outside of Cork to Omaha, Nebraska, where he practiced law. His father was an Army officer, so he spent much of his childhood overseas, including in Japan, where he attended high school. He eventually settled in Charleston after marrying a woman whose family has been here for generations. He has been a member of the Ancient Order of Hibernia and belongs to several Catholic organizations. He discusses stories passed on to him by his father, particularly about political events in Ireland, and how the events framed anti-British sentiment among the Irish. His family identified primarily as American Irish, rather than Irish-American, and their Catholic identity was prioritized above their Irish background. The Catholic Church played an important role in his upbringing, and Catholicism is something he has tried to pass on to his children as much as possible. For him, his family is, first and foremost, American with Irish heritage. While he states that the Irish presence is stronger and “more militant” in northern cities such as Boston, he argues that there is a significant Irish culture and community in Charleston.
- Personal or Corporate Subject:
- Catholic Church
Hibernian Society (Charleston, S.C.)
Ancient Order of Hibernians - Topical Subject:
- Irish, Southern States--History, Communities, Irish Americans, Irish American Catholics, Ireland--History--Famine, 1845-1852, and Family histories
- Geographic Subject:
- Charleston (S.C.), Tennessee, Omaha (Neb.), and Cork (Ireland : County)
- S.C. County:
- Charleston County (S.C.)
- Language:
- English
- Date Digital:
- 2018-04
- Digitization Specifications:
- Mp3 derivative audio created with Audacity software. Archival masters are wav files.
- Internet Media Type:
- audio/mpeg
- Copyright Status Statement:
- Copyright © College of Charleston Libraries
- Access Statement:
- All rights reserved. For more information contact Special Collections at College of Charleston Libraries, 66 George St., Charleston, SC 29424.
- Admin ID:
- 220864
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