THE IRISH WAR
Prepared by the staff of the
Public Library of Fort Wayne and Allen County
1953
One of a historical series, this pamphlet is publishedunder the direction of the governing Boards of the PublicLibrary of Fort Wayne and Allen County.
BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE SCHOOL CITY OF FORT WAYNE
- B.F. Geyer, President
- Joseph E. Kramer, Secretary
- W. Page Yarnelle, Treasurer
- Willard Shambaugh
- Mrs. Sadie Fulk Roehrs
PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD FOR ALLEN COUNTY
The members of this Board include the members of the Board of Trustees of theSchool City of Fort Wayne (with the same officers) together with the followingcitizens chosen from Allen County outside the corporate City of Fort Wayne:
- James E. Graham
- Arthur Nieneier
- Mrs. Glenn Henderson
- Mrs. Charles Reynolds
FOREWORD
Irishmen who had recently immigrated to the United States were thechief source of labor for the construction of the Wabash-Erie Canal. Muchstrife among the canal workers stemmed from regional antagonisms in theirhomeland, and personal violence resulted on more than one occasion; theso-called “Irish War” was one such episode.
David Burr, one of the canal commissioners, made the following reporton the incident. It was printed as an Indiana state document and is oftenquoted as authority for statements made about the “Irish War.” It isnow out-of-print. Because the Boards and staff of the Public Library ofFort Wayne and Allen County consider it valuable source material, it is reprintedhere, together with the accompanying letter of transmittal. Grammar,spelling, and punctuation have been changed to conform to currentpractice.
STATE OF INDIANA
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 31, 1835
Read and referred to the Committee on Claims
Executive Department
Indianapolis, Indiana
December 30, 1835
The Honorable C. B. Smith
Speaker of the House of Representatives
Sir:
I lay before the House of Representatives the particulars, in writing,of the late riots upon the line of the Wabash Canal, which details were furnishedat my request by one of the canal commissioners. With this history,I also submit the claims of the commandants, Captains Murray and Tipton,who, at the heads of their companies, repaired to the scene of disorder insupport of the civil authority and liberally advanced money and provisionsfor the service. It will be seen that the laborers along the line in the adjoiningcounties had assembled in preparation for battle, making WabashCounty the theater of their riotous conduct; consequently, that county wouldseem to be chargeable with the expense of the arrests and the prosecutionswhich followed. But as the occurrence was one of an unusual kind, growing2out of, and threatening the progress of, the work in which the state isengaged, it is believed the treasury of that county is not justly chargeablewith the expense. It is recommended that the commissioners appointed toassess damages to private prope