“From the Archives” — Irish Women & Saint Mary Parish

Most Irish immigrants who came to Alexandria in the 1800s were men – laborers who constructed the area’s canals and railroads. Many arrived alone, unable to afford passage for their wives or children. Some single Irish women also emigrated to America. Many had little formal education, which was illegal for Catholics in Ireland. These single women found jobs here as maids or nannies for well-to-do families, or worked as cooks, cleaning women, laundresses or seamstresses. Irish wives also worked if they were childless and then stayed home raising their own children, contributing household finances when they could by taking in laundry or sewing.

The early railroad families were very poor. Father Joseph Bixio, S.J., described the abject poverty and squalor of the workers and their families whom he served when he visited Saint Mary’s mission in Fairfax Station. He said they lived in old boxcars or unheated huts, had poor food, suffered greatly from the cold weather, and sickness abounded.

Despite the difficulties, the resilient Irish of Alexandria largely overcame the hardships within a generation. Women still had a heavy workload and supplemented their income with piecework and other tasks they could do in the home. As their family fortunes rose, however, they could send their children to Saint Mary’s parochial school or Alexandria public schools. Their daughters often went to Saint Mary’s Academy, the private school established in Old Town by the Holy Cross Sisters. Their sons went to Saint John’s Academy, a private military school begun by Saint Mary parishioner Richard Carne. No matter how busy they were, the ladies found time to serve the church, a priority for Irish Catholics.  They attended every service and event — Mass, novenas, missions, Forty Hours, etc. — and participated in the Ladies Sodality of the Blessed Virgin, a devotional, charitable and social organization. Remembering their roots, they felt a strong obligation to help the less fortunate. Parish records from the 1860s include long lists of donors to various causes, including the names of many Irish women.