The Records of the Catholic Historical Society consist of programs, pamphlets, and brochures relating to the Sesquicentennial celebration of the founding of the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh and the 100th anninversary of the founding of the Rosalia Center. The collection also contains miscellaneous material that provides a brief history of the Society.

Presbyterians from the Irish province of Ulster were among the first to push the wild frontier west and found the city of Pittsburgh. By the 1840s, the flow of Irish Catholic immigrants had become a flood. Fleeing the great hunger and facing resentment in the city, they established themselves as key members of the community, building railroads and canals and establishing schools, hospitals and fraternal orders. During the Civil War, 156 women, many of them Irish, made the ultimate sacrifice for their new country when the Allegheny Arsenal exploded. The Fenians fought Southern Rebels under a green flag and made a little-known invasion of Canada in 1866. In the twentieth century, the sons and daughters of Erin took on roles as political leaders, labor agitators and entrepreneurs. Exploring tales of saints, sinners and visionaries, author Gerard F. O'Neil offers a beguiling and fascinating history of the Pittsburgh Irish.

Steel Shamrocks - The Sons of Annie McKenna In 1830 Hugh McKenna, a widowed farmer and father of eleven, left his home in Ireland's County Tyrone for economic survival in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Arriving in Quebec on a "timber ship," Hugh and the family walked the twelve hundred miles to a new life in the raucous, burgeoning gateway to the American West. Thus began nearly a hundred years of trial and triumph for Hugh's widowed daughter-in-law Annie, and two of her sons, Bernard and Charles. Through financial struggle, fire, civil war, flood, labor unrest, political corruption and reform, they met their challenges with fortitude and civic devotion. Whether defending the Union from Antietam to Appomattox or helping to build a new industrial and political order, the McKenna men and their remarkable mother are emblematic of the many contributions Irish-Americans have made to a great city and a great nation. Praise for David Quinn's It May Be Forever: An Irish Rebel on the American Frontier "Let it be said first that It May Be Forever: An Irish Rebel on the American Frontier is an excellent, very enjoyable book... It is a fascinating tale and the depth of the author's research evident... The writing is first rate..." - Francis Hamit - The Self-Publishing Review "A beautifully written historical novel filled with excellent research and characters! Highly recommended!" - USABookNews.com "It's a book that should be listed among the great Irish diasporic accounts, told with skill and artistry..." - Peter Berresford Ellis - Noted Celtic scholar, writer, and novelist "...the scenes depicted have a truly authentic ring... a life of extraordinary adventure peopled with extraordinary characters." - Pauline Ferrie - EmigrantOnline.ie "What's unique about this biography turned novel is the real life information threaded throughout like golden wire." - Janet McGrane - CelticReader.com Visit the Author's Website: www.david quinnbooks.com

Includes Part 1, Books, Group 1, Nos. 1-12 (1940-1943)

"The Catholic Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania" is an invaluable reference for scholars, detailed and meticulously documented by John Bates. As he traces the activities of the Society, Bates paints a portrait of Western Pennsylvania Catholicism throughout the decades, a history within a history.