Please E-mail me with suggestions of Irish Canadians who should be named here michael.dacosta@rogers.com

AHEARN, FRANK. (1886-1962) Born in Ottawa, Aheard was a Member of Parliament and owner of the Ottawa Senators hockey team.

ARGUE, HAZEN. (1921-1991). Saskatechewan-born, Argue was an M.P. and leader of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation / New Democratic Party from 1961-1962 and Minister of State for the Canada Wheat Board from 1980-1984 under Pierre Trudeau.

BARRETT, Matthew. (1944- ) Born in County Meath, Ireland, Mr. Barrett later settled in Canada where he rose to the top as President of the Bank of Montreal (1987-1999). He expanded the bank's operations beyond Canada into the United States. He then became the head of Barclay's Bank in the United Kingdom.

BINNS, PAT. (1948- ). Binns was Conservative Premier of Prince Edward Island from 1996-2007. Upon retiring from office, he was appointed Ambassador to the Republic of Ireland.

BOLDUC, LA (Mary Rose-Anna Travers) (1894-1941). Born of an Irish father and French Canadian mother, Bolduc was known as the "Queen of Canadian folksingers" in the 1930s. Her music blended Irish and French musical styles.

BOYDEN, JOSEPH (1966- ). Boyden is the author of "Three-Day Road".

BRENNAN, JIM (1977- ). Brennad is the captain of the Toronto FC soccer team.

CALLAGHAN, Morley. (1903-1990) Mr. Callaghan was a prominent writer of Irish descent. He was good friends of Ernest Hemmingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald. Although not as well known as his friends, his novels are acclaimed as masters of English writing. They include Such Is My Beloved, They Shall Inherit the Earth, More Joy in Heaven, and The Love and the Lost.

CARLETON, Sir Guy (Lord Dorchester). (1724-1808). Carleton was born in Ulster and became the Governor of Quebec from 1766-1775 and again from 1786-1796. By supporting the Quebec Act of 1774, he ensured that the French language and culture and the Catholic religion were protected in the newly acquired British colony. Carleton prevented Quebec from becoming part of the United States and he was for a time commander of the British forces in the American Revolution.

CARTER, Cardinal Gerald Emmett. (1912- ) Cardinal Carter, born in Montreal of Irish descent, was the Archbishop of Toronto in the 1980s. He was a champion of Catholic education and managed to secure full government funding for Catholic separate schools in Ontario.

CONNORS, "Stompin' Tom. (1936 - ) Stompin' Tom, a Canadian music icon, was born in Saint John, New Brunswick, to Irish Canadian parents and later was adopted by a family on Prince Edward Island. Some of his famous songs include "Bud the Spud", "The Good Old Hockey Game" and "Margo's Got the Cargo".

DUFFERIN, Earl of. His family was of County Down, although he was born in Italy. He was Governor-General of Canada from 1872 to 1878.

EATON, Timothy. (1834-1907) Mr. Eaton was the founder of the Eaton's department store chain, which spread across the country especially because of its mail-order catalogue. His statue, prominently displayed in many Canadian cities, was a popular place for friends to meet. With the demise of this once great empire, Eaton's is now owned by Sears Canada.

GOWAN, Ogle. Ogle Gowan, born in Tipperary, Ireland, was one of the main leaders of the Orange Order movement in 19th Century Ontario. The Orange Order became one of the most powerful organizations in Canadian history, including many prime ministers among its members.

GRIER, Ruth. Ms. Greer was the Minister of Health for Ontario during the NDP governmentin the late 1980s and early 1990s.

KENNEDY, GERARD ( )

KENNEDY, Thomas L. (1878-1959). Mr. Kennedy was a First World War veteran and later became Minsiter of Agriculture and the Premier of Ontario from 1948-1949.

LINEHAN, Brian. Linehan was a founding member of the Communist Party and instrumental in the formation of the first national union of public employees.

LYNCH, Archbishop John Joseph. (1816-1888). Archbishop Lynch was Catholic bishop of Toronto, Ontario from 1860 until his death in 1888. He was the first Toronto prelate to be raised to an archbishop.

MAHER, Brother Lawrence. Brother Maher, an Irish Canadian from New Brunswick, was the Superior of the Presentation Brothers in Canada and the first non-Jesuit principal of the prestigious Brebeuf College School in Toronto. He was well known for his humour, generosity, and leadership in Catholic education.

McADOREY, BOB. Bob, of Irish descent, is an entertainment reporter and anchor for the Global televsison network and has worked at radio stations across Canada.

McDERMOTT, JOHN. Born in Scotland to Irish parents, John McDermott moved to Toronto with his family at an early age and was educated at the famous St. Michael's Choir School. John is one of the Three Irish Tenors.

McGEE, Thomas D'Arcy. (1825-1868) Mr. McGee was a brilliant Irish-Canadian poet, journalist, orator and politician. He was born in Carlingford, County Louth in 1825. In 1842 he emigrated to Boston, where he became the editor of the Pilot, an Irish American weekly. In 1848 he returned to Ireland to join the rebellion against Britain, and afterwards was forced back to the U.S. In 1857 he moved to Montreal, Quebec where he became the editor of the New Era. He was elected to the Provincial Parliament and served until 1868. He was a Father of Confederation who helped to create the Dominion of Canada from scattered British North American colonies. He was assassinated by Fenians in 1868 for his views, including that Canada should not be home to prejudices from the Old Country.

MONCK, Viscount. (1894). Born in Templemore, Ireland, Viscount Monck was a British Member of Parliament and later made a Viscount. He was Governor of British North America from 1861 to 1867 and Governor General of the Dominion of Canada until 1868. He established Rideau Hall as the Governor-General's offical residence. He was a strong supporter of the Great Coalition and helped create Canadian Confederation.

MOORE, Brian. (1921-1999) A famous novelist, Moore was born in Belfast, Ireland and moved to Canada in 1948 where he took Canadian citizenship. His works, among many others, include: Blackrobe, A Prayer for Owen Meaney, The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne.

MULRONEY, Brian. (1939- ) Mr. Mulroney, of Irish parentage, was the Prime Minister of Canada from 1984-1992. Born in Baie-Comeau Quebec. He earned his BA in political science from St. Francis Xavier University in Nova Scotia and then studied law at Laval University in Quebec City. His many political accomplishments included: sanctions against South Africa, land claims settlement with the Inuit leading to the creation of Nunavut, the GST, Free Trade with the United States and attempting to appease Quebec nationalists.

MURPHY, Emily. (1868-1933) Ms. Murphy, a grand-daughter of Orangeman Ogle Gowan, became the first female magistrate in the British Empire. She also led the fight in the British Privy Council that declared that women were "persons" under Canadian law and could sit in the Senate. As well, she wrote the popular Janey Canuck books.

MURPHY, Rex. Born in St. John's Newfoundland, Murphy attended Memorial University and Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. Known for his eloquent speech and biting sarcasm, Murphy has excelled as a journalist, teacher, and political commentator for the CBC and various Canadian newspapers.

NELLIGAN, Emile. (1879-1941) Born in Montreal to an Irish father and a French Canadian mother, Nelligan became a gifted poet in French. Some of his poems include "La romance du vin" and "Reve fantastique".

NELLIGAN, Kate. (1951 - ) Ms. Nelligan was born in London, Ontario of Irish extraction. She is a talented actress of the stage and film and is well known throughout the English speaking world. Some of her major works include: The Prince of Tides, How to Make an American Quilt, and Margaret's Museum.

O'BRIEN, Lucius. (1832-1899). O'Brien was the first president of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts in 1880 and painted beautiful Canadian landscapes, especially in the Rockies.

O'KEEFE, EUGENE. (1827-1913). O'Keefe was a brewer born in Bandon, Cork, Ireland and settled in Toronto. In 1868 he founded the Victorian Brewing Co. in the city and later bought out rival breweries. In 1891, he incorporated the O'Keefe Brewing Company, which at the time was the largest brewer of lager beer in Canada. In 1911 he sold the company. Eventually, O'Keefe Breweries ended up in the hands of Molson, the largest Canadian brewery. The O'Keefe Centre, now the Sony Centre, was a gift of the brewery to the City of Toronto. O'Keefe was one of greatest benefactors to the Catholic Church in Toronto and paid for the construction of many churches and St. Augustine's Seminary.

PEARSON, Lester B. The Right-Honourable Lester Pearson, whose ancestors were from Tipperary and Dublin, was the Prime Minister of Canada from 1963 to 1968. One of his most important legacies was replacing the Union Jack based Red Ensign with a distinctive red and white Maple Leaf flag. He also won the Nobel Peace Price for Peace in 1956 for his solution to the Suez Canal crisis.

POWER, Bishop Michael. Michael Power was born in Nova Scotia of Irish parents. He was the first Bishop of Toronto after it was separated from the Diocese of Kingston. He started construction of St. Michael's Cathedral, which is still standing, in 1848. He died of cholera after ministering to the Irish famine immigrants in Toronto. He is buried in the crypt of the cathedral.

SIMPSON, Robert. Born in Ireland, Simpson was the founder of the Simpson's department store chain, which flourished until it was bought by the Hudson's Bay Company in the 1970s. The Simpson Tower in Toronto, at Bay and Queen Streets, still proudly bears his name.

SULLIVAN, Kevin. Mr. Sullivan, a graduate of Brebeuf College School in Toronto, is a producer and president of Sullivan Productions, responsible for such uniquely Canadian shows as Anne of Green Gables, Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel, Wind at My Back, and Road to Avonlea.

TOBIN, Brian . Mr. Tobin is the Premier of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Known as a keen politician who took on Spain for fishing illegally in Canadian waters. Unfortunately, one of his main activities as Premier has been to oversee the destruction of the Catholic school system which had been part of Newfoundland's education scene for centures.

WALSH, Mary. Ms. Walsh is a comedic actress of Irish descent from Newfoundland, known for her hilarious performances in CODCO and This Hour Has Twenty-Two Minutes on CBC.

WESTON, Hilary M. (1942- ) Mrs. Weston (nee Frayne) was born in Dublin in 1942 and had a succesful modelling career there. She is one of the founders of the upscale Holt Renfrew department store chain in Canada. In 1979, she established the Ireland Fund of Canada to finance community projects in Ireland. Mrs. Weston is currently the lieutentant-governor, the Queen's representative, for the Province of Ontario

WHELAN, Edward. (1824-1867). Edward Whalen was a Father of Confederation. Born in County Mayo, Ireland in 1824, he moved to Nova Scotia as a boy and later became the editor of the Examiner newspaper in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. He was called to the Legislative Council of the Island in 1851 and later the Legislative Assmebly in 1858. He was one of the few influential Irishmen at the debates leading to the Confederation of the British North American colonies into the Dominion of Canada.

The burial place of over 6000 Irish who fled the famine at Grosse-Ile, a quarantine station just outside of Quebec City, Canada.

The Celtic Cross overlooking the St Lawrence River on Gross Ile, erected by the Ancient Order of Hibernians.

Last update: January 18, 2008