MARIANNA O’GALLAGHER: 1929-2010
 MARIANNA O’GALLAGHER
[PHOTO: The Québec Chronicle-Telegraph www.qctonline.com.]
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 MARIANNA O’Gallagher is shown above on June 17, 2008 when the Centre for Canadian Irish Studies at Concordia University in Montreal organized a visit to Grosse Île in Quebec. The renowned Quebec historian gave a tour of the site and explained its significance to Canadian heritage.
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 THE 50-foot high Celtic Cross was erected by the Ancient Order of Hibernians on August 15, 1909 in memory of all those Irish buried on Grosse Île.
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She worked tirelessly to commemorate
the Irish famine and its consequences
for Quebec and Canadian history
QUEBEC CITY – Renowned Canadian historian Marianna O’Gallagher died early on the morning of May 22 at the age of 81.
O'Gallagher was born in 1929 in Sainte-Foy, Quebec to parents of Irish descent: Norma O'Neil and land-surveyor Dermot O‘Gallagher .
She taught for many years at St. Patrick’s High School, where she acquired a reputation for her infectious enthusiasm, wit and passion for community history. While employed as a teacher, she obtained first a B.A. then a Master’s degree in history.
The subject of her Masters’ thesis was St. Patrick’s Church in Old Quebec. Her abiding interest in the history of Quebec City’s Irish population later inspired a number of scholarly and popular works, including Grosse Île: Gateway to Canada 1832-1957 and Eyewitness Grosse Île 1847.
Through these writings O'Gallagher helped raise public awareness of the tragic history of the island quarantine station, where an estimated 6,000 immigrants from famine-ravished Ireland died.
In 1973, O'Gallagher founded a community organization called Irish Heritage Quebec, which seeks to preserve and promote local Irish history through popular activities such as
lectures.
In 1981, she launched her own publishing company, Carraig Books, specializing in works
from Quebec with an Irish connection.
During the 1980s and 1990s, she served on a government advisory committee, working tirelessly to commemorate the Irish famine and its consequences for Quebec and Canadian history.
She was subsequently instrumental in the creation of the Grosse Île and Irish Memorial
National Historic Site in 1996.
In addition to her duties as president of Irish Heritage Quebec, she was a member of the Historical Society of Quebec and served on the organizing committee for Quebec City’s 400th anniversary.
She was presented with many honours for her work including the Ordre national du Quèbec (1998), and the Order of Canada (2002).
She will be remembered for her enormous contributions in establishing Grosse Île and Irish Memorial National Historic Site on the island. It is because of her tireless work that the Canadian Government recognized the importance of the site to both Irish and Canadian history.
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