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Embracing Hope: The Famine Irish Experience in Providence, Rhode Island with Ray McKenna

  • March 11, 2026 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM
  • Aldrich House

    110 Benevolent Street
    Providence, Rhode Island 02906
Description

Join the Rhode Island Historical Society on Wednesday, March 11th at 5:30pm for the presentation Embracing Hope: The Famine Irish Experience in Providence, Rhode Island, by researcher Ray McKenna, based on his forthcoming book of the same name.

McKenna will share the story of the Irish farmers and laborers who, in the wake of the Great Hunger, made their home in the Ocean State. Focusing on the humble folks, the day laborers, the domestic servants, the unwed mothers, and the abandoned children, whose lives reflect the damage and heartbreak that hunger and disease brought to these otherwise optimistic people. Among those highlighted, McKenna will tell his own family's story, who illustrate the common experience of Irish immigration and life in neighborhoods such as Federal Hill.

McKenna, a sixth-generation Rhode Islander, descends from Irish Famine immigrants who arrived in Providence in the 1840s. With degrees from the University of Rhode Island and the University of Connecticut, he taught European, Russian, and American history at Longmeadow High School in Massachusetts before pursuing a career in the wine trade. Eventually, he returned to his first love, history, focusing on his Celtic ancestors and their community.  His book, Embracing Hope: The Famine Irish Experience in Providence, Rhode Island, will be released in March 2026. 

Date & Time

Wed, Mar 11, 2026 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM

Venue Details

Aldrich House

110 Benevolent Street
Providence, Rhode Island 02906 Aldrich House
Rhode Island Historical Society

The Rhode Island Historical Society, the state's oldest and only statewide historical organization, is dedicated to honoring, interpreting and sharing Rhode Island's past to enrich the present and inspire the future. Founded in 1822, the RIHS is an advocate for history as a means to develop empathy and 21st  -century skills, using its historical materials and knowledge to explore topics of timeless relevance and public interest. As a Smithsonian Affiliate, it is dedicated to providing high-quality, accessible public programming and educational opportunities for all Rhode Islanders through its four sites: the John Brown House Museum, the Museum of Work & Culture, the Mary Elizabeth Robinson Research Center and the Aldrich House.


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