 Nicholas A. Connick, 1838-1898 Merchant and Accountant Buried in the ex-Confederate plot in Porter Cemetery (Image generated using Bing AI) Nicholas A. Connick is believed to have been of Irish descent, but he was born about 1837 in Pennsylvania. However, he didn’t remain there. Unlike the majority of immigrant Irish who settled in Boston, New York, Philadelphia and the industrial northwest, Connick was living in Texas at the outbreak of the Civil War.
He seems to have had a fairly good education since, on August 26, 1861, he enlisted as a sergeant in Capt. Charles Mason’s Company D, Cook’s Battalion, 1st Texas Heavy Artillery. By October, 1861, he was with the Pelican Battery at Galveston, defending the Texas coast from ships of the Union Navy. Connick’s military service was short, however, as he was discharged on November 22, 1861, after being promoted to the rank of major. Thereafter, he served the Confederate cause as chief clerk in a Houston commissary. A Confederate coupon from 1864, worth two dollars in groceries, bears his signature, written in a fair hand. On April 27, 1862, Connick married Nathalia F. Gaye in Christ Church, Houston, Texas. The 1880 federal census found Nicholas Connick living in the newly-formed county of Somervell, Texas, and working as a bookkeeper. By this time, he was a widower. Sometime before 1891, Connick arrived in Phoenix, Arizona, where he opened a saloon near the train depot. The Great Flood of 1891 forced the relocation of the establishment to higher ground. Early in January, 1891, Connick joined a newly formed group of ex-Confederates. Twenty-three local men attended its first meeting. Ivy Cox was elected president and Connick became the secretary. Thomas Greenhaw and Dr. Oscar Mahoney formed a committee to look into permanent organization. The group’s goal was to promote good fellowship and assist old comrades in distress. Perhaps competition drove Connick out of the saloon business, as the 1892 city directory of Phoenix listed him as an accountant. In addition to being proficient with figures, he was regarded as being a sociable, cultured man and a brilliant conversationalist, with vivid memories of the Civil War. On November 18, 1898, Connick died of typhoid at the county hospital in Phoenix. Although his death certificate suggests that he was to be buried in the county cemetery, his old comrades arranged to have him interred as a veteran in Porter Cemetery. No grave marker survives. © 2026 by Donna L. Carr. Last revised 27 March 2026. If you would like assistance researching our interred, you can find more information on our website. You can contact us at [email protected] at any time. Thank you for your interest to preserve the history of Arizona's pioneers!
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 Henry Sayers, about 1832 – 1879 A “Sporting” Character Buried in City-Loosley Cemetery, Block 17, Lot 20 (Grave marker photo courtesy of Tom Yount) Known as “Dublin” or “Dublin Tricks," Sayers was a colorful and savvy part of the gritty fabric of pioneer life.
Henry “Harry” Sayers was born in Ireland around 1832. He would have been a teen or young adult when the Irish Potato Famine devastated that country and he emigrated. He was working as a plumber in New York in 1858, when he enlisted in Company E, 5th United States Infantry. In 1860, he was stationed in Albuquerque, New Mexico. His first enlistment concluded when he was discharged at Los Piños, New Mexico Territory, in 1863. Evidently Sayers reenlisted, as the 1870 federal census records him as a regular Army soldier, part of a large garrison stationed at Fort Bowie, Apache Pass, Pima County, Arizona Territory. The pay might not have been much, but the Army provided companionship with other Irish-born soldiers, some adventure, and a steady livelihood. After his Army years, Sayers settled in Phoenix, where he became known as a "sporting" character and amateur pugilist. In 1873, he placed an ad in a local newspaper offering to fight any man in the Arizona Territory in a prize match under London Prize Ring rules, with $1,000 wagered on each side. His military service had enabled him to become a naturalized citizen, for he registered to vote in Phoenix, Maricopa County, Arizona Territory, on October 14, 1876. By 1878, he had established a feed, exchange, and sales stable adjacent to a local flour mill. Next door to the stable was his bar, advertising the “best liquor and cigars." Following Harry Sayers’ death on June 28, 1879, his estate was administered by R. P. Hilands, who arranged to liquidate his estate. Originally buried in the Old Phoenix Cemetery, Sayers’ remains were relocated to City-Loosley Cemetery when the new cemetery was established in 1884. Unlike many early Phoenix residents, Sayers had a grave marker that was moved with him. During PMMP's 2025 preservation event, his headstone was found in Loosley with its top portion broken off and lying face-up on the ground. After careful probing, preservation volunteers discovered the base about a foot underground. It was brought back to the surface for restoration work. The maker's mark confirmed that the marble headstone had been made in Tucson, adding another historic layer to this pioneer’s enduring story in Arizona. Watch the accompanying video to see this restoration: https://youtu.be/LT0atA4YVFY © 2025 by Val Wilson. Last revised 30 June 2025. If you would like assistance researching our interred, you can find more information on our website. You can contact us at [email protected] at any time. Thank you for your interest to preserve the history of Arizona's pioneers!  Sgt. James C. Traynor, about 1840 – 1882 U. S. Soldier Buried in City/Loosley Cemetery, exact location unknown (Generic image created with Bing AI) James C. Traynor was a native of County Monaghan, Ireland. He came to the United States as a lad, possibly during the great potato famine. Traynor being a fairly common Irish name, it has not been possible to identify him in early records.
In about 1862, Traynor joined the Union Army, as many Irish immigrants did, and remained a soldier for the rest of his life. When he was 38 years old, Traynor may have been stationed at Fort Randall, Dakota Territory, as a soldier born in Ireland and approximately of that name and age is listed on the federal census of 1880. In 1882, Traynor was a sergeant with Company E, 1st U. S. Infantry. Having been recalled from their post in Clifton, Arizona, his unit was passing through the Salt River Valley on the way to its new assignment at Fort McDowell. On the evening of December 3rd, Traynor assayed to climb aboard a moving wagon at the Salt River crossing near Phoenix. He put his foot upon the brake and grasped the wagon bow in order to swing up to the seat, but the bow was broken and could not support his weight. Traynor fell under the heavily loaded wagon's wheels and was killed instantly. Following the tragedy, Company E bivouacked that night in downtown Phoenix. Traynor’s body was laid out in a tent next to the Phoenix City Cemetery, located between Jackson and Madison and 5th and 7th Avenues. At 3 PM the following afternoon, an Episcopal clergyman conducted the funeral and Traynor was interred with full military honors and a farewell volley fired by his fellow soldiers. Company E then continued on to Fort McDowell. Barely two years later, the first Phoenix City Cemetery was decommissioned and families were asked to remove the remains of their loved ones and have them reburied in the new cemeteries on the outskirts of town, at 14th Avenue between Jackson and Madison. Although no written records have been found, it is likely that Traynor’s body was one of those moved—perhaps to a common grave. His subsequent resting place is therefore unknown, but his military service is hereby commemorated. © 2025 by Donna L. Carr. Last revised 11 March 2026. If you would like assistance researching our interred, you can find more information on our website. You can contact us at [email protected] at any time. Thank you for your interest to preserve the history of Arizona's pioneers!  Patrick Hamilton, 1843-1888 Newspaper editor Buried in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows Cemetery, exact location unknown (Obituary from the Arizona Daily Star, December 23, 1888) Patrick Hamilton was born in January, 1843, in County Cork, Ireland. According to his newspaper obituary, he and his parents arrived in New York in 1846, at the beginning of the Irish Potato Famine. He received a liberal education in New York schools.
At age 20, he went west to Colorado, where fur trapping had given way to prospecting. At the outbreak of the Civil War, Hamilton claimed to have joined the 3rd Colorado Volunteer Infantry and participated in several engagements. However, no evidence of his actual enlistment has been discovered. Possibly he was employed in some civilian capacity. Hamilton was in Arizona by 1876, and the 1880 federal census records him as a miner in Prescott. He became a member of the Correspondents’ Club and went into the newspaper business, managing the Prescott Democrat before buying The Expositor. Hamilton had hoped to be named Arizona’s territorial secretary, but the legislature appointed him Commissioner of Immigration instead. His duties included compiling a comprehensive list of Arizona’s natural resources with a view toward dispelling the image of Arizona as a vast wasteland and encouraging people to settle there. Hamilton threw himself into the project enthusiastically, moving to Tombstone to report on the silver mining boom there. Having earned a reputation for colorful editorials in his newspaper, the Tombstone Independent, he got crosswise of Samuel Purdy, editor of the rival Tombstone Epitaph. In September 1882, Purdy challenged Hamilton to a duel. Since dueling was illegal in Arizona, the two men crossed the border into Sonora. The entire incident came to naught, however, as they could not come to an agreement about which pistols to use. While in Tombstone, Hamilton made the acquaintance of a widow, Mrs. Frances McBride, and they declared their intention to marry. They finally achieved their objective on September 2, 1886 in San Diego. Between 1881 and 1886, Hamilton travelled extensively throughout Arizona, first writing and then updating his 270-page book, The Natural Resources of Arizona. It was well-received and went through several editions, with over 10,000 copies printed. An inveterate Arizona "booster," Hamilton had excerpts published in Arizona and California newspapers. Like so many others, Hamilton contracted tuberculosis and died in Phoenix on December 20, 1888, of a pulmonary hemorrhage. He was buried in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows Cemetery. There is no marker. © 2026 by Donna L. Carr. Last revised 27 February 2026. If you would like assistance researching our interred, you can find more information on our website. You can contact us at [email protected] at any time. Thank you for your interest to preserve the history of Arizona's pioneers!  Frederick J. O’Hara, 1875-1901 Member of the Fraternal Order of Eagles Buried in Porter Cemetery, Block 17, Space F (Grave marker photo courtesy of Pioneers’ Cemetery Association, Inc.) Fred J. O’Hara was born on July 3, 1875, in Kent County, Michigan. He was the son of Sarah J. Lamoreaux and her second husband, Bryan O’Hara. Bryan O’Hara seems to have been a two-fisted Irish immigrant who caroused and drank heavily.
From at least 1874 to 1887, the O’Haras lived in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where Bryan worked as a cabinet-maker. Sarah divorced Bryan in 1885, claiming that he was a drunkard and failed to support her and the children. On December 7, 1887, Bryan O'Hara died as a result of injuries received during a saloon fight in Evansville, Indiana. Sarah and her two children moved west to Tacoma, Washington, after Bryan’s death. Son Fred may have become a touring musician, as his comings and goings from Tacoma were occasionally noted in the newspapers. Apparently, his banjo was briefly stolen—but recovered—in 1895. He soon joined the Eagles, a fraternal organization formed in 1898 in Seattle which drew its membership from among those in the performing arts. Suffering from an unspecified illness, Fred had moved to Phoenix, Arizona, by 1901. He died of peritonitis at Sisters’ Hospital on November 1, 1901, and was buried in Porter Cemetery by the local chapter of the Eagles, Aeyrie 178. The Eagles also provided his grave marker. © 2025 by Donna L. Carr. Last revised 20 February 2025. If you would like assistance researching our interred, you can find more information on our website. You can contact us at [email protected] at any time. Thank you for your interest to preserve the history of Arizona's pioneers!  James B. Lacy, about 1847-1896 Owned the Phoenix Illuminating Electric and Gas Works Buried in the IOOF Cemetery, Block 16, Lot 3, Grave 6 (Grave marker photo courtesy of the Pioneers’ Cemetery Association) James B. Lacy was born January 26, 1847 in Erinsville, Ontario, Canada. The name of the town is appropriate, since it was founded by Irish, largely Roman Catholic, immigrants. He was the third of eight children born to Bryan Lacey and his wife, Ellen Clancy. The Laceys were farmers who had immigrated to Canada from County Wexford, Ireland.
In 1868, James Lacy had emigrated to the United States and was living in Mendocino County, California. Around 1873, he moved to Virginia City, Nevada, possibly with a cousin named Bernard. They were employed as miners, working the Comstock Lode. Like many miners, Lacy followed the latest strikes. By 1889, he was in Tombstone, Arizona Territory, where he was employed as a watchman at the Contention Mine. Lacy eventually moved to Phoenix around 1894, where he purchased the Phoenix Illuminating Electric and Gas Company. Being a prominent businessman, he was elected to a term on the City council. He was said to have been genial and well-liked. At the age of 49, Lacy passed away rather unexpectedly of heart disease. Whereas he had always appeared to be hale and hearty, a few days after Christmas 1895, he complained of edema in his right arm. Soon it became clear that his kidneys were failing, too. He was attended by Drs. Stroud, Helm, and Goodfellow, but nothing could be done for him. James Lacy died on January 1, 1896, and was buried in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows Cemetery. In accordance with his beliefs, his funeral service was conducted by a Free Thinker, not a Roman Catholic as might have been expected. John F. Kearney, a cousin of Lacy’s, was a miner in Congress, Arizona. On January 9, Kearney’s wife Katie entered Lacy’s will into probate, and J. W. Jensen was appointed executor. Lacy’s estate was divided between his mother and his sister. © 2025 by Donna L. Carr. Last revised 22 February 2025. If you would like assistance researching our interred, you can find more information on our website. You can contact us at [email protected] at any time. Thank you for your interest to preserve the history of Arizona's pioneers!  Catherine A. Lacy, 1860-1896 Died in a House Fire Buried in the IOOF Cemetery, Block 16, Lot 3, Grave 2 (Grave marker photo courtesy of the Pioneers’ Cemetery Association) Catherine A. Lacy was born March 1, 1860, in Erinsville, Ontario, Canada. The name of the town is appropriate, since it was founded by Irish, largely Roman Catholic, immigrants. Catherine was the youngest of eight children born to Bryan Lacey and his wife, Ellen Clancy. The Laceys were farmers who had immigrated to Canada from County Wexford, Ireland.
While living in Canada, Catherine’s father seems to have Anglicized his name to Bernard. He died on January 23, 1878, and was buried in the local Catholic cemetery. In 1881, Catherine was still living on the family farm near Sheffield with her widowed mother and several siblings. Her older brother James, however, had emigrated to the United States and was working as a miner in Virginia City, Nevada, possibly with a cousin named Bernard. Catherine seems to have joined James after he had moved to Phoenix, Arizona Territory. James passed away rather unexpectedly in Phoenix on January 1, 1896, of heart disease. He was buried in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows Cemetery. Catherine herself died just a few months later on May 15, 1896, of burns received in a house fire. Ironically, her apartment was located in a building behind the Phoenix Gas Works, previously owned by her brother James. She had arisen early and lit a portable gas stove with a match to heat water for her bath. She may have left the stove or match unattended for a moment, for the curtains ignited. As she attempted to extinguish the flames, her robe also caught fire, enveloping her in flames. She tried desperately to get the door open but apparently the smoke was so thick she couldn’t find the doorknob. Passersby noticed flames, broke out the window and put out the fire, but by then she was unconscious and burned almost beyond recognition. She died an hour later. After a Catholic funeral service, Catherine Lacy was buried near her brother in the IOOF Cemetery. Neither one of them had ever married. © 2025 by Donna L. Carr. Last revised 15 February 2025. If you would like assistance researching our interred, you can find more information on our website. You can contact us at [email protected] at any time. Thank you for your interest to preserve the history of Arizona's pioneers!  John B. Kelly, 1837-1896 Butcher and Saloon Owner Buried in Masons Cemetery, Block 3, Lot 2, Grave 8 (Grave marker photo courtesy of the Pioneers’ Cemetery Association) John Barnes Kelly (or Kelley) was born about 1837 in Hermon, St. Lawrence County, New York. Although he and his older brother Henry initially went to California in 1851 in hopes of finding gold, they instead made their fortune in the butchering trade.
J. B. married Elizabeth Ann Morrow on July 8, 1860, in Jackson, Amador County, California. They had four daughters, including a set of twins born in Sutter Creek, Amador County, California. Apparently Elizabeth died in 1874 or 1875, as J. B. then married Laura E. Hoyt on December 1, 1875. They had a son and a daughter while living in California, after which they relocated to Phoenix, Arizona, and had three more daughters. As a butcher, J. B. worked closely with the Balsz family of Phoenix. The Balszes operated a large ranch near Yuma as well as feedlots in Phoenix, and J. B. was one of the butchers who turned steers into steaks for local restaurants. The Kellys lived in a fine house at Center and Monroe Streets. J. B. joined the local Masonic lodge and made a foray into politics; he ran for sheriff but was narrowly defeated. Men outnumbered women in 1880s Phoenix, so J. B.’s three oldest daughters were a welcome addition to the social scene. All three married local men. Harriet Lillian married J. J. Sweeney, a butcher like her father. Addie married Daniel P. Conroy, and her twin, Ada, had a career as a schoolteacher before and after her marriage. J. B. died on February 24, 1896, of a stomach hemorrhage. (possibly a perforated ulcer?) He was buried with Masonic and Episcopalian rites in Phoenix’s Masons Cemetery. The Cabinet, his upscale saloon on Washington Street, he left to his widow. She sold it two months later and eventually returned to her home state of California, where she settled in Oakland. She was last recorded on the 1930 federal census, living with her youngest daughter, Laura R. Kelly. © 2025 by Donna L. Carr. Last revised 15 February 2025. If you would like assistance researching our interred, you can find more information on our website. You can contact us at [email protected] at any time. Thank you for your interest to preserve the history of Arizona's pioneers!  John D. Murphy About 1830-1897 Veteran of the Civil War Buried in Cementerio Lindo, exact location unknown (Image of a Civil War soldier, generated by Bing AI) John David Murphy was a Roman Catholic of Irish descent. Records imply that he was known throughout his life as John D, John David, or Jerry.
In April 1853, John married Sarah C. Jacobus. It was a ‘runaway marriage’ or elopement, so the young couple married in Essex County, New Jersey, where they were not known. The Murphys had five children: Jane, Sarah Elizabeth, Mary, Jerome Franklin, and Loretta. The federal census of 1860 recorded the Murphys living in Orange, Essex County, New Jersey, where John was working as a carpenter. The family seems to have been quite poor. Notwithstanding his age, John D. Murphy volunteered to fight in the Civil War. He enlisted on May 23, 1861, and was assigned to Company F, 72nd New York Infantry. His unit fought in the Peninsular Campaign, and Murphy was reported as wounded at the Battle of Williamsburg on February 5, 1862. After the war, Murphy was unable to work and, by 1880, he was no longer with his family. Family members say that he had developed a mania for wandering around the country. He lived for a time at the Old Soldiers Home in Dayton, Ohio, before heading out for Arizona. Around July 1, 1897, Murphy was living in a boarding house in Phoenix when he fell ill. His landlord cared for him for four days before sending him to the County Hospital. Murphy died there on July 10, 1897, and was buried in the Salt River Cemetery. Upon Murphy’s death, $600 in cash was found among his belongings, as well as letters from his daughter, Mary Murphy Hilliard. When the administrator of Murphy’s estate notified Mary of her father’s demise, he was surprised to learn that Murphy had a wife back in New Jersey. However, she was illiterate and depended on Mary to keep in touch with Murphy. After Mr. Murphy’s final expenses were deducted, his widow Sarah received what was left--$486. She was still living in 1910, when she was recorded on the federal census as residing on a farm in Montana, with her son Franklin and his wife. © 2023 by Donna L. Carr. Last revised 24 September 2023. If you would like assistance researching our interred, you can find more information on our website. You can contact us at [email protected] at any time. Thank you for your interest to preserve the history of Arizona's pioneers!  Loretta Mary Huntington McDonald 1875-1902 Teacher Buried in Rosedale Cemetery North (Grave marker photo courtesy of the Pioneers’ Cemetery Association) Loretta was born in Halleck, Elko County, Nevada on July 29, 1875 to Cornelius Edson Huntington and Sarah nee O’Connor. At the time of her birth, her father was a soldier in the U.S. Army’s 12th Infantry, Company H, stationed at Camp Halleck. Camp Halleck had been established to protect the California Trail and construction workers of the Central Pacific Railroad. Shortly after Loretta’s birth, he was promoted to commissary sergeant.
Sgt. Huntington was reassigned to Camp Independence in Inyo County, California in 1876. Thereafter, the family remained in California while Loretta’s father was transferred from post to post. By 1880, they were living in San Diego, and three additional children had been added to the household: Edson (born 1876 in Nevada), Daniel (born 1878 in California), and Adele (born November 1879 in California). Another son, Paul, was born in 1883. After Huntington’s discharge from the military, he worked as a bookkeeper in San Pedro, California. This is where he died on August 24, 1893.* Loretta and the rest of the family had moved to Phoenix, Arizona, between 1880 and 1890, where Loretta entered college to become a teacher. Newspapers describe a young lady who enjoyed her friends and traveling to Prescott during the summer with her sister Adele. Loretta taught school for several years before marrying Samuel John McDonald, a stockman, on August 27, 1900. However, the couple had no children and Loretta was eventually diagnosed with tuberculosis. By 1901, her health had begun a steady decline. She died May 12, 1902, surrounded by her family, and was buried in Rosedale Cemetery. Her husband Samuel remained in Phoenix, unmarried, until about 1909, when he left for parts unknown. Both Loretta’s sister, Adele Walters, and brother, Paul Huntington, also succumbed to tuberculosis and appear to be buried near her in Rosedale Cemetery. *There is a discrepancy regarding when Cornelius died. His wife Sarah applied for a widow’s pension in August 16, 1890, while in Arizona, but the death record in California clearly shows that his name was not added to the register page until 1893. © 2020 by Patricia Gault. Last revised March 2020. If you would like assistance researching our interred, you can find more information on our website. You can contact us at [email protected] at any time. Thank you for your interest to preserve the history of Arizona's pioneers! |