August 24, 2008

Thomas Frances O’Brien

Memories by

Peter R. O’Brien

What I remember and don’t remember about by Great Uncle Tom and his family as a young boy in Minneapolis –

I was born in 1928 during the depression; started working in the family wholesale fruit & produce business at ten years old (1938), moved on to Chicago, ILL and Rouses Point, NY in the trucking industry from 1946/1948, returned to Minneapolis was married at twenty (1948) and moved to Torrance California – So, my memories of Tom and his family are of long ago and really not as abundant as I wish, for your current interest in him – We have had no contact, other than one family picnic in 1972 at his grandson James home at Lake Minnetonka; I’ll try to detail later in this note–

My Grandfather, William J. O’Brien was the youngest of Michael & Mary O’Briens eight children, born on 22 September1860 – died at the young age of 54 on 1 February 1914 – as you already know Thomas Frances O’Brien was the oldest son of M&M, born on 14 November 1851 and he died 12 April 1944 - I was only sixteen then and working at least 100 hours a week with the war on and my older brothers off to the Army in Europe – We had little or no time for social events under these conditions – Since, I was young, working and with girls in my life there was little or no time for family things –

With my grandfather dying so young and my father John Robert “Bob” was the oldest of the his family of three boys & a girl, with a business and four boys and two girls of his own to care for his Uncle Thomas F. was a very important uncle figure - Tom and his family before the war lived only a few blocks from our group in south Mpls.- My earliest school years were two blocks from Tom’s family home, so I would visit them on rare occasion and some times with my father – Don’t know when Tom moved to north Mpls.  It may have been in the early forties: his daughter Ruth Kennedy lived there with her family and/or employment took him there as Honeywell had a defense facility up there – Ruth & Ed Kennedy had seven children and I worked with some of them and partied and picnicked with all of them –

Thomas Francis O’Brien worked for Honeywell and was a very close friend of the Stewart Family, the owners of the organization then – Tom is credited with inventing the mercury switch and this is what made the company in the early days by manufacturing  thermostats – When it was time for Tom to retire, he felt he needed something to do to keep alive so the company allowed him to stay on to run the mail room – every day he would get up and take care of their mail – Don’t know when he finally stopped but he lived to be 93; must have worked !! – After he quit, my be when he moved up to north Mpls. To be with his group – It was said, in those days, any O’Brien could work for Honeywell and many did – Frances Christy “Frank” O’Brien, son of Wm J., nephew of Tom was named from him; his wife Alice worked for them until retirement – Patricia O’Brien (Eddy), daughter of Wm Howard O’Brien, another nephew of Tom’s ran the travel dept. for many years – I’m sure, others did as well; just don’t know who ??

My best story about Tom was at a baseball game with Tom setting between my dad and my self – It was an industrial team, made up of some family members playing softball at Loring Park – This would be about 1935/37, so, Tom would be about in his late 70’s or early 80’ – He would set there and heckle them real loud saying “HELL, YOU GUYS DON”T KNOW HOW TO HIT” – After much of this they would get him out there to show them how; sure enough, he would pound the ball out of the park – This happened on many occasion –

About the picnic at Tom’s grandson James T’s home in 1972: (Jim died about 1967) his wife Dorothy had the group together and there were about 175 family members in attendance – This was a magnificent modern home with all the trimmings, right on this beautiful lake with a huge frontage of green, green grass – It was a wonderful family affair and I was to meet way more than I can remember – My observation of Tom’s greater family is they are open, warm, bright, friendly, successful, considerate, and seemed to be well connected in their relationships – Really, wonderful Irish people that you & I & Tom can be proud to have as relatives – We were preparing for our first trip to Ireland, so it was all Irish stuff !!

Thomas Frances O’Brien and Catherine Ryan did an outstanding job with their family – Unfortunately, I don’t know anything about your Catherine – Further, we don’t have any pictures for you ~~

Catherine Ryan O'Brien   - 

Thomas J. O'Brien Family -

Catherine and Thomas F. O'Brien Family photos (1) -

Catherine and Thomas F. O'Brien Family photos (2) -