New York State Senate LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION  honoring  Colonel  Thomas  J.  Kelly  posthumously  upon  the  occasion   of  his  designation  as  recipient  of  a  Liberty  Medal,  the  highest  honor  bestowed  upon  an  individual  by  the   New  York  State  Senate     WHEREAS,  It  is  incumbent  upon  the  people  of  the  State  of  New  York  to  recognize  and  acknowledge   those  within  our  midst  who  have  made  significant  contributions  to  the  quality  of  life  therein;  and   WHEREAS,  Members  of  the  Armed  Services  from  the  State  of  New  York,  who  have  served  so   valiantly  and  honorably  in  wars  in  which  this  country's  freedom  was  at  stake,  as  well  as  in  the   preservation  of  peace  in  peacetime,  deserve  a  special  salute  from  this  Legislative  Body;  and   WHEREAS,  This  Legislative  Body  is  justly  proud  to  honor  Colonel  Thomas  J.  Kelly  posthumously   upon  the  occasion  of  his  designation  as  recipient  of  a  Liberty  Medal,  the  highest  honor  bestowed  upon   an  individual  by  the  New  York  State  Senate;  and   WHEREAS,  The  New  York  State  Senate  Liberty  Medal  was  established  by  resolution  and  is  awarded   to  individuals  who  have  merited  special  commendation  for  exceptional,  heroic,  or  humanitarian  acts  on   behalf  of  their  fellow  New  Yorkers;  and     WHEREAS,  Thomas  Joseph  Kelly  was  born  on  January  6,  1833,  in  Mountbellew,  County  Galway,   Ireland;  from  1846-­‐1849,  he  attended  St.  Jarlath's  College  in  Tuam,  County  Galway,  Ireland;  and   WHEREAS,  After  college,  Thomas  J.  Kelly  served  as  an  apprentice  with  Kelly's  Printers  in  Loughrea,   County  Galway,  Ireland;  at  the  young  age  of  18,  he  emigrated  to  New  York  City,  arriving  on  the  ship   Castillian  on  March  27,  1851;  he  worked  as  a  printer,  and  joined  the  Printer's  Union  in  New  York  City;   and   WHEREAS,  In  that  same  year,  Thomas  J.  Kelly  joined  the  9th  Regiment  New  York  State  Militia,  which   later  became  the  69th  Infantry  Regiment;  today,  the  Regiment  is  known  as  the  Fighting  Sixty-­‐Ninth,  a   name  said  to  have  been  given  by  Robert  E.  Lee  during  the  Civil  War;  and   WHEREAS,  Thomas  J.  Kelly  later  joined  the  Emmet  Monument  Association,  and  became  a  founding   member  of  the  Fenian  Brotherhood  in  1857;  he  also  became  involved  with  the  Masons,  serving  as   Master  Mason  of  Pacific  Lodge  233,  and  Royal  Arch  Mason  of  Orient  Chapter  187;  and   WHEREAS,  Thomas  J.  Kelly  then  moved  to  Nashville,  Tennessee,  where  he  worked  as  a  foreman  for   the  S.  W.  Publishing  House;  soon  thereafter,  he  established  the  NASHVILLE  EVENING  DEMOCRAT,   which  supported  the  presidential  campaign  of  Stephen  A.  Douglas  in  the  Presidential  election  of  1860;   and   WHEREAS,  On  July  15,  1859,  Thomas  J.  Kelly  became  a  Knight  Templar  of  the  Nashville   Commandery;  and   WHEREAS,  Following  the  outbreak  of  the  American  Civil  War,  Thomas  J.  Kelly,  a  supporter  of  the   Union,  chose  to  leave  Nashville  for  the  North;  en  route  to  joining  the  famous  Irish  69th  Infantry   Regiment,  he  heard  about  the  Irish  10th  Ohio  Infantry,  and  enlisted  with  them  for  its  initial  three   months,  and  then  re-­‐enlisted  for  an  additional  three  years;  and   WHEREAS,  Thomas  J.  Kelly  served  in  Company  "C",  where  his  military  knowledge  and  ability  was   soon  recognized  and  he  was  promoted  to  Sergeant;  by  the  end  of  the  summer  of  1861,  he  was   functioning  as  First  Sergeant  of  the  Company;  and   WHEREAS,  Although  he  was  shot  in  the  jaw  at  the  Battle  of  Carnifex  Ferry  in  Western  Virginia  on   September  10,  1861,  he  volunteered  to  return  to  duty  before  the  end  of  the  year;  and   WHEREAS,  In  January  of  1862,  Sergeant  Thomas  J.  Kelly  was  commissioned,  and  later  seconded  to   the  staff  of  Major  General  George  Henry  Thomas  of  the  XIV  Corps,  United  States  Army  of  the   Cumberland,  as  a  Signal  Officer;  he  was  promoted  to  Captain  on  March  17,  1863,  becoming  the  Chief   Signal  Officer;  and   WHEREAS,  On  August  19,  1863,  Captain  Thomas  J.  Kelly  was  ordered  to  return  to  the  "Bloody   Tenth"  as  Captain,  Company  "I",  from  which  he  was  mustered  out  with  the  rest  of  the  10th  Ohio  on  June   17,  1864;  and   WHEREAS,  After  the  war,  Captain  Thomas  J.  Kelly  joined  the  Irish  Republican  Brotherhood  (IRB)  in   New  York;  the  group  dispatched  him  to  Ireland  as  an  envoy  to  meet  with  IRB  leader  James  Stephens;   upon  his  return  to  New  York  in  April  of  1866,  he  became  the  Deputy  to  James  Stephens;  and   WHEREAS,  In  December  of  1866,  Captain  Thomas  J.  Kelly  became  the  Chief  Central  Organiser  of  the   Irish  Republic;  in  this  capacity,  he  penned  a  Proclamation  of  the  Irish  Republic,  and  supported  the  cause   of  Irish  Independence;  and   WHEREAS,  On  September  11,  1867,  Captain  Thomas  J.  Kelly  and  Captain  Timothy  Deasy  were   detained  by  the  British  government  in  Manchester,  England;  one  week  later,  the  two  men  were  rescued   by  a  contingency  of  faithful  and  loyal  followers;  and   WHEREAS,  During  the  rescue  effort,  a  policeman  was  killed,  however,  Colonel  Kelly  and  Captain   Deasy  managed  to  escape  to  the  United  States;  William  Philip  Allen,  Michael  Larkin,  and  Michael  O'Brien   were  arrested  in  connection  with  the  attack,  and  were  later  executed;  thereafter,  they  became  known  as   the  Manchester  Martyrs  for  their  loyalty  to  their  motherland;  and   WHEREAS,  The  song,  "God  Save  Ireland"  was  written  as  a  tribute  to  the  memory  of  the  Manchester   Martyrs,  Colonel  Thomas  J.  Kelly  and  Captain  Timothy  Deasy;  and   WHEREAS,  In  1869,  Colonel  Thomas  J.  Kelly  became  the  Superintendent  of  Station  F  of  the  New  York   Post  Office;  from  1870-­‐1905,  he  held  the  position  of  Audit  Clerk  for  the  United  States  Custom  House;   and   WHEREAS,  For  numerous  years,  Colonel  Thomas  J.  Kelly  was  active  in  the  Grand  Army  of  the   Republic,  Alexander  Hamilton  Chapter  182  in  New  York  City;  and   WHEREAS,  Colonel  Thomas  J.  Kelly  married  the  former  Catharine  Anastasia  Gillogly  in  1869,   together,  the  couple  raised  five  children,  Julia  Helen,  Columba  Lee  Thomas,  Frances  Mary,  Leo  Patrick   and  Kathryn  Josephine;  they  were  the  loving  grandparents  of  one  granddaughter,  Dorothy  Ella  Kelly;   and  five  great-­‐grandchildren,  John  Alfred,  Oliver  Amory,  Eloise  Lorraine,  Lawrence  Joseph,  and  Robert   Leo;  as  well  as  one  great-­‐great-­‐grandchild,  Erica  Beth  Veil;  and   WHEREAS,  Colonel  Thomas  J.  Kelly  died  at  his  home  at  331  East  119th  Street  in  New  York  City  on   February  5,  1908,  at  the  age  of  75;  and   WHEREAS,  Residents  of  this  great  State  must  never  forget  the  courage  with  which  these  men  and   women  served  their  country,  and  must  recognize  that  no  greater  debt  is  owed  than  that  owed  to  those   who  gave  their  lives  for  their  beloved  Nation  and  to  those  who  continue  to  be  missing  in  action;  and   WHEREAS,  Having  exhibited  his  patriotism  both  at  home  and  abroad,  Colonel  Thomas  J.  Kelly   demonstrated  his  love  for  his  country  and  merits  forevermore,  the  highest  respect  of  his  State  and   Nation;  and   WHEREAS,  Our  Nation's  veterans  deserve  to  be  recognized,  commended  and  thanked  by  the  people   of  the  State  of  New  York  for  their  service  and  for  their  dedication  to  their  communities,  their  State  and   their  Nation;  now,  therefore,  be  it     RESOLVED,  That  this  Legislative  Body  pause  in  its  deliberations  to  honor  Colonel  Thomas  J.  Kelly   posthumously  upon  the  occasion  of  his  designation  as  recipient  of  a  Liberty  Medal,  the  highest  honor   bestowed  upon  an  individual  by  the  New  York  State  Senate;  and  be  it  further   RESOLVED,  That  a  copy  of  this  Resolution,  suitably  engrossed,  be  transmitted  to  the  family  of   Colonel  Thomas  J.  Kelly.