The late John “Johnny” Francis O’Shea, May 15, 1932 -September 11, 2023 at home on Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada, photo above — Mr. O’Shea was a storyteller of Wolfe Island, referred to as a bard, a distinguished honor. His family ran a dairy and cheese factory on the island, and is deeply rooted in Wolfe Island history. Photo taken December 21, 2022, by Jannet L. Walsh, Wolfe Island.

Prose poem to pay tribute to Wolfe Islander’s late cultural bearer, keeper of stories

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Jannet L. Walsh
August 16, 2024
Murdock, Minnesota

Tis the eve of the new electric ferry Wolfe Islander IV to start official full-time service on August 17, 2024, between Kingston and Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada, according to Ontario Transportation.

This post is to honor the late John “Johnny” Francis O’Shea, May 15, 1932 -September 11, 2023, of Wolfe Island, Ontario Canada. While working on my writing project on Wolfe Island, I had the chance to meet with Johnny twice. He was the island’s esteemed storyteller, and was referred to as the Bard of Wolfe Island. My Irish Walsh family has ties to Wolfe Island and Kingston, 1842-1877, before migrating south to Minnesota.

Johnny, the Bard of Wolfe Island, returned home on board the Wolfe Islander IV Ferry from Kingston to Wolfe Island, Saturday, September 16, 2023, and is among the few individuals, living or dead, that have been aboard all of the four Wolfe Island ferries. View obituary of Johnny O’Shea at obituary at The Whig Standard, Kingston, Ontario, Canada, published September 14, 2023.

I’ve written a prose poem to honor his contributions as a storyteller. A prose poem is a composition having traits of symbols, metaphors and figures of speech common to poetry. Learn more about prose poems at the Poetry Foundation website.

At the end the poem, you will see my notes, the author’s notes, about the poem, and a few more details about Johnny, and my connections to Wolfe Island. Special thanks to Johnny’s daughter Liz O’Shea in preparation for this blog post, and to Captain Brian P. Johnson, retired captain of the Wolfe Islander III Ferry, for his help with maritime terms for my poem. Poet Tracy Ross, one of my writing project mentors, helped edit my poem about Johnny for clarity.

Please feel free to share this post, read it while waiting for the Wolfe Islander IV to arrive, or as you pass on the Road of Water between Wolfe Island and Kingston.

I think if Johnny was still living, he’d be on the first ferry ride from Wolfe Island to Kingston. Certainly, he’d have a story to tell you!

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The Islander Johnny O’Shea, Bard of Wolfe Island
May 15, 1932 -September 11, 2023

By Jannet L. Walsh
Written at home, Murdock, Minnesota
July 18, 2024

O holy milk cows!
In the middle of the St. Lawrence River,
out towards Button Bay on Wolfe Island,
Johnny O’Shea is on top of the pile – pitchin’ down!
The cow’s milk does not stop flowing,
and the pitchforks are never idle in the O’Shea cow barn.
There’s cheese to be made!

In the village of Marysville, it’s coffee all around at the diner.
If by chance you are sitting next to Johnny, then you are in his audience.
There are unlimited stories ready to be poured, and yarns to spin, as Johnny is here.
Listen, and listen well, unless you need to catch the next ferry to Kingston!

The bishop’s seat is in Kingston on Johnson Street at the Cathedral.
Yet, Johnny’s chair at home on the island is certainly plusher, and more comfortable.
Private audiences, and hospitality, yield unstoppable and lyrical stories on offer,
and certainly, the stories are repeated for your listening pleasure without question.

On Johnny’s final voyage home on the road of water from Kingston to the Wolfe Island,
Captain’s horns sound between the Wolfe Islander III and Wolfe Islander IV.
Maritime crews on the docks and ferries stand at attention, with hats off.
Ahoy! The ‘Bard’ of Wolfe Island is now home on the island,
and he has aged cheddar cheese for his journey!

Listen up, islanders at the foot, head, village, and out towards Horne Point!
Within Canadian waters of the St. Lawrence River, not far from American waters,
horns from the Wolfe Islander III and Wolfe Islander IV can be heard.
Ferry captains give their salute, blow their horns: 
One long blast, followed by two short blasts.

It’s now time to head up the hemlock hill.
All the residents there are deep in their eternal sleep:
Receive an alert of all hands-on deck!

There’s a new storyteller, bard, ready to take on audiences in heaven.
Put the water on to boil, and fill up your cup of tea, Saint Peter! 
Johnny O’Shea’s stories are starting now!
Cheese will be served.

Copyright © 2024. Jannet L. Walsh. All Rights Reserved.

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Author’s notes — This prose poem is written to celebrate the life of the late John “Johnny” Francis O’Shea, May 15, 1932 -September 11, 2023, respected resident, and esteemed storyteller of Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada.  Wolfe Island is located in the archipelago of the Thousand Islands, between Canada and the United States in the St. Lawrence River. The island can only be reached by ferry from Kingston, with limited summer access from Horne Point on the island, to Cape Vincent, New York.

I was fortunate to meet with Johnny twice in December 2022, on Wolfe Island, and anticipated interviewing him again in summer 2023, but he passed away while I was on Wolfe Island.  My words in this poem are meant to highlight his contributions to the cultural heritage of Wolfe Island, considered to be the “Bard of Wolfe Island” by residents.  There is no badge or award for the honor of bard or storyteller, simply respect gained by the local historians, storytellers, and the community to keep oral history and traditions alive. Storytelling is deeply rooted on Wolfe Island, and the Irish culture. It’s estimated Johnny O’Shea’s family arrived about 1846, if not earlier, from Ireland. Johnny’s ancestors Thomas Shea and Ann Murphy were married February 5, 1847, Canada, so 1846 is a very reasonable guess. Genealogy and family history is not always exacting, often not at all, but more like piecing a crazy quilt.

My brief visits with Johnny O’Shea allowed me to take a glimpse of my storytelling roots on the Wolfe Island, and a look back to my own Walsh family origins on the island, Seventh Line Road north of Baseline Road, about 1850 to 1877. See YouTube video by Mike Hill, Aerosnapper, about my September 10, 2023, talk with the Wolfe Island Historical Society.

My oral storytelling tradition and skills were passed down from my late grandpa Martin J. Walsh Sr., Murdock, Minnesota, and likely from his Wolfe Island born father, Michael J. Walsh Jr., 1858. And since an understanding of history and heritage runs deep for my family, I found a tradition with nearly all families I encountered on Wolfe Island.

Although the O’Shea family, and my Walsh family are not known to be related, we are forever connected through the Irish Diaspora, Wolfe Island, and the gift of the gab, or simply put, storytelling.

This prose poem uses two phrases, or parts of phrases, known to be used by Johnny. The first phrase is: “I’m top of the pile – pitchin’ down!” I heard Johnny tell me this saying in 2022, at his home on Wolfe Island, and was highlighted in his obituary in The Kingston Whig Standard, September 14, 2023.  The other phrase is, “It’s now time to head up the hemlock hill.”  His daughter Liz O’Shea, of Calgary, Alberta, noted the translation means it’s time to go to sleep.  There is no hemlock hill on Wolfe Island, but there is an area called the Ridge near the head of the island.  Johnny is buried at Sacred Heart Cemetery on Wolfe Island, across from the Roman Catholic parish church, Sacred Heart of Mary Church.

 Although Johnny O’Shea, the late ‘Bard’ of Wolfe Island is gone, it seems only fitting he has stories to tell in heaven, if Saint Peter allows.  It would be hard to think he could be stopped!

I think Johnny might say in heaven: “I’ve got a story to tell you.  Let’s eat some cheddar cheese first.  It’s from my dad’s cheese factory, Wolfe Island Cheese Factory. This 70-year-old cheese might taste pretty good up here in heaven, maybe better than down on earth.”

I will leave a bit of suspense about the details of the cheese.  A storyteller needs to keep the attention of an audience! 

Please follow update at my website, JannetWalsh.com.

Wolfe Island Historical Society, 2008
Listen to Brian Johnson, Arthur Keys and Johnny O’Shea

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About Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada – Wolfe Island is in St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario, almost four miles from the port of Kingston, accessible by ferry, and the largest island in the archipelago of the Thousand Islands. 

This 48-square-mile island has been home to several European ethnic groups, cheese factories, and dairy farms, along with a history of fur trading. Wolfe Island is the native homeland of the Tyendinaga Mohawk, kawehnóhkwes tsi kawè:note, meaning Long Island Standing. Wolfe Islanders are completely dependent on access to mainland Canada by the Wolfe Island Ferry III to Kingston, soon to be replaced by a zero-emission ferry, Wolfe Island Ferry IV. Locals reference the journey the ferry takes in the St. Lawrence River as a water road, or Highway H₂0.

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Wolfe Island Historical Society Talk, September 10, 2023

Title of talk — Walsh expedition to Wolfe Island 2022-2023 – ‘Irish Bard’ Jannet L. Walsh finds roots in Ontario, Canada, Wolfe Island Historical Society
Location — Wolfe Island United Church, 52 Victoria St, Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada.
Video online from talk — View link to video at YouTube by Mike Hill, Wolfe Island Historical Society talk – a Journey from Ireland to Minnesota. 
Attendance — About 35-40 people attended talk
Date and time — September 10, 2023, 1:30 pm

Link to the pamphlet mentioned in talk — Catholic Colonization in Minnesota Revised Edition, 1879, author Catholic Colonization Bureau of Minnesota, Archbishop John Ireland, view at The Project Gutenberg EBook.

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Thank You!

There were numerous people, and organizations, in Kingston and Wolfe Island, I received help along the way during my time in Canada. Listed below is a short listing of organizations or businesses I received help from, transportation by ferry, resources, or assistance around Wolfe Island. Special thanks to the Wolfe Island Historical Society staff for all their help locating resources, farms, and finding my forgotten Canadian family history.

• Wolfe Island Historical Society
• Aero Snapper Kingston, Mike Hill
• Fargo’s General Store, Wolfe Island
• Horne’s Ferry, Wolfe Island to Cape Vincent, NY
• Hotel Wolfe Island
• Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Wolfe Island
• St. Mary’s Cathedral, Kingston
• Simceo Ferry, Wolfe Island to Simceo Island
• Wolfe Islander III, Kingston to Wolfe Island
• Wolfe Island Pub and Pizzeria, WIPP

I wish to express my sincere gratitude to the Southwest Minnesota Arts Council and the McKnight Foundation for founding my grant, and all current and future professional and artistic opportunities as the result of the writing project to Kingston and Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada.

Best wishes,
Jannet L. Walsh

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Genealogy, family history resources

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Artist Grant – Learn more about supporting agencies of this project

This activity is made possible by a grant from the Southwest Minnesota Arts Council with funds from The McKnight Foundation.

The Southwest Minnesota Arts Council (SMAC) is a non-profit organization committed to promoting and encouraging the development of the arts in the eighteen counties of southwestern Minnesota by serving as a source of funds and technical services which enable local organizations, educational institutions, and individuals to sponsor and/or create and promote the arts in their communities.

The McKnight Foundation, a Minnesota-based family foundation, seeks to improve the quality
of life for present and future generations. Program interests include regional economic and community development, Minnesota’s arts and artists, education equity, youth engagement, Midwest climate and energy, Mississippi River water quality, neuroscience research, international crop research, and rural livelihoods. Founded in 1953 and independently endowed by William and Maude McKnight, the Foundation has assets of approximately $2.2 billion and grants about $90 million a year. 

Minnesota Residents – Search for similar arts grants at regional arts councils at the Minnesota State Arts Board website.

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Book — Please find full details, summary, reviewer’s comments on my book page, Higgledy-Piggledy Stones.

Irish Diaspora Writing Project — Please see details and previous blogs and stories posted about my Irish Diaspora writing project at my project page, and learn about my grant from Southwest Minnesota Arts Council Artist Growth Grant, McKnight Foundation, 2022-2024.

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*Jannet L. Walsh of Murdock, Minnesota is a photographer, writer, and educator. She is the author of a creative nonfiction quest narrative “Higgledy-Piggledy Stones: Family Stories from Ireland and Minnesota,” publication 2023 by Shanti Arts Publishing. Walsh is recipient of a Southwest Minnesota Arts Council Growth Grant funded by the McKnight Foundation, 2022-2024. She is also recipient a 2024 Minnesota Arts Board Creative Individuals Grant. Board Grant. You can follow Walsh on Facebook and Twitter, and on her other social media channels, with the hashtag #IrishFamilyHistoryDetective.

Spoor Cottage, Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada, photo above — Author Jannet L. Walsh in front of Spoor Cottage, located in the village of Marysville on Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada. Self portrait, September 10, 2023.

‘Irish Bard’ Jannet L. Walsh, finds roots on Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada

Jannet L. Walsh
August 15, 2024
Murdock, Minnesota

Wolfe Island holds my family’s precious Irish and Canadian history, along my heart, in the middle of the St. Lawrence River.

I’ve been chasing Canadian family history in Ontario for the past two years of my Irish Walsh family as a grant recipient from the Southwest Minnesota Arts Council, SMCA, Artist Growth Grant, 2022 – 2024. Funding for this program was provided by the McKnight Foundation. Minnesota thrives when its artists thrive. The McKnight Foundation supports working artists to create and contribute to vibrant communities.

The grant started October 1, 2022, and ends Aug. 29, 2024. The project is a nonfiction quest narrative genre writing project, with the title of Nonfiction Quest Narrative Genre Writing Project – Family Stories: Minnesota and Irish Diaspora. The goal of the project is to create a manuscript, with hopes of becoming my second book.

Simply put, this grant helped bring to reality my dream of seeing and writing about where my family lived as Irish immigrants, 1842-1877, as people of the land and sea on Wolfe island near the city of Kingston, Ontario, reached only by ferry today, as well as in the past.

I’m likely the first known person in my family to return to Wolfe Island since 1877, before migrating south to De Graff, in rural Swift County, Minnesota. They were part of a mainly Irish and Catholic colony started by the late Bishop John Ireland, later named Archbishop of the Catholic Diocese of Saint Paul.

My family is one of the four thousand Catholic families Archbishop Ireland helped resettle in west central and southwest Minnesota during the years of 1875-1885. Archbishop Ireland’s goals were to alleviate the perceived problems of nativist prejudice (anti immigrant), poverty, and loss of religion faced by urban Catholics (particularly Irish) on the east coast and poor Catholics still in Ireland by relocating them to low cost farmland in western Minnesota. Today I live just three miles from De Graff, in Murdock, Minnesota, in the same house my father was born in 1924. 

Artist Statement for writing project
“I continue in my established nonfiction writing practice to tell stories of my rural Minnesota Irish family, expanding to family’s forgotten Canada. When possible, I will write in first person and present tense, engage readers in Irish family history detective work as it happens, writing in notebooks to capture thoughts and events. Readers imagine they are walking with me in rural Minnesota and Canada.”

Jannet L. Walsh
2022 grant application,
Southwest Minnesota Arts Council Artist Growth Grant, McKnight Foundation, 2022-2024

My father, the late Martin J. Walsh Jr., of Murdock, Minnesota, would say when I was a child, and was telling stories of our family’s history and connection to the island of Ireland, “We are Archbishop John Ireland’s people.”

It just happened to be the Archbishop’s last name was the same as the country my people left behind in the mid 1800s. Read and learn more about my dad, and his 1953 trip to Ireland at my 2022 blog.

Project mentors, writing and research

This writing project included two official mentors I contacted before the grant specific to the areas of history and writing. Mentoring was by phone, online video, in person during the writing process, and while I was in Canada and at home in Minnesota.

— The Rev. Gary E. Mills, Th. D., is the Director Swift County Historical Society in Benson, Minnesota, and is a history and genealogy expert. View the Swift County Historical Society Museum website.

— Ms. Tracy Ross, has a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing. She is a published poet and nonfiction author, educator, college professor, and served as the writing expert for this project. View her website.

Mentoring included topics of research, history, writing, travel planning, sorting out topics to write about, or save for future writing projects. There is likely a future writing project I would like to pursue based on family research I stumbled on during this grant related to Irish living is Edinburgh, Scotland’s Little Ireland neighborhood.

It’s all too easy to get lost researching, and become overwhelmed. Time is often the best part of the equation for sorting out what’s important or not. It’s best to get lost momentarily in a black hole of facts and original artifacts, and come out the other side with new ideas.

Irish migration — I have come to understand more and more about the migration of my Irish ancestors from the island of Ireland in Europe to North American, Canada and the United States. I’m the result of my family’s emigration from Ireland, about 1842 for my Walsh family to Kingston and Wolfe Island, Ontario. I’m now living in rural Dublin Township in Swift County, Minnesota where my ancestors might have envisioned their lives, and a location for future generations to thrive.

August 14, 2024, yesterday at the Swift County Fair in Appleton, Minnesota, I estimated at least three generations of my Walsh family was at the opening day of the 126th Annual Swift County Fair, not far from the fair barns. At one point in the fair show ring, four young Walsh descendants were exhibiting their calves during the 4-H beef show, all with roots back to Wolfe Island, and County Kilkenny, Ireland. My Walsh family came as farmers to Minnesota from Canada, and most likely were farmers in Ireland. Today, many of the family are still living and connected to Swift County’s agricultural community.

Although the grant period is ending, my writing project continues. My first trip was in winter 2022-23.  Brian P. Johnson, retired Captain of the Wolfe Islander III, of Kingston, Ontario, Canada, wrote about my winter adventure during one of the worst blizzards in about four decades. His story published March 18, 2023, West Central Tribune, Willmar, Minnesota. Read about the Irish Diaspora writing project at the project page.

“When Jannet told me, ‘the whole house was shaking, even my bed,’ it planted a seed. Then trudging through deep snowdrifts to attend Christmas Eve Mass by candlelight, that was the beginning. She also told me about a lady calling out from a porch, ‘Don’t get lost in the forest!’
Here’s a story all right!”

Brian P. Johnson, Facebook page

Summer 2023, I returned to Kingston and Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada, August 28 to September 12. I personally funded this portion of travels to Wolfe Island. My second trip to Wolfe Island was to explore my family roots on the largest island of the Thousands Island located in the middle of the St. Lawrence River, situated next to the international borders of Canada and the United States. It’s about 1,200 miles round trip from my home in rural Murdock, Minnesota to Wolfe Island, Ontario. The final miles of the trip from mainland North American, Kingston to Wolfe Island, are completed by a 20 minute ferry ride, carrying about 55 vehicles, currently serviced by the Wolfe Islander III. As of August 17, 2024, a new electric ferry, the Wolfe Islander IV is scheduled to be in full service after a three year wait by residents.

What happens next?

Writing for my project is based on facts, research, my personal encounters, and finding during the two visited to Canada and at home in Minnesota, 2022-2024. The writing is approximately 75 percent complete. I anticipate finishing the manuscript in 2025, and then present to potential publishers.

The findings, and details to my manuscript will remain private until published as a book.

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Why I returned to Wolfe Island, summer 2023
One of the major reasons I returned to Wolfe Island in summer 2023 was to visit the farm my Walsh ancestors leased and lived on Wolfe Island, about 1850-1877, along with other related family farms. I wanted to see where the family cabin was located according to historical maps on Seventh Line Road north of Baseline Road on Wolfe Island, Wolfe Island. I also wanted to explore the island not covered in snow and ice, and see the land and water around Wolfe Island.

Returning for a second time to Wolfe Island, I had an incredible opportunity to meet with islanders and learn more about the history of the land, water, people, and especially the time period my family lived most of the year removed from mainland due to winter freezing of the St. Lawerence River.

About Wolfe Island – Wolfe Island is in St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario, almost four miles from the port of Kingston, accessible by ferry, and the largest island in the archipelago of the Thousand Islands. 

This 48-square-mile island has been home to several European ethnic groups, cheese factories, and dairy farms, along with a history of fur trading. Wolfe Island is the native homeland of the Tyendinaga Mohawk, kawehnóhkwes tsi kawè:note, meaning Long Island Standing. Wolfe Islanders are completely dependent on access to mainland Canada by the Wolfe Island Ferry III to Kingston, soon to be replaced by a zero-emission ferry, Wolfe Island Ferry IV. Locals reference the journey the ferry takes in the St. Lawrence River as a water road, or Highway H₂0.

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Wolfe Island Historical Society Talk, September 10, 2023

Title of talk — Walsh expedition to Wolfe Island 2022-2023 – ‘Irish Bard’ Jannet L. Walsh finds roots in Ontario, Canada, Wolfe Island Historical Society
Location — Wolfe Island United Church, 52 Victoria St, Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada.
Video online from talk — View link to video at YouTube by Mike Hill, Wolfe Island Historical Society talk – a Journey from Ireland to Minnesota. 
Attendance — About 35-40 people attended talk
Date and time — September 10, 2023, 1:30 pm

Link to the pamphlet mentioned in talk — Catholic Colonization in Minnesota Revised Edition, 1879, author Catholic Colonization Bureau of Minnesota, Archbishop John Ireland, view at The Project Gutenberg EBook.

I was thrilled when I was invited to talk to Wolfe Island Historical Society. During my visit to Wolfe Island, I had the pleasure to talk about my Irish family ties to Wolfe Island, about 1842-77, along with my quest to find stories and places of origin of my family in Ireland Canada, Scotland and at home in Minnesota.

My great grandfather Michael J. Walsh Jr. was born in Kingston or Wolfe Island, 1858, baptized at Sacred Heart Catholic Church on Wolfe Island. Four generations of my family lived on Wolfe Island, 13 births, and one burial are directly associated with my Walsh family. A portion of the family, Patrick Walsh, oldest son of my great-great grandfather Michael J. Walsh Sr., remained until Wolfe Island until the 1880-90s before migrating to Philadelphia. Patrick “Pat” Walsh has farm on Wolfe Island near Irvine Bay.

Photos from Wolfe Island Historical Society Talk, September 10, 2023

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Thank You!

There were numerous people, and organizations, in Kingston and Wolfe Island, I received help along the way during my time in Canada. Listed below is a short listing of organizations or businesses I received help from, transportation by ferry, resources, or assistance around Wolfe Island. Special thanks to the Wolfe Island Historical Society staff for all their help locating resources, farms, and finding my forgotten Canadian family history.

• Wolfe Island Historical Society
• Aero Snapper Kingston, Mike Hill
• Fargo’s General Store, Wolfe Island
• Horne’s Ferry, Wolfe Island to Cape Vincent, NY
• Hotel Wolfe Island
• Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Wolfe Island
• St. Mary’s Cathedral, Kingston
• Simceo Ferry, Wolfe Island to Simceo Island
• Wolfe Islander III, Kingston to Wolfe Island
• Wolfe Island Pub and Pizzeria, WIPP

I wish to express my sincere gratitude to the Southwest Minnesota Arts Council and the McKnight Foundation for founding my grant, and all current and future professional and artist opportunities as the result of the writing project to Kingston and Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada.

If I am lucky, I will ride on the new Wolfe Islander IV ferry, and step foot on Wolfe Island in the very near future.

Best wishes,
Jannet L. Walsh

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Genealogy, family history resources

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Artist Grant – Learn more about supporting agencies of this project

This activity is made possible by a grant from the Southwest Minnesota Arts Council with funds from The McKnight Foundation.

The Southwest Minnesota Arts Council (SMAC) is a non-profit organization committed to promoting and encouraging the development of the arts in the eighteen counties of southwestern Minnesota by serving as a source of funds and technical services which enable local organizations, educational institutions, and individuals to sponsor and/or create and promote the arts in their communities.

The McKnight Foundation, a Minnesota-based family foundation, seeks to improve the quality
of life for present and future generations. Program interests include regional economic and community development, Minnesota’s arts and artists, education equity, youth engagement, Midwest climate and energy, Mississippi River water quality, neuroscience research, international crop research, and rural livelihoods. Founded in 1953 and independently endowed by William and Maude McKnight, the Foundation has assets of approximately $2.2 billion and grants about $90 million a year. 

Minnesota Residents – Search for similar arts grants at regional arts councils at the Minnesota State Arts Board website.

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Book — Please find full details, summary, reviewer’s comments on my book page, Higgledy-Piggledy Stones.

Irish Diaspora Writing Project — Please see details and previous blogs and stories posted about my Irish Diaspora writing project at my project page, and learn about my grant from Southwest Minnesota Arts Council Artist Growth Grant, McKnight Foundation, 2022-2024.

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*Jannet L. Walsh of Murdock, Minnesota is a photographer, writer, and educator. She is the author of a creative nonfiction quest narrative “Higgledy-Piggledy Stones: Family Stories from Ireland and Minnesota,” publication 2023 by Shanti Arts Publishing. Walsh is recipient of a Southwest Minnesota Arts Council Growth Grant funded by the McKnight Foundation, 2022-2024. She is also recipient a 2024 Minnesota Arts Board Creative Individuals Grant. You can follow Walsh on Facebook and Twitter, and on her other social media channels, with the hashtag #IrishFamilyHistoryDetective.

Spoor Cottage, Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada, photo above — Author Jannet L. Walsh in front of Spoor Cottage, located in the village of Marysville on Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada. Self portrait, September 10, 2023.

‘Irish Bard’ Jannet L. Walsh finds roots in Ontario, Canada, Wolfe Island Historical Society

Jannet L. Walsh
September 21, 2023
Murdock, Minnesota

Wolfe Island holds my family’s Irish and Canadian history, and my heart, in the middle of the St. Lawrence River.

Last month I returned to Kingston and Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada, August 28 to September 12. This is my second trip to Wolfe Island to explore my family roots on the largest island of the Thousands Island located in the middle of the St. Lawrence River, situated next to the international borders of Canada and the United States. It’s about 1,200 miles round trip from my home in rural Murdock, Minnesota to Wolfe Island, Ontario. The final miles of the trip from mainland North American, Kingston to Wolfe Island, are completed by a 20 minute ferry ride, carrying about 55 vehicles, currently serviced by the Wolfe Islander III.

My first trip was this past winter 2022-23.  Brian P. Johnson, retired Captain of the Wolfe Islander III, of Kingston, Ontario, Canada, wrote about my winter adventure during one of the worst blizzards in about four decades. His story published March 18, 2023, West Central Tribune, Willmar, Minnesota. Read about my Irish Diaspora writing project at my project page.

Why I returned to Wolfe Island
One of the major reasons I returned to Wolfe Island this summer was to visit the farm my Walsh ancestors leased and lived on Wolfe Island, about 1850-1877, along with other related family farms. I wanted to see where the family cabin was located according to historical maps on Seventh Line Road north of Baseline Road on Wolfe Island, Wolfe Island. I also wanted to explore the island not covered in snow and ice, and see the land and water around Wolfe Island.

Returning for a second time to Wolfe Island, I had an incredible opportunity to meet with islanders and learn more about the history of the land, water, people, and especially the time period my family lived most of the year removed from mainland due to winter freezing of the St. Lawerence River.

About Wolfe Island – Wolfe Island is in St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario, almost four miles from the port of Kingston, accessible by ferry, and the largest island in the archipelago of the Thousand Islands. 

This 48-square-mile island has been home to several European ethnic groups, cheese factories, and dairy farms, along with a history of fur trading. Wolfe Island is the native homeland of the Tyendinaga Mohawk, kawehnóhkwes tsi kawè:note, meaning Long Island Standing. Wolfe Islanders are completely dependent on access to mainland Canada by the Wolfe Island Ferry III to Kingston, soon to be replaced by a zero-emission ferry, Wolfe Island Ferry IV. Locals reference the journey the ferry takes in the St. Lawrence River as a water road, or Highway H₂0.

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Wolfe Island Historical Society Talk, September 10, 2023

Title of talk — Walsh expedition to Wolfe Island 2022-2023 – ‘Irish Bard’ Jannet L. Walsh finds roots in Ontario, Canada, Wolfe Island Historical Society
Location — Wolfe Island United Church, 52 Victoria St, Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada.
Video online from talk — View link to video at YouTube by Mike Hill, Wolfe Island Historical Society talk – a Journey from Ireland to Minnesota. 
Attendance — About 35-40 people attended talk
Date and time — September 10, 2023, 1:30 pm

Link to the pamphlet mentioned in talk — Catholic Colonization in Minnesota Revised Edition, 1879, author Catholic Colonization Bureau of Minnesota, Archbishop John Ireland, view at The Project Gutenberg EBook.

I was thrilled when I was invited to talk to Wolfe Island Historical Society. During my visit recent to Wolfe Island, I had the pleasure to talk about my Irish family ties to Wolfe Island, about 1842-77, along with my quest to find stories and places of origin of my family in Ireland Canada, Scotland and at home in Minnesota.

I was delighted Wolfe Islanders were interested to hear stories about my family, and also for me to learn of stories from islanders. I can only think my late father Martin J. Walsh Jr. and my grandfather Martin J. Walsh Sr., first generation born in the United States, would be pleased. They only knew of Wolfe Island and Kingston as locations associated with births and obituaries in our family history. They also never had the chance to visit where our family lived for at least 35 years, 1842-1877, before migrating to DeGraff, Minnesota as part of the first colony started by then Bishop John Ireland, later Archbishop of Diocese of St. Paul, Minnesota.

My great grandfather Michael J. Walsh Jr. was born in Kingston or Wolfe Island, 1858, baptized at Sacred Heart Catholic Church on Wolfe Island. Four generations of my family lived on Wolfe Island, 13 births, and one burial are directly associated with my Walsh family. A portion of the family, Patrick Walsh, oldest son of my great-great grandfather Michael J. Walsh Sr., remained until Wolfe Island until the 1880-90s before migrating to Philadelphia. Patrick “Pat” Walsh has farm on Wolfe Island near Irvine Bay.

Photos from Wolfe Island Historical Society Talk, September 10, 2023

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Thank You!
There were numerous people, and organizations, in Kingston and Wolfe Island, I received help along the way during my time in Canada. Listed below is a short listing of organizations or businesses I received help from, transportation by ferry, resources, or assistance around Wolfe Island. Special thanks to the Wolfe Island Historical Society staff for all their help locating resources, farms, and finding my forgotten Canadian family history.

• Wolfe Island Historical Society
• Aero Snapper Kingston, Mike Hill
• Fargo’s General Store, Wolfe Island
• Horne’s Ferry, Wolfe Island to Cape Vincent, NY
• Hotel Wolfe Island
• Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Wolfe Island
• St. Mary’s Cathedral, Kingston
• Simceo Ferry, Wolfe Island to Simceo Island
• Wolfe Islander III, Kingston to Wolfe Island
• Wolfe Island Pub and Pizzeria, WIPP

Best wishes,
Jannet L. Walsh

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Forthcoming book — Please find full details, summary, reviewer’s comments on my book page, Higgledy-Piggledy Stones.

Irish Diaspora Writing Project — Please see details and previous blogs and stories posted about my Irish Diaspora writing project at my project page, and learn about my grant from Southwest Minnesota Arts Council Artist Growth Grant, McKnight Foundation, 2022-2024.

I personally funded this portion of travels to Wolfe Island, and will be submitting my final grant project in late 2023 or early 2024.

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*Jannet L. Walsh of Murdock, Minnesota is a photographer, writer, and educator. She is the author of the forthcoming creative nonfiction quest narrative “Higgledy-Piggledy Stones: Family Stories from Ireland and Minnesota,” scheduled for publication in 2023 by Shanti Arts Publishing. Walsh is recipient of a Southwest Minnesota Arts Council Growth Grant funded by the McKnight Foundation, 2022-2024. You can follow Walsh on Facebook and Twitter, and on her other social media channels, with the hashtag #IrishFamilyHistoryDetective.