Captain Donahue served in Company D, 12th Tennessee Cavalry. He was active
after the war in Baltimore raising Fenian troops for the Fenian invasion of
Canada with the Roberts' faction of the Fenian Brotherhood. I would be
interested in any info on his Civil War activities or Fenian activities.
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Subject: RE: Captain Dennis Donahue, 12th Tennessee cavalry [USA]
FENIAN BROTHERHOOD BALTIMORE MARYLAND 4/10/66
"There is a regiment [Fenian] of cavalry and infantry organized in this city
by Colonel Dennis Donahue who served under General Sweeny in the late
war..." I/A 5/5/1866
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In the 6/26/66 The Irish American discussed why some Fenian regiments never
got into action in Canada from Malone, N.Y.:
"As an instance of this we may mention that when Colonel Donahue of
Baltimore came through with his men, he brought the equipment of the
regiment along as baggage and as such they were received and passed by the
various roads until they arrived at Rome [NY], where the railroad officials
refused to take them unless as EXPRESS FREIGHT. To avoid trouble and delay,
Colonel Donahue paid the required charges on them and had the cases (nine in
number) deposited in the express van, in which they were brought as far as
Waterloo, but when the train was leaving the place, it being then dark, the
men apparently railroad employees, entered the express van, and while the
cars moved slowly, [they] threw out the cases containing the arms and
equipment..."
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