Thomas Meagher (merchant)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Thomas Meagher (b. c. 1764 Clonmel, County Tipperary – d. 26 January 1837 Waterford) merchant, tailor, officeholder came to Newfoundland c. 1780 as an apprentice to a clothier named Crotty which after his death married his widow Mary Crotty. Meagher took over the Crotty business, expanded it to include dry goods and imported of goods from Ireland. Acquiring ships to supplement his trade he began regular sailings to Waterford and also to transport out Irish immigrants.

Meagher had sent his eldest son Thomas to Ireland to establish a branch of his business in Waterford. The younger Thomas married Alicia Quan at her parents' residence that later became to be the Commin's Hotel. It was in this house that Thomas Francis Meagher was born to Thomas and Alicia on August 23, 1823. ^[1]

Meagher’s business in St. John's had suffered a major setback when the premises were wiped out in the Great Fire of 1817. The firm was rebuilt but never recovered from the loss which in 1820 declared insolvency and was dissolved on August 31, 1820.

The Newfoundland Tricolour also served as inspiration for the flag of Ireland, which was designed by Thomas Francis Meagher.