Genealogical sleuthing leads to Irish freedom fighter, Exile McBride, buried in Brockport
Like many during the year of pandemic sheltering, Michael McBride decided to take an interest in genealogy.
This was more to pass the time than anything else. A retired city building inspector, McBride knew some of his family history, but decided he'd mine the internet for more.
"When I first saw Exile McBride, I thought it was farming equipment," McBride said. "I didn't know what it was. Then I saw it again and again and again."
A few articles online swelled into a dozen, then dozens upon dozens, and then hundreds. And, as McBride learned from the history he kept unearthing, Exile McBride was a well-known Irish freedom fighter. He knew presidents and congressional representatives. His push for an Ireland free from the grip of England led him to frequent contact with a British prime minister.