I am half Fitzpatrick--my mother was born Margaret Ann Fitzpatrick. And growing up I had a first cousin my age named Tommy Fitzpatrick (Tom died in combat in Vietnam in 1969). So as a kid, when I ran across a book at the Upson Library on the great fur-trapper and exlorer, "Broken Hand" Tom Fitzpatrick, I grabbed it and read it. Recently I checked to see if Wikipedia had an entry on Tom Fitzpatrick. It did have a short one, with the external link below. Could this man be a relative? Who knows! I like to think he was. There are 2 other Fitzpatrick's in our family. My greatgrandfather Cornelius had a sister named Catherine who married a Thomas Fitzpatrick back in Cayuga County, NY. And my wife had an ancestor by the name of Fitzpatrick (Dehlia, I believe).
For the original website, with photos, go to this link: http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=8080246 Here is the text of the "findagrave" article:
Thomas "Broken Hand" Fitzpatrick
Birth:
1799, Ireland
Death:
Jan. 7, 1854, USA
Explorer. US Indian Agent. He was one of the "Mountain Men," a group of explorers credited with opening up the western United States. During his travels, he discovered the "South Pass" through the Rocky Mountains. The South Pass became a main passage into the Oregon Territory for settlers. He worked as a guide, among the groups he led were the John Bidwell party, believe to be the first "emigrant train" to California. He served as an Indian Agent for the United States, having already gained the respect of many Native Americans. The Nez Perce nicknamed him "Broken Hand" due to an accident which left him missing two fingers. He was the subject of the book, "Broken Hand, the Life of Thomas Fitzpatrick, Mountain Man, Guide and Indian Agent." (bio by: Evening Blues) Search Amazon for Thomas Fitzpatrick
Burial:Congressional Cemetery WashingtonDistrict of ColumbiaDistrict Of Columbia, USA
Maintained by: Find A GraveRecord added: Nov 12, 2003 Find A Grave Memorial# 8080246
Added by: Cristian Italia
Added by: Ethan F. Bishop
Cemetery PhotoAdded by: Janet Greentree
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4 comments:
Broken-Hand was my Great, great, great, great, great Uncle!
:-)
~Shannon Grace
Oops! That was supposed to be four greats....not five.
Thomas "Broken Hand" Fitzpatrick was married to my 5th great aunt, Margaret Poisal.
Well neato! Our super great uncle and aunt were married. How about that. They never could have imagined that we'd cross paths in this way almost two centuries later. Makes me wonder about my grandchildren, nieces, nephews in 200 years...no way of knowing what their lives will be like.
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