James Mulcahy

James Mulcahy (11 January 1858 – 17 July 1915) was a Canadian-American architect active primarily in Boston, Massachusetts, and the surrounding area from at least 1888 until his death in 1915. He served as Boston Building Commissioner from 1903 to 1906. He collaborated for many years with his nephew and fellow architect James E. McLaughlin, who designed Fenway Park, home stadium of the Boston Red Sox baseball team.

Early life

Mulcahy was born on 11 January 1858 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, British North America.[1] His father Bartholomew Mulcahy (1811–1882) and mother Bridget O'Keefe (1822–1892) were both born in Ireland.[1] In 1895 he married Katherine Alma McCormick (1872–1930).[1] They had a son and a daughter together, both of whom died young: Ralph James Mulcahy (1895–1903) and Helen Alma Mulcahy (1897–1900).[1]

Professional career

Mulcahy was a prolific and prominent architect, well-known and apparently well-liked by his Boston peers.[1][2] He maintained an office at 43 Milk Street in Boston.[1] He was in practice at least as early as 1888.[2] In 1903 he was appointed Boston Building Commissioner by then Mayor of Boston Patrick Andrew Collins.[1][2] Upon his appointment, the Boston-based trade magazine The American Architect and Building News congratulated Mulcahy, noting that "Mr. James Mulcahy, an architect of some fifteen years' practice...is still a comparatively young man, being only forty-three years old, but he has carried out a large number of important buildings."[2] He served as Commissioner until he was dismissed in 1906, possibly as a result of losing political favor after Collins's death the year before.[1]

Some of his later projects include Massachusetts Army National Guard armories in the central Massachusetts towns of Hingham, Hudson, Natick, and Newton. Mulcahy collaborated on the armory projects with his nephew (son of his sister) and fellow architect James E. McLaughlin; it is not clear whether they were formal business partners, though McLaughlin had worked with his uncle at Milk Street as early as 1893.[3]

Later life

Towards the end of his life, Mulcahy was a resident of the Hotel Harvard on Huntington Avenue in Boston.[1] Mulcahy died of complications related to heart disease on 17 July 1915 at the New England Sanitarium in Medford, Massachusetts.[1] His death certificate lists his burial place as "Calvary Cemetery, Jamaica Plain", though no such cemetery existed then or exists now.[1] It is possible Mulcahy was buried at Forest Hills Cemetery in Jamaica Plain or Mount Calvary Cemetery (also known as Calvary Cemetery or New Calvary Cemetery) in Roslindale, though neither cemetery's records corroborate this.[1]

Works

This is a partial list.

Individual

With James E. McLauglin
  • Hingham Armory, Hingham
  • Hudson Armory, Hudson
  • Natick Armory, Natick
  • Newton Armory, Newton

References
  1. "James Mulcahy". Find a Grave. 28 November 2016. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
  2. "Summary". The American Architect and Building News. Boston: American Architect Company. 81 (1445): 74, 88. 5 September 1903. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
  3. "James Ernest McLaughlin". Find a Grave. 25 November 2016. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
  4. Holmquist, Clara. "No. Bay State Road, Boston, MA, 1903, James Mulcahy". St. Croix Architecture. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
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