The Wisconsin magazine of history: Volume 23, number 4, June 1940

              editorial comment thomas james walsh a wisconsin gift to montana tom walsh as he was affectionately called by all his friends was a native of two rivers manitowoc county wisconsin he was born june 12 1859 the second son and third child of felix and bridget comer walsh the father was a native of county armagh north ireland born in 1821 who at the age of twenty-three emigrated to amer ica spending the first years in canada then moving west to michigan and finally in the year 1850 coming to what proved his permanent location two rivers the mother was a native of county mayo ireland born in 1833 she also emigrated to canada as a young girl and in 1852 came to manitowoc rapids where in the year following she mar ried felix walsh tbey became the parents of nine chil dren seven of whom survived the mother who died in oc tober 1909 the father having preceded her by eighteen years the remarkable history of this irish family so prodigal in bestowing school-teachers and lawyers upon the world can be accounted for in part at least by considering the par ents of whom the father is best known though the mother appears to have possessed qualities similar to those which made him so popular a figure in the community and a man revered by his high placed descendants felix walsh was described by judge emil baensch as a gentleman of the old school,5 and a character in whose presence younger men put on their best manners the fact seems to be that during the last quarter century of his life while holding the local offices of justice of the peace and of city clerk he had gradu ally come to be regarded as a kind of tribune of the people a