Patrick S Byrne House

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Historic Spokane Home

Patrick Sheedy Byrne was born on June 8th, 1855 in New Canaan, Connecticut to William and Catherine (Sheedy) Byrne, who had emigrated to America in their younger years. Patrick helped with his father’s store in New Rochelle, New York in his youth, but chose to study medicine in 1880 at Bellevue Hospital Medical College in New York City, graduating in 1884, when he started practicing medicine. He married Ida Gomm in 1888, and moved to Spokane in 1889, serving as both a doctor and an investor. This house is dated either 1889 or 1892 from different sources (perhaps reflecting when it was started versus finished). In the same year (1889) he invested in Lidgerwood Park with John H Lidgerwood and Judge David Glass. There is also a Patrick S Byrne park just east of Division and North of Garland. The Byrne School is now Madison Elementary School. He served as County Physician, was on the Park Board, and was Mayor of Spokane. His daughters, Catherine, Mary (who died relatively young), and Ruth attended the Academy of the Holy Name. His three sons, Cornelius, William and Patrick (his namesake) attended Gonzaga College (and can be each found in many competitions recorded in the 1907 Catalogue of Gonzaga University).

His eldest son, Father Cornelius E. Byrne, also has quite a story of becoming a Catholic Priest who was a voice for the native population and the black population at the Sacred Heart Mission in DeSmet, Idaho (according to a biography of Carl Maxey, an orphan; a 32-0 college boxer, taught first by Father Byrne; and the first black attorney to pass the bar in Spokane). According to history, “Father Byrne also taught the boys the science of boxing. He arranged boxing matches for his boys at the rough logging and mining camps in the area. Maxey fought his first boxing match at the age of 13. His opponent was 33. Maxey beat him.” Father Byrne later taught at both Gonzaga High School and Gonzaga College. Patrick II married Helen Ann Cunningham, and was father to Patrick (“Pat”) Sheedy Byrne III, Helen Marie, Kathleen, Molly, Terry, Robert and Peter. Pat (III) married Kathryn Downey in 1956 and had John, Kitty, Erin and Barrett. He served with the Navy in Guam, and then worked as a restaurateur, a contractor, and inventor, a private pilot, a salesman, a chef and a bus driver. Patrick Sheedy Byrne II (1897 - 1969) and Patrick Sheedy Byrne III (1934 - 2014) are both buried in Holy Cross Cemetery (plot G-1408-5/1 and plot 258). The Byrne family appears to still have a presence in the Inland Northwest. ------ [Appended March 26th, 2018] Here is some additional biographical information, thanks to Patrick K Shine!

Dr. Byrne married Gertrude Ida Gomm on 21 April 1887, at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Savannah, GA. The name was later changed to St John the Baptist Cathedral. Their first child, Catherine L Byrne was born on 17 Feb 1888 in Yonkers, New York. It is not exactly known when they moved to Spokane, Washington Territory, but the 1888 City Directly indicated that he was then boarding at the Pacific Hotel, here in Spokane. In 1889, he is listed as a physician and as president of Byrne Investment Company, a corporation, for the development of property and real-estate operations. As reflected in your history, PS Byrne’s biography stated in that same year he purchased Lidgerwood Park with John H Lidgerwood and Judge David Glass.

Dr. Byrne was mayor of Spokane in about 1901 to 1903.

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