During a speech in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to union workers, President Joe Biden recounted an interesting tale about his great-grandfather Edward Francis Blewitt. He mentioned how Blewitt’s name was associated with the Molly Maguires, a secret society of Irish coal miners involved in violence against anti-Catholic mine foremen during the 19th century. Vice President Kamala Harris listened intently as Biden spun this anecdote during his speech, which delved into the history and treatment of Irish Catholics working in Pennsylvania’s coal mines in the old days.
Biden began by recalling how his great-grandfather was only the second Catholic to be elected statewide in the state Senate in Pennsylvania back in 1906. Opponents tried to smear him with accusations of being a member of the Molly Maguires, but Blewitt never actually participated in the group’s violent actions against oppressive foremen. The president explained that many English landowners owned coal mines during those days and would mistreat their predominantly Catholic workforce. In response to this mistreatment, the Molly Maguires took justice into their own hands by killing and intimidating any foremen who abused their workers.
Biden joked that he was “disappointed” when he discovered that his great-grandfather was not a part of the violent group, but acknowledged the accusations as a point of interest in the family’s history. Interestingly, Irish American Magazine corroborated this claim about Blewitt being associated with the Molly Maguires in a story from 2020. The magazine also notes that Biden told a similar anecdote during his 2008 presidential campaign with then-candidate Barack Obama, changing up the punchline for a different audience of Virginia coal miners.
