How O'Neill, Nebraska Got Its Name (The General Who Invaded Canada)

O’Neill, Nebraska, is named for John O’Neill, the Irish-born general who led raids into Canada and then brought a colony of Irish settlers to the Elkhorn Valley in 1874.

Where the name comes from

A 1925 study of Nebraska place names says General O’Neill “brought a colony of Irishmen from Scranton, Pennsylvania,” that he “was the first settler on May 12, 1874, and the town was named in his honor.” History Nebraska’s marker at the Holt County Courthouse says the same thing in its own words: he “first directed colonists in 1874 to this fertile Elkhorn Valley site which bears his name.”

The general and the raids

O’Neill’s story starts a long way from Nebraska. The Dictionary of Canadian Biography says he was born in County Monaghan, Ireland, in 1834. He came to America, fought for the Union in the Civil War, and then joined the Fenians, an Irish nationalist movement that wanted to pressure Britain by striking at British-ruled Canada.

He’s best known for leading the Fenian raid of 1866, when his men crossed into Canada and took Fort Erie. He was involved in later raids in 1870 and 1871 as well. He won a fight at Ridgeway in 1866, but none of the raids reached its goal.

From raider to town builder

After the raids, O’Neill turned to a different project: getting Irish families out of crowded Eastern cities and onto farmland. History Nebraska’s marker says he also encouraged other Irish groups to settle at Atkinson, in Holt County, and in Greeley County. He died in Omaha in January 1878, only a few years after the town was founded.

Small differences in the record

The sources don’t all write his name the same way. The 1925 study calls him John J. O’Neill, the U.S. Geological Survey’s record spells it O’Neil with one “l,” and other sources call him John O’Neill or John C. O’Neill. They all mean the same man.

The 1925 study says the original town site was platted by Thomas I. Atwood in May 1874, and that O’Neill platted an addition in 1875. The U.S. Geological Survey’s record gives 1874 for the platting and 1882 for incorporation, and says O’Neill became the county seat of Holt County in 1879. The marker adds that the governor proclaimed O’Neill the Irish Capital of Nebraska in 1969.

Sources & further reading

• Lilian Linder Fitzpatrick, Nebraska Place-Names (University of Nebraska, 1925). A public-domain study of the state’s place names, county by county. The colony from Scranton, the first settler on May 12, 1874, and Atwood’s plat.
• History Nebraska, “Marker Monday: Irish Capital of Nebraska.” The marker at the courthouse: the 1874 colony, the other Irish settlements, and the 1969 title.
• Dictionary of Canadian Biography, “O’Neill, John.” His birth in County Monaghan, his Civil War service, the Fenian raids and his death in Omaha.
• Wikipedia, “John O’Neill (Fenian).” The raids of 1866, 1870 and 1871.
• GNIS feature 831786 (U.S. Geological Survey). The federal record for O’Neill. Platted 1874; incorporated 1882; county seat 1879.