In Brief
The Ancient Order of Hibernians is the oldest Catholic lay organization in America. Formed in New York in 1836, it is the fusion of several organizations derived from a common source born in anger centuries earlier in Ireland. .
It was in the autumn of 1875 when a small but determined group of Irishmen moved to Columbus, Ohio from Sharon and Wheatland, Pennsylvania. They settled in the part of Columbus known as “Flytown,” which was located in the northwest section of Ohio’s capital city. These men decided to bring the Ancient Order of Hibernians to Columbus.
After several preliminary meetings, many of them held under the shade of the trees in Goodale Park, the first division of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, in Franklin County, was organized in March 1876.
The Ohio State President, Peter Dumphey of Cincinnati, came to Columbus to install the division and its officers. The installation meeting was held in the Sessions Building located at 118-120 North High Street on the southeast corner of Long and High Sts. (the building, known as the Sessions Bank Block, was torn down in 1923).
Today's AOH, with its motto Friendship, Unity, and Christian Charity, is the most recent link in the evolution of those ancient ideals and, as such, is the successor to the secret societies of old. Although use of the name Hibernians by one of the societies can only be traced back to 1641, the AOH can claim continuity of purpose and motto unbroken back through the centuries to the Defenders, and indeed to the very beginning of militant opposition in 1565. The birth of that organization to America came in the same manner as its birth in Ireland.
The initials AOH may tell the story best. Those who say it means "Add One Hour" are describing the easygoing, no rush attitude of many of its members, while "America's Only Hope" has been used to define the loyalty of the Irish to the principles of their adopted land. In any case, the Order is best described by the statement, "To be Irish is a Blessing, To be a Hibernian is an Honor."