The eldest son of five children born to Irish immigrants Anne Sullivan and John O'Brien, David and his siblings were born and raised in Milwaukee.
According to the 1900 US census, his mother arrived in America about 1849 at the age of 9. His father, a drayman, worked hard and the family owned their own home at 236 Milwaukee Avenue.
David and his first wife, Mary, were wed on February 9, 1892 and their Christmas present that year was their first child, a son born on the 24th of December. They named him John B. O'Brien.
He was to be one of the few bright spots in the O'Brien family's life for some time.
The next year, Christmas brought them a darker present: David's father passed away on December 25th at the age of 69, and presaged a long series of events that turned the phrase 'luck of the Irish' on it's head.
In the following year, David's older sister Hannah died three months short of her 23rd birthday; while the apparent good news for 1894--that David's wife Mary was expecting another child—would become yet another tragedy.
The next spring, barely six months after his sister's death, his wife Mary F. O'Brien gave birth to a baby girl they named Mary. The baby died on March 16th, 1895 and Mary F. herself passed away only four days later.
On the 4th of November in 1897, David found new employment as a beat cop with the Milwaukee Police Department which was then run like a military regiment. The men drilled for an hour five days a week, and held an annual inspection parade downtown once a year before the mayor and other dignitaries. David enjoyed it, and was eventually promoted to Detective. He worked at the Central Unit downtown which also housed the county jail.
He and his young son moved back into 236 Milwaukee Avenue and lived with his widowed mother and two brothers, James T. who was a postal clerk, and John W., a teamster.
A truly somber household, it would become more so as in June of 1905, his brother John W. O'Brien died at only 32 years of age; followed in 1909 by his only remaining sibling, James. T. who passed away that May.
One would think that the O'Brien household had suffered enough blows, but Fate had one last card to play.
In what appeared to be at last a positive turn of events, he was promoted to the rank of detective in July of 1914 and then, he married again on the 2nd of October, 1917. His bride, 21 years his junior, was Anna Amberg, the daughter of muralist John C. Amberg and Catherine Bornheimer.
On November 24, 1917, a bomb was discovered at a downtown church, intended to kill the priest in charge. Unsure what to do, the church's janitor was tasked with taking the device to the police to try and discover who was responsible for having planted it.
The bomb was brought into the central precinct's busy squad room where most of the precinct's detectives were assembled for a scheduled inspection. The bomb exploded, destroying the room and killing one civilian and nine officers, including David O'Brien.
David's 25 year-old son was sent to identify his remains, an event that would forever haunt the young man.
A large funeral procession was held for each of the slain officers and the media eagerly followed all stories of the subsequent investigation, but the perpetrator was never discovered. Many years later, the full story was finally revealed in a book, "The Milwaukee Police Station Bomb of 1917" by Robert Tanzilo.
The day remained the single most deadly on record in the history of American law enforcement until it was surpassed by the events of September 11, 2001.
Despite all the attention given to the event and its aftermath, David O'Brien's gravesite was for many years overlooked within Calvary cemetery. It was only through the diligent work of relative Gary Rebholz, an archivist with the Milwaukee Public Library, that their records were corrected to reflect David's final resting place.
David J. O'Brien is interred along with both of his parents, all his siblings, his first wife, infant daughter, daughter-in-law, and son John B. O'Brien, who married, raised his own family and lived to a ripe old age.
~~~ : ~~
You can learn more about the event that took Detective John O'Brien's life and those of his fellow officers at these websites:
http://www.odmp.org/officer/10056-police-officer-david-obrien
http://www.milwaukeesfinest.net/1917bomb.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milwaukee_Police_Department
According to the 1900 US census, his mother arrived in America about 1849 at the age of 9. His father, a drayman, worked hard and the family owned their own home at 236 Milwaukee Avenue.
David and his first wife, Mary, were wed on February 9, 1892 and their Christmas present that year was their first child, a son born on the 24th of December. They named him John B. O'Brien.
He was to be one of the few bright spots in the O'Brien family's life for some time.
The next year, Christmas brought them a darker present: David's father passed away on December 25th at the age of 69, and presaged a long series of events that turned the phrase 'luck of the Irish' on it's head.
In the following year, David's older sister Hannah died three months short of her 23rd birthday; while the apparent good news for 1894--that David's wife Mary was expecting another child—would become yet another tragedy.
The next spring, barely six months after his sister's death, his wife Mary F. O'Brien gave birth to a baby girl they named Mary. The baby died on March 16th, 1895 and Mary F. herself passed away only four days later.
On the 4th of November in 1897, David found new employment as a beat cop with the Milwaukee Police Department which was then run like a military regiment. The men drilled for an hour five days a week, and held an annual inspection parade downtown once a year before the mayor and other dignitaries. David enjoyed it, and was eventually promoted to Detective. He worked at the Central Unit downtown which also housed the county jail.
He and his young son moved back into 236 Milwaukee Avenue and lived with his widowed mother and two brothers, James T. who was a postal clerk, and John W., a teamster.
A truly somber household, it would become more so as in June of 1905, his brother John W. O'Brien died at only 32 years of age; followed in 1909 by his only remaining sibling, James. T. who passed away that May.
One would think that the O'Brien household had suffered enough blows, but Fate had one last card to play.
In what appeared to be at last a positive turn of events, he was promoted to the rank of detective in July of 1914 and then, he married again on the 2nd of October, 1917. His bride, 21 years his junior, was Anna Amberg, the daughter of muralist John C. Amberg and Catherine Bornheimer.
On November 24, 1917, a bomb was discovered at a downtown church, intended to kill the priest in charge. Unsure what to do, the church's janitor was tasked with taking the device to the police to try and discover who was responsible for having planted it.
The bomb was brought into the central precinct's busy squad room where most of the precinct's detectives were assembled for a scheduled inspection. The bomb exploded, destroying the room and killing one civilian and nine officers, including David O'Brien.
David's 25 year-old son was sent to identify his remains, an event that would forever haunt the young man.
A large funeral procession was held for each of the slain officers and the media eagerly followed all stories of the subsequent investigation, but the perpetrator was never discovered. Many years later, the full story was finally revealed in a book, "The Milwaukee Police Station Bomb of 1917" by Robert Tanzilo.
The day remained the single most deadly on record in the history of American law enforcement until it was surpassed by the events of September 11, 2001.
Despite all the attention given to the event and its aftermath, David O'Brien's gravesite was for many years overlooked within Calvary cemetery. It was only through the diligent work of relative Gary Rebholz, an archivist with the Milwaukee Public Library, that their records were corrected to reflect David's final resting place.
David J. O'Brien is interred along with both of his parents, all his siblings, his first wife, infant daughter, daughter-in-law, and son John B. O'Brien, who married, raised his own family and lived to a ripe old age.
~~~ : ~~
You can learn more about the event that took Detective John O'Brien's life and those of his fellow officers at these websites:
http://www.odmp.org/officer/10056-police-officer-david-obrien
http://www.milwaukeesfinest.net/1917bomb.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milwaukee_Police_Department
The eldest son of five children born to Irish immigrants Anne Sullivan and John O'Brien, David and his siblings were born and raised in Milwaukee.
According to the 1900 US census, his mother arrived in America about 1849 at the age of 9. His father, a drayman, worked hard and the family owned their own home at 236 Milwaukee Avenue.
David and his first wife, Mary, were wed on February 9, 1892 and their Christmas present that year was their first child, a son born on the 24th of December. They named him John B. O'Brien.
He was to be one of the few bright spots in the O'Brien family's life for some time.
The next year, Christmas brought them a darker present: David's father passed away on December 25th at the age of 69, and presaged a long series of events that turned the phrase 'luck of the Irish' on it's head.
In the following year, David's older sister Hannah died three months short of her 23rd birthday; while the apparent good news for 1894--that David's wife Mary was expecting another child—would become yet another tragedy.
The next spring, barely six months after his sister's death, his wife Mary F. O'Brien gave birth to a baby girl they named Mary. The baby died on March 16th, 1895 and Mary F. herself passed away only four days later.
On the 4th of November in 1897, David found new employment as a beat cop with the Milwaukee Police Department which was then run like a military regiment. The men drilled for an hour five days a week, and held an annual inspection parade downtown once a year before the mayor and other dignitaries. David enjoyed it, and was eventually promoted to Detective. He worked at the Central Unit downtown which also housed the county jail.
He and his young son moved back into 236 Milwaukee Avenue and lived with his widowed mother and two brothers, James T. who was a postal clerk, and John W., a teamster.
A truly somber household, it would become more so as in June of 1905, his brother John W. O'Brien died at only 32 years of age; followed in 1909 by his only remaining sibling, James. T. who passed away that May.
One would think that the O'Brien household had suffered enough blows, but Fate had one last card to play.
In what appeared to be at last a positive turn of events, he was promoted to the rank of detective in July of 1914 and then, he married again on the 2nd of October, 1917. His bride, 21 years his junior, was Anna Amberg, the daughter of muralist John C. Amberg and Catherine Bornheimer.
On November 24, 1917, a bomb was discovered at a downtown church, intended to kill the priest in charge. Unsure what to do, the church's janitor was tasked with taking the device to the police to try and discover who was responsible for having planted it.
The bomb was brought into the central precinct's busy squad room where most of the precinct's detectives were assembled for a scheduled inspection. The bomb exploded, destroying the room and killing one civilian and nine officers, including David O'Brien.
David's 25 year-old son was sent to identify his remains, an event that would forever haunt the young man.
A large funeral procession was held for each of the slain officers and the media eagerly followed all stories of the subsequent investigation, but the perpetrator was never discovered. Many years later, the full story was finally revealed in a book, "The Milwaukee Police Station Bomb of 1917" by Robert Tanzilo.
The day remained the single most deadly on record in the history of American law enforcement until it was surpassed by the events of September 11, 2001.
Despite all the attention given to the event and its aftermath, David O'Brien's gravesite was for many years overlooked within Calvary cemetery. It was only through the diligent work of relative Gary Rebholz, an archivist with the Milwaukee Public Library, that their records were corrected to reflect David's final resting place.
David J. O'Brien is interred along with both of his parents, all his siblings, his first wife, infant daughter, daughter-in-law, and son John B. O'Brien, who married, raised his own family and lived to a ripe old age.
~~~ : ~~
You can learn more about the event that took Detective John O'Brien's life and those of his fellow officers at these websites:
http://www.odmp.org/officer/10056-police-officer-david-obrien
http://www.milwaukeesfinest.net/1917bomb.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milwaukee_Police_Department
According to the 1900 US census, his mother arrived in America about 1849 at the age of 9. His father, a drayman, worked hard and the family owned their own home at 236 Milwaukee Avenue.
David and his first wife, Mary, were wed on February 9, 1892 and their Christmas present that year was their first child, a son born on the 24th of December. They named him John B. O'Brien.
He was to be one of the few bright spots in the O'Brien family's life for some time.
The next year, Christmas brought them a darker present: David's father passed away on December 25th at the age of 69, and presaged a long series of events that turned the phrase 'luck of the Irish' on it's head.
In the following year, David's older sister Hannah died three months short of her 23rd birthday; while the apparent good news for 1894--that David's wife Mary was expecting another child—would become yet another tragedy.
The next spring, barely six months after his sister's death, his wife Mary F. O'Brien gave birth to a baby girl they named Mary. The baby died on March 16th, 1895 and Mary F. herself passed away only four days later.
On the 4th of November in 1897, David found new employment as a beat cop with the Milwaukee Police Department which was then run like a military regiment. The men drilled for an hour five days a week, and held an annual inspection parade downtown once a year before the mayor and other dignitaries. David enjoyed it, and was eventually promoted to Detective. He worked at the Central Unit downtown which also housed the county jail.
He and his young son moved back into 236 Milwaukee Avenue and lived with his widowed mother and two brothers, James T. who was a postal clerk, and John W., a teamster.
A truly somber household, it would become more so as in June of 1905, his brother John W. O'Brien died at only 32 years of age; followed in 1909 by his only remaining sibling, James. T. who passed away that May.
One would think that the O'Brien household had suffered enough blows, but Fate had one last card to play.
In what appeared to be at last a positive turn of events, he was promoted to the rank of detective in July of 1914 and then, he married again on the 2nd of October, 1917. His bride, 21 years his junior, was Anna Amberg, the daughter of muralist John C. Amberg and Catherine Bornheimer.
On November 24, 1917, a bomb was discovered at a downtown church, intended to kill the priest in charge. Unsure what to do, the church's janitor was tasked with taking the device to the police to try and discover who was responsible for having planted it.
The bomb was brought into the central precinct's busy squad room where most of the precinct's detectives were assembled for a scheduled inspection. The bomb exploded, destroying the room and killing one civilian and nine officers, including David O'Brien.
David's 25 year-old son was sent to identify his remains, an event that would forever haunt the young man.
A large funeral procession was held for each of the slain officers and the media eagerly followed all stories of the subsequent investigation, but the perpetrator was never discovered. Many years later, the full story was finally revealed in a book, "The Milwaukee Police Station Bomb of 1917" by Robert Tanzilo.
The day remained the single most deadly on record in the history of American law enforcement until it was surpassed by the events of September 11, 2001.
Despite all the attention given to the event and its aftermath, David O'Brien's gravesite was for many years overlooked within Calvary cemetery. It was only through the diligent work of relative Gary Rebholz, an archivist with the Milwaukee Public Library, that their records were corrected to reflect David's final resting place.
David J. O'Brien is interred along with both of his parents, all his siblings, his first wife, infant daughter, daughter-in-law, and son John B. O'Brien, who married, raised his own family and lived to a ripe old age.
~~~ : ~~
You can learn more about the event that took Detective John O'Brien's life and those of his fellow officers at these websites:
http://www.odmp.org/officer/10056-police-officer-david-obrien
http://www.milwaukeesfinest.net/1917bomb.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milwaukee_Police_Department
Family Members
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
Records on Ancestry
Advertisement
