Historian Jeff Murray takes a look into West Hartford’s past to uncover some surprising information, stir up some memories, or reflect on how much life has changed – or hasn’t changed at all. Enjoy this week’s ‘From West Hartford’s Archives’ …

By Jeff Murray

Richard E. O’Meara was West Hartford’s first motorcycle officer and one of the first constables in this town hired before the organization of the regular police department. This photograph was taken in 1910. His life serves as a historical case study of the living conditions surrounding Irish immigrants, balancing labor, family, and public service.

O’Meara was born in 1871 in New York as the son of Irish immigrants, Jeremiah and Mary. They moved to New York from Ireland around 1864 after she had their first daughter, also Mary, in t

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