Cumberland Evening Times; Cumberland, Allegany Co, Md
Thursday, February 22, 1917 - pg 16, col 1
JAMES P. GAFFNEY OBSEQUIES FRIDAY
Dead Engineer was the Builder of the Georges Creek and Cumberland Railroad.
The funeral of James P. Gaffney, former City Engineer, whose death, at his home, 83 Bedford street, was announced in the city edition of the Evening Times yesterday will be held at 9 o’clock Friday morning from St Patrick’s Catholic Church, of which he was a devoted member. Burial will be in St. Patrick’s Cemetery. Mr Gaffney was born in County Mayo, Ireland, March 17, 1850 and graduated from the Royal College of Engineering in Dublin. In 1871 he came to America and settled in Roundout, New York. He engaged in railroad construction work in New York and Canada. He came to Cumberland in 1878 as resident engineer of the George's Creek & Cumberland railroad, and supervised the construction of that road between Cumberland and Lonaconing. He remained in the employ of the George’s Creek & Cumberland railroad until 1906, when he resigned to accept a position of division engineer with the Norfolk & Southern railroad with headquarters in Raleigh, N.C. In 1880 he was married to Miss Agnes C Coulehan daughter of the late Judge John Coulehan. In 1908 he resigned his position with the Norfolk & Southern railroad and returned to Cumberland where he engaged in private engineering work. In 1912 he was appointed city engineer, which position he held until 1916. when he was succeeded by the incumbent. Ralph Rizer, who was assistant engineer under Mr. Gaffney. Mr. Gaffney was city engineer during the construction of the half million dollar water works for Cumberland which necessitated the building of the immense dam at “Lake Gordon” the present reservoir on Fort Hill and the building of a nine mile pipeline between "Lake Gordon” and Cumberland. While the work of building the big water system was under the supervision of James H. Fuertes, of New York, a special engineer employed for the work, everything was subject to the approval of Mr. Gaffney. When the Merrill-Ruckgaber Company, contractors, notified the city that they had finished their contract on new water works, it was Mr Gaffney who refused to accept it and reserved about $15,000, the amount of the last and final payment to complete the work. He also superintended the paving of several streets in the city when the $150,000 bond issue was spent for that purpose. Mr Gaffney was a member for 31 years of Cumberland Council No 135 Catholic Benevolent Legion, a fourth degree member of Cumberland Council No 586 Knights of Columbus, a member of the Holy Name Society of St Patrick's Catholic Church and Division No 6 Ancient Order of Hibernian's of Allegany County. Mr Gaffney was a Democrat and active in politics, personally and with his pen, when occasion warranted. He was of scholarly attainment and having been a diligent reader was exceptionally informed. He wrote with a facile pen. He was not one to obtrude, but when his views on any subject into which he cared to delved were published in either local or metropolitan papers, they were interesting reading. His style was attractive and his knowledge of events, historical and current, was accurate. Mr Gaffney is survived by his wife, four daughters: Misses Clare and Josephine Gaffney, who are engaged at Washington, D.C. in district nursing and Monica and Kathleen Gaffney and one son, Richard M Gaffney, at home.
Death from Cancer