The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-12-14
EUGENE KELLY TO RETIRE.
His Great Banking House to Go Out of
Business.


The New York banking house of Eugene
Kelly & Co., of which Mr.. Kelly was
founder, and of which he is the head it is
announced will be dissolved in few
months and Mr.. Kelly will retire from
business. The firm, besides Mr.. Kelly Sr.,
consists of Joseph A. Donohoe, of San
Francisco, and Mr.. Kelly's two sons. Ed.
ward and Eugene, Jr., all of whom
are well known in Savannah Mr.. Don
oboe is the head of the Kelly
Banking Company, of San Francisco. He
has been associated with Mr.. Kelly in
business for about forty-three years. Mr..
Kelly's business career, which has been
most successful, covers period of over
fifty years.
Mr.. Kelly's wealth is estimated in New
York at from $4,000, 900 to twice that
amount. He is a director of and the
largest stockholder in the Southern Bank
of the State of Georgia in this city. In a
sketch of his career the New York World
says: Mr.. Kelly's claim to public notice,
however, is by no means as the pOssessor
of great wealth alone His beuefaCtions
to the Roman Catholic church have earned
for him the distinction of being considered
the leading layman of that faith in this
city, while his devotion to the Irish
home-rule movement, which he hopes to
live long enough to see reality, as well
as to all Irish interests and affairs, has
been no less renowned. In appreciation
of what he has done for the
church, the pope last year appointed him
a "cameriere di cappa G spada," or
chamberlain of the cape and sword, an
honorary Office in the household of the
holy father Only two other Ameri-
cans have been honored by the pope with
this Office. Mr.. Kelly was reluctantly
compelled to forego this distinction, as
1t required a personal visit to Rome,
which his advanced age and enfeebled
health precluded. He is a regular
attendant at St. Patricks cathedral.
MIR. Kelly'S most notable recent service
to the Irish cause was as president of the
National Federation of America and as
treasurer of the Irish parliamentary
fund. On one occasion, when it was de-
cided to try to raise Sl50,000 for the cause
of home rule during the parliamentary
elections, he subscribed $4,000, and, it
is said, cabled privately to John Dillon
that he might be drawn upon for the en-
tire S150.000 if necessary.
Mr.. Kelly was born so years ago in
County Tyrone, Ireland, 1.-THE country
where all good men come from, u he is wont
to say Hisparents were poor but industri.
GUS farmers. He came to this country
when 20 years of age with but SO in
his pocket and letter of introduction to
dry goods dealer in the Bowery, in New
York whose daughter became Mr.. Relly's
first wife. He was sent to St. Louis to
take charge of branch store there.
The head of the firm dying, dissolution
followed, and the young Irish boy was
left in the great west without employ
ment. The gold fever was just then
breaking out. He caught 1t and went to
California, opening dry goods store in
San Francisco. Eventually, however, he
devoted all his attention to buying and
shipping gold, and then it was that he
formed the partnership with Mr.. Dono-
hoe, which still exists.
For some time prior to the civil war
MIR. Kelly's house in San Francisco was
one of the largest banking institutions in
the west. 1t was about that time that
Mr.. Kelly returned to New York and
opened branch esta blishment, which
rapidly grew to such extensive proper
tions.
Having led very regular life, Mr.
Kelly carries his four-score years with
ease, and is, he says, to-day feeling bet
ter than for some time.