I know you will be now interested to hear of John Cogan, to whom I referred in the beginning of this paper. For a quarter of a century he was prominently identified with the colony—from 1632 until his death in 1658. He probably came from Cork. The late John B. Reagan, of Dorchester, noted for his historical research regarding the Irish in America, said of the first of Boston’s Keltic citizens: “Among those who came over in the so-called Winthrop fleet, composed of ‘people from all parts,’ were several merchants from the maritime ports of Ireland, of whom John Cogan was one.” In my researches for details of Cogan’s career I found this reference to him, from Lechford’s Notebook: “Whether John Cogan, of Boston, Mass., was related to this family (the Cogans of Chard, Eng.,) or not I do not know. He appears to have been from Devonshire, as in 1639 he gave Isaac Northcut, of Honiton, a power of attorney to receive any legacy under the will of his mother, Eleanor Cogan, of Tiverton, in Devon.” Still, this would not prove that Cogan was English, as thousands of Irish have settled in England from an early period. Cogan was virtually one of the founders of Boston, one of its leading citizens, one of its wealthiest and most enterprising, and a pillar and one of the founders of the First Church. And I am glad to say that the colonists were sensible enough to so far overcome their prejudices as to appreciate what sort of man he was, for they honored him with numerous public offices and positions of trust. He was a member of the first board of selectmen and served in that capacity for a long time; a juror in the Court of Assistants; one of a committee to allot land for the inhabitants to plant on and of another committee to allot land on the Neck and in East Boston; one of a committee to erect fortifications on Fort Hill and its treasurer; a member of the grand jury; a surveyor of the highways; a constable. The full list of offices he held would be too long to give here. He opened the first store in 1633 or 1634. It stood on Washington Street opposite the Old State House, on the northeast corner. Colonial records fail to state what class of goods our pioneer store-keeper dealt in, or how long he conducted his shop, or whether he made it a success, which I venture to predict, in view of his career, he did. He proved himself a shrewd and energetic business man and became wealthy for the times in which he lived. He was the proprietor of a large amount of real estate, including two stores and half an acre of land, which is now covered by the store of Houghton & Dutton, and corn mills in Charlestown and Malden. He was one of the builders of Long wharf, the oldest in Boston and the one with the most interesting history. He served as sergeant in that organization of, as somebody has facetiously dubbed them, “bottle-scared veterans,” the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company.