Bayonne Historical Society: Two Mayors, a Dock, and George R.R. Martin

Join the Bayonne Historical Society and professional genealogist R. Andrew Pierce on Monday, May 23rd at 7 pm in the Gallery. Mr. Pierce will discuss the history of Bayonne's Brady family, which played a prominent role in business and local government during the 19th and 20th centuries. The speaker's mother, Mary (Molly) Brady Pierce, was the first President of the Bayonne Historical Society.

Mr. Pierce is a grandson of Alfred Brady, who served as Mayor of Bayonne from 1959 to 1962. Another member of the family, Thomas Brady, served as Mayor from 1904 to 1906. The Bradys owned a construction supply business that had a dock on the Kill Van Kull. The present-day pier by First Street is still called Brady's Dock. The family also owned a coal and ice company that operated in Bayonne. Another member of the extended family is Game of Thrones author George R.R. Martin, whose mother was Margaret Brady.

Following a childhood fascination with genealogy, Mr. Pierce has worked as a professional genealogist since 1983. He has done research for hundreds of clients, written and contributed books and articles, and lectured at conferences and seminars. His specialties include tracing Irish-American connections, finding 18th and 19th century New Englanders, solving "brickwall" ancestry problems, tracing missing heirs, and researching Native Americans. Mr. Pierce's geographical specialties include New England, the Mid-Atlantic, New York, Carpatho-Rusyns, England, Ireland, Poland, Slovakia, and Eastern Europe. Mr. Pierce is based in Massachusetts.

For more information on the Bayonne Historical Society, please contact President Lee Fahey at (201) 436-5978. Visit the Bayonne Historical Society at: Bayonne Historical Society.