Wasco County OR Archives Biographies.....McInerny, J. P. May 9, 1847 - 
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Ila L. Wakley iwakley@msn.com January 26, 2007, 9:56 pm

Author: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company

	J. P. MCINERNY.  Strong, courageous and resolute, J. P. McInerny 
surmounted many obstacles, never losing sight of his objective, and was long 
numbered among the leading merchants of The Dalles, but is now enjoying a well 
earned rest.  He was born May 9, 1847, in County Clare, Ireland, of which 
country his parents, Patrick and Mary McInerny, were also natives.  They came 
to the United States in 1865 and established their home in Chicago, Illinois, 
where the father spent the remainder of his life.
	J. P. McInerny received a good education in Ireland, which he left 
when a youth of eighteen, and afterward attended the Bryant & Stratton 
Business College of Chicago, from which he won a scholarship in 1868.  In the 
same year he went to Toronto, Canada, and while in that city assimilated the 
details of the dry goods trade.  On his return to Chicago he opened a dry 
goods store but lost everything in the memorable fire of 1871 and was obliged 
to start life anew.  Choosing the Pacific coast region as the scene of his 
labors, he went to San Francisco, California, in 1872 and obtained a position 
in the store of J. J. O’Brien, at that time the foremost dry goods merchant of 
the city.  In 1872 Mr. McInerny moved to Los Angeles, California, and was 
employed as a clerk by Eugene Meyer & Company, the owners of the largest dry 
goods establishment in that city.  Later Mr. Meyer went to the eastern coast 
and became one of the prominent bankers of New York city.  In February, 1878, 
Mr. McInerny journeyed to Oregon, locating at The Dalles, where he has since 
made his home.  For one and a half years he was a salesman in the dry goods 
store of Max Vogt & Company and in the fall of 1879 embarked in merchandising 
as a member of the firm of Herbering & McInerny, handling dry goods 
exclusively.  They established a high standard of service, giving to each 
patron good value for the amount expended, and their employes were always 
courteous and obliging.  As a result the business steadily increased and the 
store became a vital factor in the life of the community. Mr. McInerny 
formulated well devised plans for the development of the business and devoted 
his energies to its conduct until 1925, when he retired from the firm.
	In 1881 Mr. McInerny married Miss Josephine Bettengen, a native of 
Corvallis, Oregon, and a daughter of Albert and Carolyn Bettengen, both of 
whom were born in Luxemburg, France.  Mr. Bettengen emigrated to the United 
States about the year 1850 and spent some time in New York, afterward going to 
California by way of the isthmus of Panama.  For a few years he was a hardware 
merchant of San Francisco and in 1855 came to Oregon.  Locating at Corvallis, 
he there engaged in the hardware business for nine years and in 1864 allied 
his interests with those of The Dalles.  For many years he was the owner of a 
hardware store in this city and also became will known as a tinsmith.  He 
passed away in this city in 1897 and his wife died in 1893.  Mr. and Mrs. 
McInerny became the parents of seven children:  Mrs. Mary Hansen, who is the 
mother of three children, Carl, John and Doris, and who lost two sons, 
Lawrence and Leo; Joseph, at home; Josephine, who is Mrs. Paul McCoy, of The 
Dalles, and has two sons, Paul and Owen; Francis, deceased; Gertrude, who died 
in infancy; Leo, who is married and lives in San Francisco; and Edwin, a 
talented singer, who is making records for the Victor Company and resides in 
New York city.
	Mr. McInerny was chosen a member of the board of water commissioners 
and for several years was one of the councilmen of The Dalles, exerting his 
best efforts in behalf of the city.  He has passed the eightieth milestone on 
life’s journey and enjoys the contentment of mind and tranquility of spirit 
which result from the knowledge of tasks well done and duties faithfully 
performed.  For fifty years a resident of The Dalles, he has watched its 
growth with deep interest, contributing his share toward the city’s 
development and progress, and an upright, useful life has won for him the 
unqualified esteem of all with whom he has been associated.


Additional Comments:
History of the Columbia River Valley From The Dalles to the Sea, Pages 177-178

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