Washington County ArArchives Biographies.....Byrnes, Albert M. 1849 - ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/ar/arfiles.html ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Robert Sanchez lmu567@gmail.com May 26, 2009, 4:02 pm Author: S. J. Clarke (Publisher, 1922) ALBERT M. BYRNES. Albert M. Byrnes, a contractor of Fayetteville, is numbered among the sons of the Emerald isle who have sought the opportunities of the new world and have made good here in the attainment of success through untiring industry and progressive business methods. Mr. Byrnes was born in Dublin, Ireland, August 2, 1849, and is a son of Michael and Charlotte (Hatton) Byrnes, also natives of that country, in which they Michael Byrnes early learned the wagon maker's trade and in 1852 he came to the were reared and married. The grandfather was Peter Byrnes, a farmer of Ireland, and he and all of his descendants have been faithful followers of the Catholic church. United States, making his way first to California, while later he went to New Orleans, where he became a victim of the yellow fever. Albert M. Byrnes is the only survivor of the family which numbered parents and two children. His educational opportunities were very limited and in early youth he learned the carpenter's trade after his mother brought him to Fayetteville in 1866, following the death of her husband. Here she was married to Joseph Zilleh, and they became the parents of two children: John Zilleh, who is now street commissioner of Fayetteville; and Mrs. Mary Goss, whose husband is an electrician of Fayetteville. Albert M. Byrnes was married in 1872, when twenty-three years of age, to Miss Mary E. McCoy, who was born in Providence, Rhode Island, a daughter of Phillip and Mary McCoy, who are mentioned in connection with the sketch of their son, W. J. McCoy, on another page of this work. Mr. and Mrs. Byrnes became the parents of seven children, of whom five are living: Mrs. D. M. Benbrook, a widow residing at Krebs, Oklahoma, where she is teaching music, having a very large class; Mrs. J. Wythe Walker, living in Fayetteville; Mrs. R. L. Putman of Chicago, whose husband is general manager of the National Lumber Association; Mrs. B. H. Barnes, a widow residing with her parents; and A. H., who is cashier in the office of the Frisco Railroad at Springfield, Missouri, having been connected with the company for many years. In the year in which he was married Mr. Byrnes began contracting and building in Fayetteville. He has done much work for the railroads and for the government. He had contracts with the Frisco Railroad which amounted to thousands of dollars. He is now engaged in the construction of a large dormitory and other school buildings for the government in Oklahoma, the contract being for one hundred and twenty thousand dollars. This was awarded him over several competitors. He has been very successful in his building operations and is today numbered among the prominent contractors of western Arkansas. In 1873 Mr. Byrnes purchased two beautiful lots in Fayetteville at a cost of sixty-six dollars and a half each. He built thereon a home in 1876 and has since occupied it. The lots are today worth several thousand dollars, showing something of the growth and development of Fayetteville, resulting in the rapid rise in realty values. Mr. Byrnes has erected all of the school buildings in Fayetteville and he removed the Arkansas building to this city from the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, held in St. Louis in 1904. He has built hundreds of the homes in the city, was the builder of the Engineers Hall in connection with the state university and also the boys' dormitory. In various localities stand substantial structures which are a monument to the enterprise, skill and ability of Mr. Byrnes and all recognize the fact that he well deserves the success which has come to him. He owns a large block of stock in the Northwest Arkansas Lumber Company and is serving on its board of directors. Mr. Byrnes and his family are communicants of the Catholic church and his political endorsement is given to the republican party, but while he keeps well informed on the questions and issues of the day, he has never sought or desired office, preferring to concentrate his efforts and attention upon his building operations. He was brought to the United States when fifteen years of age and has always remained on this side of the Atlantic. The spirit of western enterprise and progress has actuated him in everything that he has undertaken and step by step he has advanced until he has climbed to the plane of affluence and now has the opportunity to select those business contracts which he desires to execute. Additional Comments: Citation: Centennial History of Arkansas Volume II Chicago-Little Rock: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company 1922 File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ar/washington/bios/byrnes28nbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/arfiles/ File size: 5.1 Kb