“With tools of loyalty and understanding he carved himself a niche in our community,” reads the inscription under the portrait relief of Senator James P. Timilty (1865-1921) that was unveiled at the dedication of the new Timilty Middle School in Roxbury, MA in 1937. Mayor Malcolm Mansfield, Police Commissioner Timilty, and Chairman Sullivan of the Boston School Committee are shown with school executives and civic leaders in a newspaper clipping from the Boston Post on Friday, December 10th. Several hundred people were in attendance to honor their friend who had lived among them and served them as an alderman and State Senator. The bronze memorial plaque was the gift to the school of Patrick Edward Murray, an old friend of the Senator.

The program booklet reviews his importance. “Senator Timilty worked ardently for the betterment of his fellow men in his private and public career. In public office, he represented a district not blessed with worldly goods and in a modest and unostentatious manner ever held himself ready to lighten the burdens of the needy and the suffering. He was highly regarded by all who knew him, both in his private and public life, and was esteemed as a public benefactor.”

The Timilty Middle School is known nationally for its innovative programs to prepare young inner city students for life in the 21st Century. It has been voted as one of the nation’s greatest schools. Senator Timilty would be proud to have his name associated with such excellence.

(To read more about the connection between Mr. Allen and these political figures, read the post on Boston Mayors.)