Thomas J O'Neill (November 11, 1849 – April 6, 1919) was an Irish-born American merchant and philanthropist. He was one of eight children of John and Anne Lynch O'Neill of County Cavan in north central Ireland.[1] He died on April 6, 1919, of a sudden heart ailment in Baltimore, Maryland, at age 69.[2] O’Neill arrived in Baltimore from Ireland at age 16 in 1866 “with only pennies in his pocket.” [3] Immediately, he hired himself out as an apprentice in a downtown linen shop.