Tom McMahon on “An Aging Historian Objectively Views The Civil War”

A life spanning nine decades, the last five of which have involved taking an objective view the Civil War, many of life’s basic values and principles have been influenced by the study of the lives of the millions of Americans who fought or were affected by the conflict of 1861-65. Those lessons and values are applied to 21st Century living in this presentation.

Tom McMahon was born in San Francisco in 1928. He served as a Roman Catholic priest for 26 years and was pastor of the historic 1897 church in New Almaden. He later married Elaine (deceased 2021) and together they had two sons and five grandchildren.

A retired mental health therapist, Tom has been a member of the San Jose South Bay Civil War Roundtable for 16 years. He is also an amateur historian, founder of the History Club at the Almaden Senior Center, and an active writer and researcher. Above all, he is someone who enjoys life and connecting with people.