The Peter McDonough Memorial Scholarship

The Perinton Historical Society will award TWO (2) $1,000 scholarships in 2012.

For the first time in July of 2010 the Society announced they would award a scholarship to high school seniors who have an interest in local history. Today, that scholarship is up to $1,000 for two eligible candidates.

This scholarship focuses on Perinton history.

The Peter McDonough Memorial Scholarship (PMMS) will be awarded to a high school senior whose residence is within the geographic boundaries of the Fairport School District. The scholarship will be administered and awarded through Fairport-Perinton Dollars for Scholars.

The scholarships honors Peter McDonough a 50 year resident of Fairport, Mayor, County Legislator and SUNY Professor. The Society received many donations in his memory and these donations have become the foundation for the scholarship program. For more information please see sidebar article.

Sponsored by the Perinton Historical Society, two $1,000 scholarships will be awarded. Interested students will submit a research paper on an aspect of Fairport and/or Perinton history. A panel of judges will determine the winner.

Peter McDonough Memorial Scholarship instructions and information for candidates in the Perinton Historical Society’s historical research essay scholarship program.

For ideas on a topics for a research paper, visit other areas of the website, the Fairport Historical Museum, at 18 Perrin Street, Fairport or the Town Historian at the Town Hall on Turk Hill Road.

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Information & Resources

The Scholarship:

For details and ideas for research paper topics, download a Microsoft Powerpoint presentation about the  Peter McDonough Memorial Scholarship or this presentation in PDF format.

For instructions, download the Peter McDonough Memorial Scholarship Instructions in PDF format or go to the Instructions page.
 

Researching Your Topic:

Fairport newspapers, beginning in 1873 can be found on this site. It is searchable by key words and also can be used chronologically: http://www.rrlcnewspapers.org/search.html

For a library database of images, including old photos, maps, etc., visit: http://photo.libraryweb.org/carlweb/jsp/photosearch_pageADV.jsp

The Town of Perinton Historian, Jean Keplinger, has an office in the town facility on Turk Hill Road and has information posted on: http://www.perinton.org/Departments/hist/
 

Scholarship Contact:

Also for additional information e-mail the Scholarship Committee at: Scholarship@PerintonHistoricalSociety.org

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Scholarship honors Peter McDonough

McDonough, Peter J. 
Fairport: 1927 - 2010

Former Fairport Mayor, County Legislator and SUNY Professor Peter J. McDonough’s memory will live on in the Village and within the Perinton Historical Society.

Mr. McDonough and his wife resided in the village of Fairport for nearly fifty years, raising seven children in their home on South Main Street.

Throughout the 1970s and 80s, McDonough was a fixture in local government, serving as the mayor of Fairport for twelve years (1972 - 1984), followed by several years as the minority whip in the Monroe County Legislature. 


Born February 26, 1927 in New York City, Peter grew up in a family of first generation Irish immigrants. His enlistment in the US Navy at 17 and pride of his Irish heritage would later shape many aspects of his personal and professional life.

He was a prolific collector of naval history and ship models, and his passion for community service forged Rochester's Sister City alliance with Waterford, Ireland stemming from McDonough's personal friendship with Waterford mayor.

His election in Fairport marked the first time a Democrat was appointed to the role after decades of Republican administration. McDonough went on to serve three terms but his middle term was a hotly contested victory determined by a single vote, leading the town paper to post the front-page headline " Landslide Pete Wins Again".

While mayor, he directed the DPW to paint a green stripe down Fairport's Main Street in celebration of St. Patrick's Day. In 1978, his combative Irish style captured media attention when he resolved a budget impasse between Fairport and the federal government over repairs to local railway roadwork by threatening to park snowplows on the national railway running through the center of Fairport. Peter was instrumental in preserving Fairport's historic lift bridge and defeated efforts that attempted to privatize Fairport's Municipal Electric Service, which remains a legacy for village residents today.

During his twelve-year administration, Fairport undertook a major urban renewal program, creating the Village Landing retail shops located on the banks of the Erie Canal.

With an undergraduate degree from St. John's University and postgraduate degree from New York University, McDonough capped a successful career in sales and marketing with a move to academia. His love for teaching began early in his career when he served as a part-time faculty member at Xavier University of Ohio. After serving as marketing vice president for a Rochester business, he joined the State University of New York and became a tenured professor in marketing at Empire State College, where he taught for fourteen years.

In conjunction with his faculty post, Peter served as Regional Director of the American Management Association and established a consulting practice specializing in Creativity and Marketing Strategy serving national blue chip companies such as 3M, as well as regional businesses throughout New York.

Many, many donations were made to the Perinton Historical Society in memory of Mr. McDonough. These donations became the foundation for the Society’s scholarship program, launched for 2011 high school seniors.

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