The Atlantic crossing was an emotionally charged journey for Irish emigrants, and those who struck up friendships on the several days' voyage often kept in touch long after they reached their final destinations. Patrick Gill (kneeling, center) and Fr. Lavin (behind, in hat), who met on the Laconia in 1930, corresponded by post on and off into their senior years. At the time of this snapshot, Gill was coming to meet his sisters in Chicago, while Fr. Lavin was headed to a teaching assignment out West. This is one of the photos found in Arcadia Publishing's Irish in Chicago by John McLaughlin.

Photo courtesy of the Gill family