Molly Maguire: Meaning and Definition of

Mol'ly Ma•guire'

Pronunciation: (mu-gwīr'), [key]
  1. a member of a secret terrorist society organized in Ireland in 1843 to prevent evictions by the government: so called because the members disguised themselves as women.
  2. a member of a former secret association, organized about 1865, that terrorized the mine operators' agents in an effort to get relief from oppressive conditions in the anthracite coal-mining regions of Pennsylvania: ceased to function about 1877.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.