As a young man, Patrick dropped out of school to work on the docks of Boston.

Patrick was able to work his way from being a SaloonKeeper to becoming a Ward Boss, helping out other Irish immigrants. His popularity rose and at the age of thirty he had become a power in Boston politics. In 1892 and 1893 he was elected to the Massachusetts Senate.123

Patrick later became a very successful businessman getting into wholesale liquor sales, owning a coal company and becoming the president of a bank.

His personality was mild-mannered, quiet, and reserved, and he was viewed as a man of moderate habits.