Irish Americans
By
Larissa, Allie, Nikki, Katie
Ireland’s Geography
• Ireland is located in Far
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•
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Western Europe in the
North Atlantic Ocean
Ireland’s greatest
length- 485 km (302
miles)
Widest Point- 304 km
(189 miles)
There is 5, 361 km (3,
500 miles) of coastline
Geography Continued…
• Across the South, West, Northwest and East
are mountain ranges.
– The South-Sandstone Mountains of Cork and
Kerry.
– The West and Northwest- Granite Mountains and
sea cliffs which stretch along the coast.
• The Northeast- plateaus
• In the center of the country, there is rolling
countryside
Ireland’s Climate
• Spring and Autumn Temperatures
 Averages
50 degrees Fahrenheit
• Summer Temperatures
 Ranges
from 60 -70 degrees Fahrenheit
 Ranges
from 40-46 degrees Fahrenheit
• Winter Temperatures
• Average Rainfall- 40 inches a year
People
•
•
Population- 3,294,140 people
Age Structure
•
Language Spoken
•
Religion
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0-14 years: 21.2% (male 427,017; female 404,191)
15-64 years: 67.4% (male 1,322,982; female 1,322,429)
65 years and over: 11.4% (male 194,724; female 252,797)
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•
Irish (Gaelic-along western seaboard)
English is mainly used
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Roman Catholic- 90%
Protestant group-10%
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Church of Ireland (Anglican)
Presbyterian and Methodist religions
THE HISTORY
OF
IRISH
IMMIGRATION
Major Time Periods
• The Prefamine Period- years before
1845
• The Famine Period- years 1845-1855
• The Postfamine Period- years 1855 to
the present
The Prefamine
Period
Reasons for Immigration
• The religious persecution of the
Catholics in Ireland
• The restriction of Irish economic
development
• The presence of industrialization
How they got here, Who came
to the U.S. and What jobs did
they do?
• American ships carried raw materials to England and on the
return trip, brought back emigrants from Ireland.
• The immigrants were mostly Catholic males.
• They were farmers, laborers, and military and religious
protestors.
• They worked to dig the Erie Canal in New York and worked on
railways, streets, and sewers.
• They worked as carpenters and as blacksmiths.
Where did they live?
• The immigrants, during the prefamine period, settled
mostly in the northeast.
• Major ports of entry were Philadelphia, New York
City, and Boston.
FACT
• By 1840, the Irish made up nearly
half of all entering immigrants.
The Famine Period
Reason for Immigration and
How they got to the U.S.
• The Potato Famine
• The Irish crowded onto ships
called “coffin ships.”
Who came to the U.S. and
What jobs did they do?
• Mostly Irish families rather than single
people came to the U.S. in the famine
period.
• Jobs were hard to find. However,
clearing forests in Michigan and digging
gold in California were popular jobs.
Where did they live?
• During the famine period, the Irish
settled in Boston, New York,
Philadelphia, and New Orleans.
• Some immigrants moved out west.
Facts
• The famine period was the period in
time in which the MOST Irish
immigrated to the United States at one
specific time.
• About one and a half million Irish came
to the United States in the famine
period.
The Postfamine Period
Reasons for Immigration
• Failing economic conditions
• Increased political domination
Who came to the U.S., What
jobs did they do, and Where
did they settle?
• During the postfamine period, more single
females came than males or families.
• They became religious sisters, secretaries,
nurses, and store clerks.
• They settled all over the United States.
FACTS
• After 1860, more than 2.6 million Irish came
to the United States.
• From 1880 to 1910, the ratio of males to
females immigrating to the U.S. was .98 to 1.
• By 1910, Irish women made up about a quarter
of teachers working in public schools in
American cities.
Culture in U.S.
Food and Drink
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Agriculture is a vital part of the economy
Breakfast is a huge meal
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Consists of eggs, rashers (bacon), bangers (sausage), baked fresh tomatoes, fresh mushrooms,
white pudding, black pudding, fresh fruit, brown bread, or toast, or scones
Juice or coffee
Lunch- soups and sandwiches are popular
Dinner is the largest meal
•
Lamb is used in many recipes

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Beef is the traditional Sunday roast
Potatoes are important part of diet
For dessert
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Irish Stew
Roast Leg of Lamb

homemade Soda Bread
Brown Bread
Home-brewed beverages, such as tea is popular
Beer, whiskey, and cider are important drinks to the Irish
St. Patrick’s Day
• Celebrated on March 17th
• Not an official holiday in U.S.
• In Ireland= religious holiday
• It is the day that people honor the man who brought the Roman
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Catholic religion to Ireland
Green is of Irish tradition
• many people wear clothing of green, color their hair green, and
restaurants add green food coloring to beer on this holiday
Famous meal is corn-beef, cabbage, and potatoes
Parades and Celebrations are common
• New York City’s parade is the biggest
• Hundreds of thousands of people march for eight kilometers
along Fifth Avenue.
• Millions of others gather along the street to watch
Wedding Traditions
• Claddagh rings
• shaped as a heart, held by two hands with a crown
• The heart reflects love, the hands reflect faith, and
the crown reflects honor
• right hand with heart facing fingernail= single
• left hand with the heart facing fingernail= not
married, but taken
• left hand with crown facing fingernail=marriage
• Wedding Dress
• traditional blue dress, signifying luck.
• Recently, Irish brides tend to wear off-white
• Hair
• Braided hair because this is considered a “sacred way
to keep feminine power and luck”
Christmas Traditions
• Candle in the Window on Christmas Eve
• It is a symbol to welcome Mary and Joseph as they
traveled looking for shelter
• Candle is lit by the youngest member of the family
• Holly on Doors
• Considered bad luck if taken down before January 6th
(Little Christmas)
• Irish Ornaments
• shamrocks, pigs, leprechauns and bright emerald green
glass ornaments with Irish messages on them
• Irish Christmas Meals
• Spiced beef (traditional)
• turkey, ham, stuffing, and many vegetables
• Dessert- mince pies, Christmas pudding, and brandy or
rum sauce
Irish in Politics
As soon as Irish came to America
they jumped into politics
• Was an opportunity that they did not have
in Ireland
• Was a job for a self made man
• Gave them an advantage, control in a new
land
-Need job and security
The Irish mostly became
democrats
• When first came the Federalists (Whigs) did not
like them
-Saw them as wild and rude people
-Threat to their power
• Passed Acts such as Naturalization, Alien and
Sedition Acts
-First charged was Matthew Lyon
One of first Irishman in politics is a
man named Michael Walsh
• Ran for congressman as democrat against
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•
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the Whigs
-Cut to the point, rough, and sarcastic
Spartan band
-Gain votes and support
1851 won a seat in congress
1859 died
Political machines
• Most Irishmen in politics
worked at the local level of
government
• would form political machines
• 2 advantages over other
immigrants
-Already knew English
language
-Familiar with American
culture
• Machines had a citywide leader
called a boss
• Next in power were the
precinct captains
-Put in power by the boss
-Usually was a patronage
job
• -They were assigned zones
(neighborhoods), they were
responsible for getting the vote
for their boss
Political Machines continued
• Last there was the public who
supports the machines
-Usually the machines
supplied some kind of
service to the people in
return for their support
-Before welfare was
popular would help out
the poor
-Provided immigrants
with social services and
jobs in return for their
votes
Mayor Richard J. Daley
• The last well-known political machine
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leader in power
The first Chicago Mayor to be elected for
four consecutive four-year terms
Known for the political machine to have
aided in electing John F. Kennedy in 1960
known for being extremely tolerant of
corruption
Daley relayed heavily on his precinct
captain
suprisingly honest for a machine leader
-perosnal honesty was never
successfully questioned
THE END