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U.S. Census Shows Story of Irish Immigration
Strictly by the numbers, the U.S. state to be in on St. Patrick's Day is
Massachusetts, one of the main entry points for Irish immigrants in the
mid-1800s, where nearly a third of its residents claimed Irish ancestry
on the 1990 U.S. census.
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The Irish came to the United States in two major waves. Their settlement patterns can still be seen today.
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The large concentration of Irish-Americans in Massachusetts and demographic information from other U.S. states can be explained by original settlement patterns of Irish immigrants, said Terry Golway, author of The Irish in America.
The first group of Irish immigrants were skilled workers, Protestants who arrived in the 17th century. "Those Irish tended to go into Appalachia," explained Golway. "They were sort of the original frontiersmen." Descendents of these immigrants can be seen in the 1990 census figures—about 22 percent of Pennsylvania, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Tennessee residents said they have Irish roots. "Washed Up on the Streets" The second wave of Irish immigrants was the better-known "Potato Famine" refugees. They came in through the northeast ports of Philadelphia, Baltimore, Boston, and New York City. "The 1840s saw illiterate, jobless, skilless, poor washed up on the streets of urban America," said Golway. Although many of the immigrants stayed in the port cities, some moved to Chicago, San Francisco, and other western cities, looking for work. "Butte [Montana] was ... almost an entirely Irish city," Golway noted, "because there was mining work to be had." New England still has a high concentration of Irish-Americans —Massachusetts (27.9 percent) and New Hampshire (23.5 percent) are the two U.S. states with the largest percentage of Irish-Americans. Massachusetts boasts 1.68 million people with Irish roots, while 258,000 Irish-Americans call New Hampshire home. Since these initial waves of immigration, Irish-American demographics have followed many typical American trends, said Golway, including the move from urban to suburban areas. They are also becoming part of the American melting pot. "The next great Irish-American narrative is intermarriage and greater assimilation," said Golway. In 1990, 44 million U.S. residents claimed Irish heritage. Despite increased Irish-American assimilation into U.S. culture, Golway said he expects the 2000 U.S. census to show an increase in those claiming Irish heritage. The recent popularity of Angela's Ashes and Riverdance in the United States has made Irishness "trendy," said Golway. "I have a feeling that a few million people have rediscovered their Irish roots in the years since." Ancestry group data for the 2000 U.S. census will be released in 2002.
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