When you think "Irish America," you think of Catholicism, JFK, and St. Patrick's Day parades but the legacy of the Irish in America runs deeper than one might expect.
For instance, did you know an Irishman was the first person to step off Columbus' ship and set foot on American ground? Or did you know it was an Irish-American who was the first U.S. woman to walk in space?
IrishCentral celebrates Irish accomplishments in America, and presents to you some interesting, if not surprising, Irish-American facts.
An Irishman was the first of Christopher Columbus’ crew to step on American soil
Christopher Columbus arrives to America.
There were several Irishmen in Christopher Columbus’ crew. But the one who stands out most is Patrick Maguire. In 1492, Irish-born Maguire was the first crew member of Christopher Columbus’ to set foot on North American ground.
At least 15 U.S. Presidents have confirmed Irish ancestry
Irish American, President Andrew Jackson.
More than 20 US Presidents claim Irish roots. The “most Irish” presidents are Andrew Jackson and James Buchanan, both of whose parents were born in Ireland. To find out the rest of the “Irish” U.S. presidents, click here.
The first American general to die during the Revolutionary War was Irish
It’s said by some historians that Dubliner Richard Montgomery, who first served in the British Army during the French and Indian War, but later joined the Americans’ fight for independence, is the first general to have been killed in battle during the Revolutionary War.
The Brigadier General in the Continental Army, Montgomery was killed in the Battle of Quebec during the 1775 invasion of Canada.
The U.S. has honored Montgomery in numerous ways. The Navy has named several ships USS Montgomery after the Irishman, Philadelphia has a statue of Montgomery in Fairmount Park and several schools in the country are named after the Revolutionary War general.
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Three of the signers of the Declaration of Independence were born in Ireland
The Declaration of Independence.
A total of 56 men signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. Of these men, 48 were born in the American colonies, while three of the eight foreign-born men were natives of Ireland.
These Irish patriots of the American Revolution are James Smith, from Northern Ireland, a member of the Continental Congress 1776-1778, and a Colonel of Pennsylvania Militia 1775-1776; George Taylor, an Irish native and a member of the Committee of Correspondence, 1774-1776, and of the Continental Congress, 1776-1777; and Matthew Thornton, an Irishman who became a member of the Continental Congress in 1776 and Colonel of New Hampshire Militia, 1775-1783.
Irishmen helped build the White House
The White House was designed by an Irishman, James Hoban.
Not only did an Irishman, James Hoban, design the White House, and model it after an Irish building, but the White House was built by the hands of Irishmen as well.
Immigrant laborers from various backgrounds were the chief builders of the presidential home. The Irish laborers mainly worked on layering the bricks and molding the plaster of the building.
A blind Irishman composed the “Star-Spangled Banner”
Though British composer John Stafford Smith, who was born in 1750, is credited for composing "The Star-Spangled Banner,” the tune is actually based on music composed by the great Irish blind harper Turlough O'Carolan, who died over 35 years before the American Revolution.
The musician and singer are considered by many to be Ireland’s national composer, but many Irish-Americans consider O’Carolan as the man responsible for their own country’s national anthem.
An Irishman is the “father” of the Navy
Founder of the American Navy, John Barry.
John Barry, a Tacumshane, County Wexford native, is known as “The Father of the American Navy.”
Barry was appointed a Captain in the Continental Navy on December 7, 1775. He and his crew fought and won the final naval battle of the American Revolution off the coast of Cape Canaveral on March 10, 1783.
An Irish-American was the first woman from the U.S. to walk in space
Kathryn Dwyer Sullivan, an Irish-American from Paterson, New Jersey, is a former NASA astronaut. She is also the first American woman to ever walk in space.
Sullivan was a crew member on three Space Shuttle missions and is a member of the Astronaut Hall of Fame.
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* Originally published in 2013.
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