{"id":11,"date":"2010-03-17T13:53:55","date_gmt":"2010-03-17T18:53:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nyblog.arleneeakle.com\/?p=11"},"modified":"2010-03-17T13:53:55","modified_gmt":"2010-03-17T18:53:55","slug":"new-york-launched-a-nation-of-immigrants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nyblog.arleneeakle.com\/?p=11","title":{"rendered":"New York–Launched a Nation of Immigrants!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Our “nation of immigrants” was launched into and from New York–over 82%<\/strong> of all immigrants entered America\u00a0 through New York and its immediate environs.\u00a0 Immigrants who entered through Massachusetts Bay, Plymouth, Rhode Island, New Haven, Connecticut, Canada\u00a0 especially along the border with New York, Northern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and even Delaware flowed across New York from very early times.<\/p>\n

And this blog will address this vital aspect of New York ancestry in the coming weeks.\u00a0 If your ancestors were born in New York, the chances are very good that they were born to immigrant parents and descend from immigrant grandparents.\u00a0 We’ll look at all the immigrant origins and their sources.<\/p>\n

17 Mar 1762 is the official date for St Patrick’s Day celebrations in New York City, although there are evidences that 17 Mar was celebrated as early as 1737.\u00a0 Speculations exist that Thomas Dongan, Governor of New York\u00a01683-1688, \u00a0and a titled Irishman, might have celebrated the day with his cronies.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 “The anniversary Feast of St Patrick is to be celebrated on Wednesday the 17th instant, at the house of Mr. John Marshall, at Mount Pleasant, near the College; Gentlemen that please to attend will meet with the best Usage.”\u00a0 New York Mercury<\/em><\/strong>, 15 Mar 1762.<\/p>\n

From 1762 on, the newspapers announce or report on these annual celebrations of the Irish–first in New York City and later across the state.\u00a0 See Hon. John D. Crimmins, Early Celebrations of St Patrick’s Day in New York and Other Places, 1737-1845<\/em><\/strong>.\u00a0 New York:\u00a0 1902.<\/p>\n

New York City has been “heavily Irish” since at least 1798-99, following the arrival of Protestant exiles from the Revolt of 1798.\u00a0 By 1816, more than 25,000 Irish were residents of the city boroughs–1\/4 of the total population of the City.\u00a0 After that date, thousands of Catholic Irish arrived every year until 1851, when almost\u00a0one million Irish crowded through the Port of New York and spread across the state\u00a0spilling over into the United States at large.\u00a0 Seeking jobs.\u00a0 Looking for a place to establish themselves.<\/p>\n

These waves of immigrants from Ireland can be identified:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Merchant Irish.<\/strong>\u00a0 Grocers who peddled their wares on corners and from the backs of peddler wagons.\u00a0 They moved into store-fronts in Irish neighborhoods.\u00a0 They were married and brought their families with them.\u00a0 These grocers\u00a0were also\u00a0bailbondsmen. By 1810, 1\/3 of the sureties for Irishmen were grocers.<\/li>\n
  2. Canal Irish.<\/strong>\u00a0 The original overseer of the Erie Canal and its\u00a0canal networks\u00a0was an Irishman who imported his Irish diggers from England where they had been employed building canals in the northern British Isles.\u00a0 Paid in cash and 1 quart of whiskey per day, these Irish were largely single men who later went home to marry.\u00a0\u00a0Or brought their prospective brides here. Immigrant agents and shipping companies\u00a0offered tickets to Ireland at reduced prices for round trips or the purchase of multiple tickets for other family members.<\/li>\n
  3. Garment Irish.<\/strong>\u00a0 Employed in the burgeoning garment and clothing industry, including\u00a0ready-made clothes of fine silks and treated cottons–an industry New York City and its immediate environs is still noted for.<\/li>\n
  4. Famine Irish.<\/strong>\u00a0 Hoards of families fled from Ireland–the English and Irish governments even sponsored immigration to relieve the strain on their depleted resources.\u00a0 From 1844 through 1853, more than\u00a01.8 million people came from Ireland to America through the port of New York City alone!<\/li>\n
  5. Railroad Irish.<\/strong>\u00a0 Railroads were built across New York state (and many other states as well) drawing their workforce from unemployed Irish.\u00a0 Railroad owners bragged that they could build\u00a0“transportation routes to hell and back” given enough Irish and whiskey.<\/li>\n
  6. Settlement Irish.<\/strong>\u00a0 Families who sought to better their lives with lands and opportunities offered in New York.\u00a0 Families came on their own or with groups sponsored by Irish immigrant associations.\u00a0 Settlements in or near cities ensured job opportunities for laborers not yet used to farming.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Study Bibliography<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Bayor, Ronald H., and Timothy J. Meagher, eds.\u00a0 The New York Irish.<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0 Baltimore MD:\u00a0 Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996.\u00a0 Massive and thorough examination of the Irish impact.\u00a0 includes\u00a0maps of each borough of New York City and the location of the Irish churches.<\/p>\n

    Brooklyn’s Green-Wood Cemetery.<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0 Online index to more than 500,000 persons buried there.\u00a0 http:\/\/www.green_wood.com<\/a>\u00a0 You can search first name, surname.\u00a0 Index gives name, date of interment, lot and section #s.\u00a0 See also article in New York Researcher<\/em><\/strong> by Leslie Corn (Fall 2002\/Winter 2003):\u00a0 61-69 for very detailed instructions on how to find someone.<\/p>\n

    Goodrich, Victor B.\u00a0 “Sending Money Home:\u00a0 The Accounts of an Immigrant Financial Agent in Deposit, New York, 1851-1860,”\u00a0 Tree Talks<\/em><\/strong> 32 (Dec 1992): 1-55.\u00a0 Separate issue, #4.\u00a0 Original ledger in the Deposit Historical Society archives.<\/p>\n

    Haberstroh, Diane Fitzpatrick, and Laura Murphy DeGrazia.\u00a0 Voices of the Irish Immigrant:\u00a0 Information Wanted Ads in Truth Teller, New York City,<\/em><\/strong> 1825-1844.<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0 New York:\u00a0 New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, 2005.\u00a0 See also their article in the New York Researcher<\/em><\/strong> (formerly the New York Genealogical and Biographical<\/em><\/strong> Newsletter)<\/em><\/strong> (Summer 2005): 59\u00a0ff.<\/p>\n

    Kincaid, Roberta.\u00a0 “Payments to People Involved in Building the Erie Canal, 1820-1821,”\u00a0 Tree Talks<\/em><\/strong> 35 (Dec 2008).\u00a0 Separate issue #4.\u00a0 includes map showing completion dates of each section of the canal.\u00a0 As each section was finished, it was opened to traffic.<\/p>\n

    Rich, Kevin J.\u00a0 Irish Immigrants of the Emigrant Industrial Savings Bank,<\/em><\/strong> 1850-1853, Volume I.\u00a0 1-2500 Accounts.\u00a0 Volume II.\u00a0 2501-7500 Accounts.<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0 For the author: PO Box 158, Massapequa NY 11758-9998.\u00a0 Entries transcribed from the original registers at the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society in spreadsheets.\u00a0 These accounts are also available on microfilm through the Family History Library.<\/p>\n

    Silinonte, Joseph M.\u00a0 Street Index to the 1892 New York State Census:\u00a0 City<\/em><\/strong> of Brooklyn.<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0 For the author:\u00a0 7901-4 Avenue, #D, Brooklyn NY 11209.\u00a0 Includes the 6th Ward, which was mostly Irish.<\/p>\n

    Stay tuned for a checklist of sources and how to use them in tracing an Irish pedigree in New York coming in the next episode of this blog.\u00a0 Your favorite New York genealogist, Arlene Eakle\u00a0\u00a0 http:\/\/arleneeakle.com<\/a><\/p>\n

    PS\u00a0 If you have registered for any Family History Expos<\/strong> during 2010–I will be speaking at all of them so check my speaking schedule–send an email to Holly@fhexpos.com<\/a>.\u00a0 The original website, and<\/em> its backup<\/em>, crashed and has not been restored by the server company–yet.\u00a0 Holly needs your registration information to ensure that you get in.\u00a0 Very important to do this!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Our “nation of immigrants” was launched into and from New York–over 82% of all immigrants entered America\u00a0 through New York and its immediate environs.\u00a0 Immigrants who entered through Massachusetts Bay, Plymouth, Rhode Island, New Haven, Connecticut, Canada\u00a0 especially along the … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nyblog.arleneeakle.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nyblog.arleneeakle.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nyblog.arleneeakle.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nyblog.arleneeakle.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nyblog.arleneeakle.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/nyblog.arleneeakle.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13,"href":"https:\/\/nyblog.arleneeakle.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11\/revisions\/13"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nyblog.arleneeakle.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nyblog.arleneeakle.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nyblog.arleneeakle.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}