The David McWilliams Podcast St Patrick's Day Special: Who Exactly Are The Irish Americans?
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Mar 17, 2026 
Brendan, an academic historian at the University of Galway who studies Irish emigration, gives historical context on waves of migration from Ulster to the famine west. He traces Irish settlers’ roles in early America, the institutions that built Irish-American life, and asks whether a distinct Irish-American identity still endures. The conversation ends with ideas for reconnecting the diaspora, from arts to a birthright-style return program.
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Three Regional Waves Shaped Irish Emigration
- Irish emigration unfolded in shifting regional waves from the 1600s: Presbyterians from Ulster, Leinster farmers after 1815, then the west during the Famine.
- Brendan traces ~8 million to North America and shows how the migration epicentre moved north→Leinster→west.
Derry Patriots Drank Whiskey Out Of Potatoes
- 18th-century Presbyterians proudly identified as Irish and celebrated Irish parliamentary defiance in Derry with whiskey and potatoes propping shattered glasses.
- Brendan uses this to overturn stereotypes and link Ulster Presbyterians to early Irish patriotism and the American Revolution.
Famine Emigrants Built Industrial Irish America
- Post‑Famine emigrants mainly filled industrial cities and coalfields, not farms, becoming a heavily urban Irish America.
- Brendan cites Donegal migrants in Pennsylvania mines, railroads and later migration to boomtowns like Leadville, Colorado.