Many have documented the influence of the Scots-Irish (Ulster-Scots) throughout the history of the United States. What comes as a surprise to me, as an American, is just how under-utilised this cultural connection is in Ulster. Sure, we all are familiar with the Kennedys, Tipp O’Neill and the overall influence Ireland as a whole has had on the US. These connections have aided Ireland throughout history and garnered plenty of support from abroad. Why is it, then, that this transatlantic partnership was not fostered as fervently by the Unionist community in Ulster as it has been with other traditions in Ireland?

This partnership could have been fostered over centuries. Mainly Presbyterian Irish began to grace the shores of the US colonies in the early 18th century. By the years of the Irish Famine, nearly 200,000 families from the North of Ireland had reached what would eventually become the United States. Surely this would have given Ulster a headstart in building international relations with their countrymen and women abroad and, at times, they did. However, this was rarely utilised in the frequent crises Ulster would face throughout history.

There are valid historical reasons for this. The Unionism you see throughout Protestant Ulster today was not as strong then as it is now. Despite the difficulties upon their arrival in New England – Ulster Scots had anticipated being warmly welcomed by their Calvinist Puritan cousins, but were perceived as a threat to the establishment’s livelihood and were banished to the backwoods of the colonies’ frontier – they were quite anti-British. Presbyterians and other dissenting Protestant sects had incurred the Penal Laws that afflicted everyone in Britain and Ireland, save those of the Anglican Faith. This was the predominant reason for their exodus, religious freedom. To compound these issues, colonists were beginning to incur the same treatment that led them to leave Ireland and Britain, in terms of the Crown’s intrusion in their economic, political and spiritual affairs. Turmoil was also rampant at this time in Ulster following the failed rebellions by the United Irishmen in the years leading up to 1798.

All things considered, those early Irish Protestants mostly fought on the American side of the War of Independence and thoroughly became Americans, leaving much of their cultural ties behind. In Ireland, following the dissolution of the Penal Laws, many Protestants became increasingly supportive of the Union alongside their Anglican counterparts. It was predominantly politics and nationalism that severed these ties, but I would argue that the cultures in both nations continued their many parallels.

Much of what we consider as Americana is impossible without the influence of Ulster.

Along with their spiritually dissident cousins from the backwaters of Scotland, Northern England and much of Northern Europe, the Ulster-Scots had an adverse effect on the religious evolution that would later take place in the US, a turbo-charged version of The Reformation in Europe in centuries prior. Southern Baptism and Methodism and the excess amount of churches that have been established throughout the history of the US can largely be traced back to Ulster’s fervent and distinct religiosity. The Bible Belt and, indeed, the entire societal structure of the Southern US and Appalachia would look entirely different. The “geotheological” spirit of ulster was embedded into the culture of the US at a very early stage and the providential principles of Manifest Destiny would help propel the frontier forward.

Much of what we love about American music – Blues, Bluegrass, Country Western and early Rock n Roll –would not be possible without the Scots-Irish. Bourbon, fried chicken and much of southern cuisine would suddenly exit the American consciousness. Names like Daniel Boone, Davy Crockett, the Hatfield’s and the McCoy’s, Elvis Presley, Teddy Roosevelt, Mark Twain – what could be more American? In the very least, the Scots-Irish are as significant as any other ethnic group that made America their home.

Far from the portrait of the Scots-Irish as purely rural, backcountry folk, famous for song and psalms, descendants of Ulstermen and women contributed immensely to the intellectual and industrial institutions of urban America that would elevate the nation to new heights. Princeton University, originally founded as a Presbyterian Seminary, is the Protestant Irish intellectual and spiritual capital of the US. Thomas Mellon, born in Cappagh, Co. Tyrone, and his descendants have long dominated the steel and banking industry in greater Pittsburgh and much of Appalachia. His family would later found another esteemed institution, Carnegie Mellon University. Charles Thompson, pictured on the rare two dollar bill, was one of the archetypes of The Declaration of Independence and designed the Great Seal of the United States.  He was born near Maghera, Co. Londonderry. It seems everywhere you look throughout American history, there is a descendent of an Ulsterman or woman.

With more than one-third of American Presidents having Ulster roots and with the highest estimates indicating that roughly 27 million people are of Scots-Irish descent, it is surprising that Ulster Protestants did not use these connections in times of need. Admittedly, it has been difficult for Unionists to garner support internationally throughout The Troubles, and to say that the so-called ‘PUL’ community would have instantly gained a reputation boost within all parties interested in Northern Ireland abroad would be far-fetched. However, if more of these relationships were cultivated over decades, assuredly they would have amassed greater empathy and awareness of their plight in troubled times. They could have developed partnerships, historical societies and business relationships that would have brought Ulster and its people onto a grander stage and solidified a secure Ulster identity, accompanied by international insight and leverage. They could have affirmed mutual cultural interests such as the Enlightenment virtues of individual liberty and democracy, and drawn parallels between devolution in the United Kingdom and the American emphasis on states’ rights, a value that would resonate within many Scots-Irish constituencies. “An Ulsterman in union with the United Kingdom, a Virginian in union with the United States.”  This could have provided a logical and intuitive counterpoint to the Irish Nationalism that is so often supported in the US, in which many Americans would have been able to relate to.

Certainly we have seen the Paisleys, Peter Robinson, Arlene Foster and Loyalist representatives visit the US as well as invite US statesmen and women to visit NI for the purposes of building relations. David Trimble deservedly won a Nobel Peace Prize for his collaborative efforts throughout the peace process.  The Clinton’s have surely left a lasting impression here. However, is it unfair to say that this is too little, too late?

It is not that Ulster-American connections are lost to history, it is that these connections are not emphasised nearly enough. Dissenting, disenfranchised people from the forgotten places of Britain and Ireland make the voyage across the Atlantic, face no better conditions than they had left behind, yet rise to become some of the most influential people in what would become the most powerful country on earth? That sounds like the plot of a great novel… not the truth.

I think the people of Ireland, on both sides of the Atlantic, could do a much better job of integrating this into the greater Irish-American story. I, myself, being an American proud of his Irish roots, believe that the story of the Scots-Irish deserves an equal platform to the struggles and triumphs of other prominent ethnic American contributors – Italian Americans, African Americans, Latino Americans. It would behove the Irish American community to harmonise the Scots-Irish story into cultural celebrations going forward. I would love to see St. Patrick’s Cross at St. Patrick’s Day commemorations in Washington next year. After all, St. Patrick was a Briton that immigrated to Ireland, and all of us, at home and abroad, are influenced by his legacy.