Pearsall's Books

To anyone who is Irish or thinks of themselves as Irish or whatever, happy St. Patrick's Day!

Facts about the Irish in America from the Census site:

4.8 million - Total number of immigrants from Ireland admitted for lawful permanent residence since fiscal year 1820, the earliest year for which official immigration records exist. By fiscal year 1870, about half of these immigrants were admitted for lawful permanent residence. Only Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and Mexico have had more immigrants admitted for permanent residence to the United States than Ireland.

34.0 million - Number of U.S. residents who claim Irish ancestry. This number is almost nine times the population of Ireland itself (3.9 million). Irish is the nation’s second most frequently reported ancestry, trailing only German.

24% - Percentage of Massachusetts residents of Irish ancestry — about double the national percentage.

3 - Number of states in which Irish is the leading ancestry group: Delaware, Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Irish is among the top five ancestries in every state but two (Hawaii and New Mexico).