Irish People Come to Scotland

Aims Examine why so many Irish people came to Scotland Identify the parts of Scotland where most Irish people settled. Success Criteria You can: Identify three push and three pull factors Identify on a map the main parts of Scotland settled by Irish immigrants

Glossary Chamberlain – a local government official in charge of the finances for a city. Blight – a disease that damages and kills plants. Steamers – a boat or ship that moves by steam power. Steerage – the cheapest accommodation onboard a ship. Navvies – short for ‘navigator’. Unskilled workers that helped to build railways or canals.

Almost a quarter of a million Irish came to Scotland, the majority, from Ulster. These immigrants would have a significant impact on Scotland.

Why Leave Ireland? The Irish population was increasing. In the 60 years before 1840 it almost doubled. But Ireland had few industries to provide jobs. Most people farmed the land. They had to pay high rents to landlords. Their farms shrank in size as land was divided up. Tenants grew what food they needed on the smallest piece of land. Potatoes became the staple (main) crop in Ireland.

In 1845 and 1846 a terrible disease called ‘blight’ killed off the crop. People starved to death and those who could left Ireland. “Disease and famine have fastened onto the young, the old, the strong and feeble, the mother and the infant; whole families lie together on the damp floor. Without food or fuel, bed or bedding, whole families are shut up in hovels, dropping into the arms of death one by one.” The Cork Examiner 1846

Many Irish homes were just tiny huts that did not even keep the rain out properly.

Why Come To Scotland? Scottish industries grew rapidly in the nineteenth century (1800s) and needed more and more workers. Scottish mines expanded too. In 1854 just 7.5 million tons of coal were mined: By million tons were cut. Farmers needed workers on the land. So too did the builders of canals and railways.

Wages in Scotland were higher than in Ireland. This offered the hope of a better standard of living and, perhaps, the chance to send some money home. ‘In most parts of Ireland, even in towns, the highest wages of a labourer are a shilling a day. Moreover employment is by no means constant and labourers (depend) on the produce of their potato garden for support. In Scotland the wages are higher - in Lanarkshire the rate was ten to twelve shillings a week.’

It was easy to get to Scotland. The distance was short. Steamers sailed from Ireland carrying passengers for very cheap fares. ‘ That fine new steamer ‘The Antelope’ is now carrying passengers from Belfast to Glasgow at the reduced fares of a shilling for the cabin and sixpence for the steerage. She had a thousand of the most wretched of Ireland’s poor upon her deck. She was so crowded that the passengers had no room to lie down or rest.’

How Many Came? These figures list people living in Scotland who were born in Ireland. They come from the official census of the Scottish population. YearNo. of Irish-Percentage of whole bornpopulation ,3214.8% ,3677.2% ,0836.7% ,7455.9% ,0644.6% ,0203.3% ,2962.6%

Where Did They Settle? CountiesMale Female Lanark29,34326,572 Renfrew9,89410,523 Ayr6,4115,624 Edinburgh3,9713,129 Forfar3,0243,450 Stirling2,6861,570 Dumbarton2,8852,006 Wigtown2,9642,808

Where Did They Settle? Cities and TownsMale and Female total Glasgow44,345 Edinburgh6,187 Dundee5,672 Paisley5,231 Greenock4,307 Airdrie2,074 Kilmarnock1,624 Aberdeen841

Dumbarton Renfrew Lanark Wigtown Forfar Irish Immigration

Here To Stay? The Irish did not spread equally over Scotland. They went where there was work. Some Irish people found work in jobs that meant they had to move about, not settle in one place, e.g. the Irish navvies who built canals and railways. Irish farm workers went to lowland Scotland to help with work like harvesting and went back home when they were no longer needed. Some came to Scotland, not to stay permanently but to earn enough money to pay their fare to their final destination, America.