Patricia describes returning to Ireland with her family, several years after having emigrated to San Francisco.  She tells of her husband's attempts to find work in Ireland, and why it was impossible for them to stay.

Patricia Cunningham - Returning to Ireland

Josie remembers her travels to San Francisco as a new immigrant.  

She recalls an eventful plane ride, her first impressions of  New York and her cross-country train journey to California.

Josie Smyth Rivero - Planes, Trains and other Journeys

Mary tells the story of how her family became American citizens.  

She describes her grandmother's determination to get the vote, and recalls - with some hilarity - her family's citizenship test.

Mary O'Shea - The Citizenship Test

Phyllis remembers her childhood in Spiddal, County Galway.  She recalls her mother's role in the rituals of birth and death, and her father's stories about fairies and the banshee.  

Phyllis describes visiting Spiddal and reflects on what has changed since she left.

Phyllis McGinn O'Connor - A Child in Spiddal

Michael describes his experiences as a dance promotor in Dublin and in the broader Bay Area.

He remembers meeting his wife on the dance floor and he recalls how he competed for her attention.

Michael Mooney – The Ballroom Dancer

Vincent traces the extraordinary trajectory of his working life.

He explains that, to survive in America, you have to be just little bit crazy, and praises the generosity and possibility of life in the USA.

Vincent Walsh – On Self-Belief and the Generosity of America

Joan describes her father's return to Ireland from the USA in order to take part in the Irish War of Independence.  

She explains his decision to return to America with his family after the Irish Civil War.

Joan Stack Holland - A Return to Ireland, A Return to War

Mary explains how her family has preserved the memory of the Irish Famine from generation to generation.

Mary O'Shea – A Famine Story

Teresa shares her experiences of running an Irish bar, The Shannon Arms, with her husband Audie.

She explains that the Irish bar acted as a kind of cultural embassy where new immigrants found information on jobs and accommodation.  She pays tribute to this community and considers how it has changed over the years.

Teresa Morris - The Irish Bar

With a great deal of laughter, Martin remembers his arrival in San Francisco.  

He describes a sequence of comic misunderstandings upon landing in the airport.

Martin Falvey - The New Immigrant

Teresa describes her childhood on a farm in rural County Clare.

She remembers the rhythms of rural life and explains how the farm's tasks were divided between men's work and women's work.

Teresa Hallinan - The Work of a Farm

As a teenager, Ann left Waterford in 1954 and worked in England for seven years before heading to New York to work as an au pair. From there she made a successful and happy life for herself and her family in San Francisco. Here, Ann talks a bit about her tougher early days in Ireland, her first job in in England, and the day her father took her to the bus bound for Shannon Airport. Her advice to young immigrants is to keep faith, community and family intact. 

Ann Quinn - Survival, Faith, and Family

With ancestry leading back to Oola, Co. Tipperary, John grew up in New York and moved to San Francisco in the 1960s where he has been practicing law ever since. He has been an involved member of the Irish community and served as president of the SF Irish American Bar Association in the 1990s. As part of a contingent of human rights lawyers, John testified in the inquiry over the killing of Northern Irish lawyer, Rosemary Nelson whom he had met on a visit there in 1995. 

John Farrell - Called to Testify in Rosemary Nelson Inquiry

Sister Edith Hurley grew up immersed in all things Irish, and recalls being at the funeral of Fr. Peter Yorke in the 1920s. Her parents were involved with Cork societies, and Edith's love of Irish dancing had her taking lessons with Mr. Healy at the KRB. Sister Edith tells great stories, including the ones here about the trials of wearing a nun's habit.

Sister Hurley - Heart of The Mission

Father Michael Healy remembers the G.A.A. ban on watching British sports, back in his home town of Cork. He has witnessed many changes since he came to San Francisco and his participation in getting the Irish Immigration Pastoral Center set up has been of invaluable help to the Irish community. 

Father Michael Healy - Beloved Priest of Irish Immigrants

Rita speaks of her homesickness on arrival to San Francisco and how meeting new friends at the KRB helped her through. Rita helped form a KRB group that met socially and for events well after the famed dance hall closed.

Rita McEvoy - Happy Times at the KRB

Growing up in the Mission, Pat has great memories of neighbors coming by and how they'd roll up the carpet to dance, and how her father turned it into a session. She fondly remembers, as a small child, how she thought "home" was another word for "Ireland."

Pat D'Arcy - Another Word for Ireland (Home.WAV)

Peter O'Driscoll shares the story of his journey from Cork to San Francisco. He met his wife in New York and they raised four boys in San Francisco. A PG&E worker for almost 40 years, Peter has a keen interest in travel, history and education. He now spends his time leading walking tours of San Francisco for City Guides, and has conducted an Irish history tour for Irish American Crossroads, with an emphasis on the Irish contribution to labor and union movements.

Peter O'Driscoll - Travel Tales

Limerickman Frank Ahern came to the U.S. in the 1960s to work with Westinghouse as an engineer. Upon acceptance into Stanford Business School, Frank and his wife Elizabeth moved to the Bay Area where Frank discovered his inner actor, thanks to his new Irish friends.

Frank Ahern - Outstanding in His Own Field

Paul Reynolds was born to Irish parents in a working-class Boston where "no Irish need apply" signs were commonplace. When Paul realized a tradesman's life was not for him, he found a way to become eligible for admission to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT, where he studied engineering.

Paul Reynolds - The Road to MIT

Pat grew up in Dublin, and was a neighbor of Christy Brown, of My Left Foot fame. When he came to the Bay Area he opened a bar in Oakland, and later joined the teamsters union. He met and married an Italian and remembers his GAA team giving them a guard of honor with hurling sticks outside St. Peter and Paul's in North Beach.

Pat O'Brien - PGE, Paddy Go Easy

Mary Alba says her spirit of adventure was what brought her to the U.S. She describes her journey by sea from Cobh, Co. Cork and her impressions of New York when she arrived there - not to mention the excitement of seeing Jack Kennedy at midnight mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral. She settled easily in American with the help of an Irish Consul, or two.

Mary Alba - Go West Young Woman

Having worked in Cobh, Tom found it too sad to leave from there by boat, so flew to the U.S. instead. After a stint in the army, Tom returned to San Francisco where he worked for Wells Fargo Bank in pre-computer days. 

Tom O'Shea - Happy to Join the Army

Brian Whitty was born to Irish parents on a sugar plantation in Jamaica. He attended UCD in Dublin, and worked in Ireland and England before returning to his place of birth to work for British sugar giant Tate & Lyle. Although not in this clip, his work later brought him to San Francisco, where he became a fine addition to the Irish community, particularly as president and life member of the Irish Literary and Historical Society.  

Brian Whitty - Sweetness and Life

Imelda left Ireland with a basic grasp of the Irish language, but never dreamed she would hear it again in the U.S., let alone teach it. Now, almost forty years after her first class at Stanford, Imelda remains the Bay Area's most beloved Irish teacher. 

Imelda White - Irish for the "Working Stiff"

Hetty O'Hara knew her 19 year-old uncle was shot by the Black and Tans, and her teenage mother was in Kilmainham Jail for two years in 1921, but very little was spoken about in their house when Hetty was growing up in Dublin. She tells us what she knows...

Hetty O'Hara - My Militant Mother

Patrick Connolly describes his encounters with the Irish language. He talks about his education in Ireland and explains how he tackled gaps in his literacy when he first emigrated.

Patrick Connolly - Learning to Speak Irish

Catherine describes her flight to the United States, her reasons for leaving Ireland and her feelings on having emigrated.

Catherine Cavagnaro - On Feeling Adventurous

These are the life stories of the Irish in the San Francisco Bay Area.
http://www.irishamericancrossroads.org/oral_history.html

The Crossroads Irish-American Festival aims to produce a comprehensive oral history archive, representative of all generations of Irish heritage in the San Francisco Bay Area.

In this first phase, we have targeted "the 1950s generation" of Irish emigrants and their Irish-American contemporaries. This includes men and women who emigrated from Ireland in the 1930s, 1940s, 1950s and early 1960s –- and their Irish-American counterparts in this generation.

This project is made possible, in part, through a grant from the Irish Government's Emigrant Support Programme (ESP), awarded to the Crossroads Irish-American Festival. 

Contact us:
info@irishamericancrossroads.org

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