1.
For my historical event, I want to research what position the Irish immigrants took during
the American Civil War and how it essentially shaped their future. Irish immigrants were
subject to social discrimination due to the belief that their skills were not suitable. A
turning point that affirmed their assimilation is when Irish Americans enlisted in the army
to show support for the Union, demonstrating their patriotism making this event
significant.
2.
One of the secondary sources that I am deciding to use is a book called, “The Global
Dimensions of Irish Identity: Race, Nation, and the Popular Press, 1840-180”. It was
written by Cian T. McMahon and published in 2015. It goes in detail of how the Irish
political stance at the time gravitated them towards joining the war in support of the
union. How these decisions affected their future in assimilating. Another secondary
source I chose was written by Lawrence McCaffrey in 2004 and is called, “Ireland and
Irish America: Connections and Disconnections”. This goes into a little bit about the
progress of the Irish immigrants and how that assimilated them. When searching for these
sources it was a bit difficult in trying to find exactly what I was looking for, however, the
most significant information is the struggle the Irish faced when they came to this
country, their involvement within the civil war, and the outcome and assimilation.
3.
My two primary sources are listed below:
Poole, J. (1854). No Irish Need Apply. H. De Marsan, Publisher, 54 Chatham Street, New
York.
https://www.loc.gov/resource/amss.as109730.0/?st=text
Cronin, S. (2012). An Irishman’s Civil War Diary. Irish America Magazine.
https://www.irishamerica.com/2012/07/an-irishmans-civil-war-diary/
