Why+did+the+Irish+immigrate+to+the+United+States?

The Great Potato Famine- 1845 to 1850
· **In 1845 The Great Irish Potato Famine ** brought even more Irish immigrants, more than doubling the population of Allegheny County over a ten year period.

· Potatoes were a staple crop for the Irish and the decline of this crop lead to a starvation period in Ireland. Many Irish believed it was an omen to leave Ireland.

· This destroyed ¾ of Ireland’s potatoes and disturbed the lives of four million Irishmen.

Oliver Cromwell

· In 1648 Oliver Cromwell stormed Ireland with his army in response to the wishes of the English Parliament and created means to remove powers of the Roman Catholics in Ireland.

 Since the majority of Irish were Roman Catholic they wanted to escape this religious persecution.

· Economic and religious factors are the main reason for their migration.