PodcastsEducationTransatlantic: An Irish American History Podcast

Transatlantic: An Irish American History Podcast

Fin Dwyer & Damian Shiels
Transatlantic: An Irish American History Podcast
Latest episode

43 episodes

  • Transatlantic: An Irish American History Podcast

    39. St Patrick: The Man, The Myth, The Legend

    02/03/2026 | 33 mins.
    As the Irish communities prepare to celebrate St Patrick’s Day, Fin and Damian look at who he was and what we know about his life. From his early days in the late Roman Empire to his time in Ireland as a slave and his role in conversion Ireland to Christianity.

    Terry O’Hagan’s Vox Hiberionacum https://voxhib.com
    St Patrick Dictionary of Irish Biography Entry
    https://www.dib.ie/biography/patrick-patricius-patraic-padraig-a7225
    Flechner, R. (2019) Saint Patrick Retold: The Legend of Ireland's Patron Saint
    Pilgrimage in Medieval Ireland Website https://pilgrimagemedievalireland.com/
    Test of St.Patrick's Confessio https://www.confessio.ie/etexts/confessio_english
    Test of St Patrick's Letter to Corotocus: https://www.confessio.ie/etexts/epistola_english
    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
  • Transatlantic: An Irish American History Podcast

    38. Early Catholic Power in New York: Rise and Resistance

    23/02/2026 | 59 mins.
    The beginnings of the Catholic Irish story in New York City are usually associated with the mid-nineteenth century. But in the immediate wake of the Revolution, a small, vibrant community had already begun to establish itself, quickly making an impact on the religious, political and social life of New York. In this episode we will hear about the wealthy Irish Catholic merchants who helped create Manhattan's first Catholic parish and who sought to reshape New York politics. We also discuss the growth of the City's Catholic Irish working-class, and the early nativist tensions--and sometimes violent clashes--their growing numbers created.

    We are joined in this episode by AoH historian Kevin Moore, who has been studying and researching Irish Catholics in New York between 1784-1806. To find out more about Kevin's work or to get in touch with him you can do so at the links below:

    AOHNYC7.com
    AOH.com
    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
  • Transatlantic: An Irish American History Podcast

    37. American Emigrants in Irish Folklore

    02/02/2026 | 47 mins.
    Irish folklore often recalls an ancient past. However, in this episode Fin and Damian explore how America and the experiences of Irish emigrants had already become part of folklore by the early twentieth century. Set down almost 100 years ago, among the stories you will hear tales of ghosts that reflect a sense of loss and remembrance of emigrants, examples of how returned emigrants were sometimes seen as "other", and even find out about how Irish children had already become fascinated by the American West and Native Americans.

    Folklore Archive www.duchas.ie

    Seymour, S. True Irish ghost stories https://archive.org/details/trueirishghostst0000seym_s6t9

    Tait, C Spectres Across the Atlantic, c.1820-1940: Communicating with the Dead Over Space and Time https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14780038.2023.2258606

    Interview with Clodagh Tait acast.com/irishhistory/episodes/a-history-of-the-supernatural-in-ireland&ved=2ahUKEwjOxZbyoLCSAxWRW0EAHeZIC9sQFnoECDcQAQ&usg=AOvVaw3kmEFkBqKv1hnVAg6DtN7B
    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
  • Transatlantic: An Irish American History Podcast

    36. From Famine to the Frontline: The Irish in the US Civil War

    26/01/2026 | 55 mins.
    The American Civil War was a defining moment for Irish Americans in the 1860s. Over 250,000 Irish Americans many of them Famine emigrants served in the Union army. Over the course of the war they played a key role in the defeat of the Confederacy.

    However their service has been dogged by stereotypes and myth for more than 160 years.

    In this episode Damian discusses his latest research published in his 2025 book Green and Blue. Fin and Damian explore the book that brings new perspectives to our understanding of the war. They examine the immense Irish contribution to the Union cause and what their experiences of the conflict were really like. They also address the darker aspects of Irish involvement. Damian explains how and why Irish attitudes to emancipation and racism were not what we might expect from a community that served the Union in such overwhelming numbers.

    Damian’s book “Green and Blue Irish Americans in the Union Military, 1861–1865” is a must read for anyone interested in the civil war of Irish America more broadly

    Get your copy https://www.amazon.com/Green-Blue-Americans-Conflicting-Dimensions/dp/0807183709
    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
  • Transatlantic: An Irish American History Podcast

    35. Catholicism & the Irish in California: Indomitable Sacramento

    19/01/2026 | 1h 3 mins.
    How did Catholicism develop on America's West Coast during the 19th and 20th centuries, and how did it differ from the experience in the major Eastern cities? What role did Irish Americans Catholics, both women and men, play in the pioneering years of the Golden State's gold rush and the development of California's state capital over the century that followed? These are just some of the questions we explore in our latest episode of Transatlantic: An Irish American History Podcast, taking as our lens the Irish men and women who helped to build, develop and sustain the city of Sacramento.

    We are joined to discuss this by leading historian of Catholicism in America Father Steven Avella, formerly Professor of History at Marquette University in Wisconsin. Father Avella has written a number of volumes on the history of Sacramento and Catholicism in the city, including Sacramento: Indomitable City, Sacramento and the Catholic Church: Shaping a Catholic CIty and Indomitable Sacramentans: A Social History of Catholics in the State Capital.

    Father Steven M. Avella Books
    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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About Transatlantic: An Irish American History Podcast

3,000 miles of ocean separate Ireland from the USA, but both countries share a deep and intertwined history. Links between North America and Ireland predate Columbus, stretching back over 1,000 years. Since then, Irish people have shaped the history of the United States. From Ann 'Goody' Glover, who was hanged as a witch in Boston in the 17th century, to JFK, the story of the Irish in the US is fascinating. Join historians Damian Sheils and Fin Dwyer as they join forces to explore the good, the bad, and the ugly of Irish American history.In Season 1 Fin and Damian explore fascinating topics includingWho was the first Irish person to cross the Atlantic?The Story of Goody Glover who was hanged as a witch in Boston.What was it like to emigrate during the Great Famine of the 1840s?How Irish people shaped the US Civil War?And much more...Subscribe and join Fin and Damian on this fascinating journey through our history. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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