Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
I'm up on the Belfast Shankill Road at the busy junction of Tennent Street, Lawnbrook Avenue and the Shankill road opposite the road's Spectrum Centre. I'm here to video the recently opened, new educational mural, that spotlights the multi-stranded links between Ulster and the foundation of America in the 1775 Decaration of Independence.
Starting as far back as the mid 1600s people from Ulster were emigrating to the new world from our shores, sailing from ports like Donaghadee and Groomsport. This emigration only increased as the decades rolled by.
( 'As early as 9 September 1636, 140 Presbyterians attempted - unsuccessfully - to emigrate to America on board the 'Eagle Wing', which sailed from Groomsport. The lure of a life across the Atlantic remained compelling. Although early migrations from the nine counties of Ulster to the Americas are traditionally associated with members of the Presbyterian community, some of the earliest successful transatlantic crossings were made by Quakers. The earliest surviving recorded instance being the “Antelope”, which sailed from Belfast to Pennsylvania, arriving in December 1682.' )
By the 17 and 18 hundreds whole Ulster villages and entire Presbyterian congregations made the long and perilous journey in small sailing ships. They were spurred on by the hope of enjoying religious freedom and the ability to own their own homes and farm their own land. This was the 'American Dream'. America was the land of opportunity.
' “There is no place in the world where a man meets so rich a reward for good conduct and industry as in America.”
John Dunlap, 1785
Many travellers did not stop when they reached the other side. Cities like like Boston were just stepping stones along the way, for these remarkable adventurers. Many fearless hearts, battled fierce cold, hunger, uncharted territories, unforgiving hostile terrain, indigenous peoples, bears and wild cats and more, to carve trails west by wagon trains, across the high Rockies and on to California. Over two million people made the transatlantic journey between the 1700s and 1800s.
Ulster-Scots settlers played a pivotal role in early colonial life and the Revolutionary War, particularly in regions like Appalachia where their customs, music, and storytelling traditions continue to flourish. 5 signatories of the Declaration of Independence had family roots in Ulster.
In WW2 300,000 American servicemen were stationed in Northern Ireland.
20 Presidents of the United States — from the seventh to the forty-third — whose ancestral roots reach back to the hills, ports and parishes of Ulster.
7th President
Andrew Jackson
Boneybefore, Carrickfergus, Co. Antrim
Both of Jackson's parents were born in Ulster and emigrated from the Carrickfergus area to the American colonies in 1765.
11th President
James Knox Polk
Lifford, Co. Donegal
Great-great grandfather from Donegal and Londonderry
15th President
James Buchanan
Omagh, Co. Tyrone
Parents from Donegal and Tyrone
Buchanan's father emigrated from Ramelton, County Donegal, while his mother traced her roots to County Tyrone.
17th President
Andrew Johnson
Mounthill, Larne, Co. Antrim
Grandfather emigrated c. 1760
18th President
Ulysses S. Grant
Ballygawley, Co. Tyrone
Grant's great-grandfather, John Simpson, left Ballygawley for America in 1760.
The Grant ancestral homestead outside Ballygawley still stands today and is open to visitors throughout the year.
21st President
Chester Alan Arthur
Cullybackey, Co. Antrim
Father emigrated from Antrim in 1815
22nd President
Grover Cleveland
Co. Antrim
Grandfather from Antrim
23rd President
Benjamin Harrison
Co. Antrim
Great-grandfather from Antrim
25th President
William McKinley
Ballymoney, Co. Antrim
Grandfather from Ballymoney
26th President
Theodore Roosevelt
Larne, Co. Antrim
Maternal ancestors believed to hail from Larne
28th President
Woodrow Wilson
Strabane, Co. Tyrone
Paternal grandfather from Strabane
33rd President
Harry S. Truman
Co. Donegal & Co. Tyrone
Ancestors from Donegal and Tyrone
35th President
John F. Kennedy
Co. Fermanagh (among others)
Great-grandparents from Limerick, Wexford, Cork, Clare and Fermanagh
37th President
Richard Nixon
Co. Kildare & Co. Antrim
Milhous family from Kildare; Presbyterian ancestors from Carrickfergus and Ballymoney
38th President
Gerald Ford
Co. Armagh & Co. Down
Great (×4) grandparents from Armagh and Down
39th President
Jimmy Carter
Co. Antrim
Great (×4) grandparents from Antrim
40th President
Ronald Reagan
Co. Antrim & Co. Tipperary
Great-grandparents from Antrim and Tipperary
41st President
George H. W. Bush
Co. Down
Great (×4) grandparents from Down
42nd President
William J. Clinton
Co. Fermanagh
Paternal line from Fermanagh
43rd President
George W. Bush
Co. Down
Great (×5) grandparents from Down
More than two out of every five Presidents of the United States trace family roots to Ulster.
I'm up on the Belfast Shankill Road at the busy junction of Tennent Street, Lawnbrook Avenue and the Shankill road opposite the road's Spectrum Centre. I'm here to video the recently opened, new educational mural, that spotlights the multi-stranded links between Ulster and the foundation of America in the 1775 Decaration of Independence.
Starting as far back as the mid 1600s people from Ulster were emigrating to the new world from our shores, sailing from ports like Donaghadee and Groomsport. This emigration only increased as the decades rolled by.
( 'As early as 9 September 1636, 140 Presbyterians attempted - unsuccessfully - to emigrate to America on board the 'Eagle Wing', which sailed from Groomsport. The lure of a life across the Atlantic remained compelling. Although early migrations from the nine counties of Ulster to the Americas are traditionally associated with members of the Presbyterian community, some of the earliest successful transatlantic crossings were made by Quakers. The earliest surviving recorded instance being the “Antelope”, which sailed from Belfast to Pennsylvania, arriving in December 1682.' )
By the 17 and 18 hundreds whole Ulster villages and entire Presbyterian congregations made the long and perilous journey in small sailing ships. They were spurred on by the hope of enjoying religious freedom and the ability to own their own homes and farm their own land. This was the 'American Dream'. America was the land of opportunity.
' “There is no place in the world where a man meets so rich a reward for good conduct and industry as in America.”
John Dunlap, 1785
Many travellers did not stop when they reached the other side. Cities like like Boston were just stepping stones along the way, for these remarkable adventurers. Many fearless hearts, battled fierce cold, hunger, uncharted territories, unforgiving hostile terrain, indigenous peoples, bears and wild cats and more, to carve trails west by wagon trains, across the high Rockies and on to California. Over two million people made the transatlantic journey between the 1700s and 1800s.
Ulster-Scots settlers played a pivotal role in early colonial life and the Revolutionary War, particularly in regions like Appalachia where their customs, music, and storytelling traditions continue to flourish. 5 signatories of the Declaration of Independence had family roots in Ulster.
In WW2 300,000 American servicemen were stationed in Northern Ireland.
20 Presidents of the United States — from the seventh to the forty-third — whose ancestral roots reach back to the hills, ports and parishes of Ulster.
7th President
Andrew Jackson
Boneybefore, Carrickfergus, Co. Antrim
Both of Jackson's parents were born in Ulster and emigrated from the Carrickfergus area to the American colonies in 1765.
11th President
James Knox Polk
Lifford, Co. Donegal
Great-great grandfather from Donegal and Londonderry
15th President
James Buchanan
Omagh, Co. Tyrone
Parents from Donegal and Tyrone
Buchanan's father emigrated from Ramelton, County Donegal, while his mother traced her roots to County Tyrone.
17th President
Andrew Johnson
Mounthill, Larne, Co. Antrim
Grandfather emigrated c. 1760
18th President
Ulysses S. Grant
Ballygawley, Co. Tyrone
Grant's great-grandfather, John Simpson, left Ballygawley for America in 1760.
The Grant ancestral homestead outside Ballygawley still stands today and is open to visitors throughout the year.
21st President
Chester Alan Arthur
Cullybackey, Co. Antrim
Father emigrated from Antrim in 1815
22nd President
Grover Cleveland
Co. Antrim
Grandfather from Antrim
23rd President
Benjamin Harrison
Co. Antrim
Great-grandfather from Antrim
25th President
William McKinley
Ballymoney, Co. Antrim
Grandfather from Ballymoney
26th President
Theodore Roosevelt
Larne, Co. Antrim
Maternal ancestors believed to hail from Larne
28th President
Woodrow Wilson
Strabane, Co. Tyrone
Paternal grandfather from Strabane
33rd President
Harry S. Truman
Co. Donegal & Co. Tyrone
Ancestors from Donegal and Tyrone
35th President
John F. Kennedy
Co. Fermanagh (among others)
Great-grandparents from Limerick, Wexford, Cork, Clare and Fermanagh
37th President
Richard Nixon
Co. Kildare & Co. Antrim
Milhous family from Kildare; Presbyterian ancestors from Carrickfergus and Ballymoney
38th President
Gerald Ford
Co. Armagh & Co. Down
Great (×4) grandparents from Armagh and Down
39th President
Jimmy Carter
Co. Antrim
Great (×4) grandparents from Antrim
40th President
Ronald Reagan
Co. Antrim & Co. Tipperary
Great-grandparents from Antrim and Tipperary
41st President
George H. W. Bush
Co. Down
Great (×4) grandparents from Down
42nd President
William J. Clinton
Co. Fermanagh
Paternal line from Fermanagh
43rd President
George W. Bush
Co. Down
Great (×5) grandparents from Down
More than two out of every five Presidents of the United States trace family roots to Ulster.
