In the early years of colonisation and independence on the North American continent, the boundaries between the interests and work of discoverers, surveyors, scientists and engineers were not always obvious. Territorial expansion and land speculation required a commercial instinct, a taste for adventure and good surveying skills (George Washington had all three)
CRAFTSMEN AND MASTER BUILDERS
Irish craftsmen were widely respected and sought for their skills in America from colonial times onwards. Almost from the beginning, their ability to move beyond the individual skill to plan, supervise and assume responsibility for all site operations was evident. The seeds of the Irish achievement in project management and master-building were sown in these early years, and the exponents mentioned below are only a minute percentage of the numbers who made an impact in the cities and the regions of their adoption, culminating in the national profiles of those who have graced the modern era.
Irish craftsmen were widely respected and sought for their skills in America from colonial times onwards. Almost from the beginning, their ability to move beyond the individual skill to plan, supervise and assume responsibility for all site operations was evident. The seeds of the Irish achievement in project management and master-building were sown in these early years, and the exponents mentioned below are only a minute percentage of the numbers who made an impact in the cities and the regions of their adoption, culminating in the national profiles of those who have graced the modern era.
Of the many Irish-born artists and artisans in colonial America and the early Federal United States, only relatively few achieved any kind of notice or fame. Their accumulated legacy, whether they were celebrated or not, must amount to the most impressive immigrant contribution to the arts and the environment in America during the first three hundred years of its colonisation. Many combined artistic and architectural abilities, and some added to this a mathematical or engineering interest. This short selection is meant only as an indicator of distinction and diversity in origin, background and achievement.
As the dawn of a professional age spread to the pursuit of building design in the British colonies of North America, Irish-born architects schooled in the traditions of their native island grouping made their presence known in the counsels of those who were prominent in the revolutionary movement. Beginning with the Executive Mansion, their achievements down to the present day continue to impress out of all proportion to their numbers.
The close connection of the developing Irish communities to the Catholic church meant that several Irish architects found a ready market for their skills when they arrived in America; even William Tinsley, who left Ireland following the oppressive manifestations of anti-Protestantism in the late 1840s, made a career in church and institutional circles. The following list is a tentative one, and part of preparatory research for a proposed exhibit relating to Irish achievement in this field of professional endeavour.
THE GODS - AND WOMEN
Two architects are deemed worthy of special mention: Louis H. Sullivan, son of a Cork-born child entertainer and dancing master, and Kevin Roche – still practising his sublime art in Connecticut and wherever his assignments take him. An intriguing collection of talented women artists, designers and architects are gathered under the heading Designing Women
The White House, designed, built and rebuilt by Kilkenny-born James Hoban, is the enduring monument to the achievement and contribution of the Irish in the building of America. In this site we document the pioneering and prominent Irish-born and Irish-descended exponents of measuring, design and the building arts including notable architects, surveyors, craftsmen, master-builders, artisans and artists.
Who they were
