The Irish in San Francisco by Mary McCloy I am the granddaughter
of four Irish immigrants. They all came to the United States in
the early 1900s, part of the wave of Irish immigrants who came
to the United States because of the political unrest in Ireland
during her struggle for independence from England. My mother’s
parents first settled in Oakland and later in San Francisco, and
my father’s parents lived in Los Angeles. They all came to
California by way of the transcontinental railroad. They were
sponsored by relatives who were already living here, and when
they were able, they themselves sponsored other relatives from
Ireland. I grew up in San Francisco very conscious of my Irish
roots. We would celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and attend the
parade down Market Street. The Archdiocese of San Francisco
would suspend Lent restrictions on March 17th each year. I
attended St. Rose Academy, and we actually had annual
Irish/Italian Games in which the Red and the Green would compete
in volleyball and basketball. At t