Real Lace America's Irish Rich

Real Lace America's Irish Rich

Americaâ€™s Irish Catholic rich have long enjoyed the designation of F.I.F., or First Irish Family or â€œReal Laceâ€, as it delineates their place in the â€œIrishtocracyâ€, where names such as Cuddihy, Murray, Doheny, and McDonnell inspire respect and awe. Yet, in almost every case, their origins in this country were humble. Fleeing the Irish potato famine in the 1840s, they found themselves penniless in the slums of New York and Boston where they were regarded as â€œinvadersâ€ and a curse, humiliated by signs that said â€˜No Irish Need Applyâ€™ and forced to accept jobs too degrading to be accepted by native and other immigrant populations. Nonetheless, they possessed one important advantage over other immigrants: they spoke the language. They were also, by nature and tradition, political. And they had ambition, courage, a fighting spirit, andâ€”perhaps most importantâ€”Irish charm.

Here, in this engrossing and often hilarious book, we read of how the Irish elite emergedâ€”frequently in less than a generationâ€™s timeâ€”out of poverty into positions of both social and business prominence. One of the F.I.F., Robert J. Cuddihy, was behind one of the great publishing stories of the twentieth century, the rise and fall of the Literary Digest. Another, Thomas E. Murray, though little schooled, possessed an engineering genius that led to his control of a number of electrical and other patents, second only to Thomas Edison. Still another, Edward Doheny, was a key figure in the great Teapot Dome scandal of the Harding years. We read of the F.I.F.â€™s struggles to cling to their faith, and their determination to cope with the â€œIrish curseâ€: alcohol. In Real Lace Stephen Birmingham recounts the ultimate rags-to-riches story of the American Irish in a social history as entertaining as it is important.
Country USA
Brand Harper & Row
Manufacturer Harper
Binding Hardcover
UnitCount 1
EANs 9780060103361
ReleaseDate 0000-00-00

Country	USA
Brand	Harper & Row
Manufacturer	Harper
Binding	Hardcover
UnitCount	1
EANs	9780060103361
ReleaseDate	0000-00-00

Real Lace America's Irish Rich

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