The ScotlandShop American Dream: Part 1

When I set up in business in 2002, among the first batches of orders there were American ones. I am not sure why I was surprised given the 20-25 million people of Scots descent living in the USA, and the passion they have for their heritage, but it certainly added an element of excitement and exoticism to a fledgling business handling a couple of customers a day. My biggest thrill was definitely when a customer mentioned they had heard about us from a friend. When "word of mouth" starts working overseas it feels good! Over the years we have built up a customer base all around the world and the strongest region has always been America. We can of course service these customers from our base in sunny Duns in the south east of Scotland and once travel resumes and tourists return to Edinburgh you can visit us there, however I love an adventure, I have never been very risk averse, so when you have a good bank of customers looking for your product, why not move a little closer to them and offer an even more personal service?

In 2019 we had a fabulous time touring the States, taking part in New York Tartan Week, visiting Chicago, attending the Chicago Scots Highland Games, and driving round Ontario in our RV to take in Fergus, Glengarry and Montreal Highland Games. Our Marketing Manager, Emily, has family in Toronto and a strong love for the States so she has fuelled and encouraged any tentative thoughts we had for establishing a base overseas, immediately sticking her hand up and offering to run it. I wonder if she realised at the time that I would take that flippant conversation, as we negotiated the highway out of Toronto in an RV, and together we would make it real?

Following history

As is fairly standard in Scottish history it all began with a battle. Although Scots had first emigrated during the Colonial era of American history, it was the defeat of Bonnie Prince Charlie at the Battle of Culloden in 1746 which prompted large scale emigration from Scotland to America and the real beginning of our history of seeking better lives overseas. Scots settled in all of the 13 colonies (Virginia, Maryland, Connecticut, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia), but mainly in South Carolina and Virginia. The trade ships provided the mode of transport for many immigrants as they capitalised on the strong commerce in tobacco between the city of Glasgow in Scotland and Virginia.

Prior to Culloden, the 1717 Transportation Act passed by the British caused a somewhat less optional immigration to America. This law punished paupers, petty thieves and criminals sentencing them to a 7-year convict bond service in the British colonies in North America. Rebellion and other more serious crimes resulted in a 14 year service which may sound harsh however compared to the alternatives of imprisonment or execution this was considered the better option.

The transportation of Scots to America stopped when the American War of Independence (1775 - 1783) broke out and the Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4, 1776, and the British no longer had colonies in North America. The signers of the Declaration of Independence included a number of Scotsmen such as Aaron Burr, Alexander Hamilton, James Monroe, James Buchanan, John K. Polk and William Drummond. The US Declaration of Independence was even partly modelled on Scotland’s 1320 Declaration of Arbroath and you can read more on this in a previous blog written by Emily Yule. The Senate Resolution 155 recognises the influence that Scottish Americans played in the founding of America and this is why April 6th is designated and observed as Tartan Day, and we are of course proud to be supporters and participants in the annual parade in New York City, as well as other events around the world.

As part of this we must not forget the Scots-Irish or Ulster Scots. While one stream of Scottish Immigration to America came directly from Scotland, another came from the province of Ulster in Ireland. The people referred to as Scots-Irish trace their ancestry to Scotland and descend from the Protestant Presbyterians who originated in the lowlands of Scotland, but who emigrated to Ireland from 1609. While they lived in Ireland the Scots preserved their distinctive Scottish characteristics and did not intermarry with the native Irish, though they did intermarry to some extent with the English Puritans and with the French Huguenots.

Ellis Island and the 1800s

Scottish Immigration to America was unrestricted until the 1882 Immigration Act and many Scots fled their homeland to escape poverty and persecution. However huge increases in the numbers of unemployed forced the US government to bring in measures to control immigration, and the 1891 Immigration Act regulated the inspection and deportation of immigrants. On January 1, 1892 Ellis Island immigration centre was opened and Scottish immigrants had to pass inspection at Ellis Island (1892 - 1954) before being allowed entry to the United States. Immigration fell from this point on with various other new laws passed to control the numbers being granted entry to the United States.

Today

We are of course now negotiating our own way around visas and immigration, but hopefully, the success of Scottish leaders and entrepreneurs over the years will help our cause. Did you know, that of the 46 men who have served as US President, an incredible 35 have been of either Scottish or Ulster-Scots descent? George Washington, Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton have Scottish heritage through their grandparents or great-grandparents. According to genealogists, even Barack Obama's ancestry can be traced back to William the Lion who ruled Scotland from 1165 to 1214. Donald Trump's mother is a MacLeod and Biden has Irish connections.

Another random fact I have learnt on our voyage of discovery is that Jamestown, the first permanent European settlement in America was named after King James VI of Scotland. And less historical, but perhaps better known, the voiceover for Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse for nearly 40 years was Jimmy Macdonald, a Scotsman from Dundee. What better reason to cross the Atlantic, although I must point out that even despite our pop up shop tour of Florida in February 2020, I am still to visit Disney World! The people are really why we are coming to the US, the groups and individuals we have formed relationships with including the National Tartan Day New York Committee, and the American Scottish Foundation, the welcome we received from the St Andrews Society of Tallahassee (Dani, my son will never forget those donuts!), the team at Chicago Scots who helped us tie down the tent in the wild winds at the Games and so many customers with so much enthusiasm for celebrating their heritage. We can't wait to meet more of you and support the events you run.