County Tyrone

An obvious starting point for Americans interested in the migrations from Ireland to America is the Ulster-American Folk Park. Several famous Americans are descended from Irish forebears: US President Woodrow Wilson’s grandfather emigrated in 1807; John Simpson, maternal great-grandfather of Ulysses Simpson Grant was born in Ballygawley in 1738; Cullybackey is the ancestral home of US President Chester Alan Arthur; Stonewall Jackson’s ancestors came from Armagh and US President Andrew Jackson’s parents left Carrickfergus in 1765.

Connections with other countries include: Ned Kelly’s mother who came from Portadown; Glenavy was the birthplace of ‘Rainmaker’ John Balance, Prime Minister of New Zealand; Ballyclare was the birthplace of Tasmanian premier Sir James Wilson Agnew in 1815; Banbridge was the birthplace in 1819 of the Rev. Joseph Scriven, who wrote the hymn ‘What a friend we have in Jesus’ in Port Hope, Ontario.

The Ulster History Park traces the human history of Ulster from the earliest settlement. The open-air park contains full-scale reconstructions of various types of habitat including Stone Age houses, monastic dwellings, a crannog and an Irish round tower.

To obtain a cost for this tour view our tours pricing guide .