Congressman Morgan Griffith
Soon it will be March and for many people, that means looking forward to celebrating St. Patrick’s Day on March 17th, the holiday honoring the patron saint of Ireland. However, a lesser-known holiday, St. David’s Day, celebrating the patron saint of Wales, is celebrated on March 1st.
St. David was born circa 500 AD in Ceredigion, Wales, into an aristocratic Welsh family. He became a well-known teacher and preacher, founding churches and monastic settlements across Wales and parts of modern-day England and France. He died on March 1st (the date for which the holiday is celebrated) in 589 AD and was canonized as a Saint in the 12th century by Pope Callixtus II.
Today, to symbolize the holiday, many people of Welsh descendent will wear one or both of the national symbols of Wales: the daffodil and the leek. The flag of St. David (a yellow cross on a black background) is also flown on the holiday.
As some may know, the Welsh have had a long and storied history in our country.
Since the early 1600s, Welsh people have emigrated to different parts of the United States searching for a new life. Amongst those were a large group of Welsh Quakers who emigrated to America with William Penn (namesake of the state of Pennsylvania) in the late 1600s. Other Welsh immigrants included the Morgans, whose descendant Daniel Morgan was the Revolutionary War hero who won the Battle of Cowpens.
Later, another large-scale Welsh immigration occurred in the mid- to late-1800s.
Since then, thousands of farmers, slate workers, iron workers, coal miners, lead miners, silver miners, gold miners, tinplate workers and steelworkers from Wales have settled all across the United States and made valuable contributions to American life.
In fact, eleven of our presidents have been of Welsh decent: John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, John Quincy Adams, William Harrison, Abraham Lincoln, James Garfield, Benjamin Harrison, Calvin Coolidge, and Richard Nixon.
States with mining heritage, such as Virginia, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Ohio, have a proud Welsh American tradition. States with a particularly high proportion of Welsh Americans today include Utah, Idaho, Vermont, Oregon, and Wyoming.
The 9th District is no exception; Welsh influence can be seen across Southwest Virginia.
Welsh settlers felt drawn to Southwest Virginia due to the similarity in landscape (Appalachian Mountains as compared to the Cambrian Mountains in Wales). Welsh settlers also had a long history of raising sheep and coal mining, two things that could be done in Southwest Virginia.
Perhaps the most visible sign of the Welsh’s imprint on Southwest Virginia are the communities with Welsh names, such as Jonesville in Lee County and Pembroke in Giles County.
If you know of others, feel free to inform us!
Also, common Welsh surnames include Davis, Evans, Griffin, Griffith, Jenkins, Jones, Lloyd, Morgan, Powell, Thomas, and Williams. According to the Welsh government, today more than 10 million people in the United States have a Welsh surname.
As you can probably tell, based on the common Welsh surnames, I am of Welsh heritage and am proud of my Celtic ancestry. I hope all of my fellow Americans take pride in their family linage, whatever that might be.
Since being elected to Congress, I started the Friends of Wales Caucus as a way for lawmakers of Welsh backgrounds to honor their heritage and for Members of Congress to build direct relations with government and business figures in Wales, especially in light of the hundreds of American-owned companies that are based in Wales.
Our two countries share a long history of strong economic links. The U.S. is Wales largest export destination, with nearly £3.4 billion in goods sent to the U.S. in 2022. Additionally, Welsh semiconductor fabricators have developed close ties to the U.S. tech industry.
I’ve had the privilege of meeting with members of the Welsh Parliament here in Washington and in Wales.
So, I hope this March 1st you all will join me in celebrating St. David’s Day and recognize the positive impact Wales as had on our country.
