USGAA History.
Hurling and Gaelic football have been played in North America ever since Irish immigrants began landing on North American shores. The earliest games of hurling in North America were played in St. John’s, Newfoundland in 1788, and there are records of football being played in Hyde Park (now the site of the Civic Center) in San Francisco as early as the 1850s. There are established clubs in the cities that traditionally have a large Irish population, such as New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Boston.
When the North American County Board was initially formed in 1958, it included Canadian clubs in its area of control. However these clubs are now under the control of the Canadian County Board.
In recent years, hurling has started to enjoy support in several other U.S. cities, as evidenced by the establishment of the Milwaukee Hurling Club in 1995 and later the Twin Cities Hurling Club (MN). Other clubs include the Indianapolis Hurling Club, the St. Louis Gaelic Athletic Club, the Denver Gaels, the Greenville Gaels, the Orlando Hurling Club and the Seattle Gaels.
Hurling and Football have also grown in throughout universities, with Hurling clubs in colleges such as Purdue University and Stanford University since 2005, California State University, Monterey Bay since 2006, and UC Berkeley since 2008. Interest in Gaelic Football has also developed amongst universities in America. Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia is the first school to have an officially recognized program after running independently since 2011.
This growth has led to the formation of a National Collegiate body (NCGAA) which hosts their annual National Championships.
In parallel, the explosion of Youth Gaelic Games has led to the phenomenal success of the Continental Youth Championships (CYC), an annual event for all ages below U-18, which includes teams from USGAA, New York GAA, Canada GAA and invitational teams from Ireland and the UK.
This exponential growth since the turn of the century has seen a major demographical change in members. As of 2018 more than 51% of registered adult USGAA players were born in the United States, and with the continued growth of new clubs in “green field” areas, this number is set to increase significantly over the next 5 years.
To learn more about the history of Gaelic Games in the US, predating the formation of a structured National organization, we highly recommend the excellent 4-part TG4 Documentary: GAA USA
Credit: TG4 (www.tg4.ie)
For more Historical information:
Annual Events
List of Officers
Honorary Presidents
Secretaries
Public Relations Officers
Coordinator
Roll of Honor
Senior Football
Mens Intermediate Football
Mens Junior A Football
Mens Junior B Football
Mens Junior C Football
Mens Junior D Football
Senior Hurling
Intermediate Hurling
Junior A Hurling
Junior B Hurling
Junior C Hurling
Mens Junior D Hurling
Ladies Senior Football
Ladies Intermediate Football
Ladies Junior A Football
Ladies Junior B Football
Ladies Junior C Football
Special Merit Award
Special Merit Awards were presented by an NACB Committee to recognize the contribution of people to GAA in North America. Initially, they were presented at the NACB Convention, however in later years they were presented at the Playoff Banquet.