From the early eighteenth century, English immigrants in North America had begun to develop a vibrant English culture that was shaped by contemporary ideas of sociability and charity, but which soon took on a more expansive character. As immigrant numbers grew and the United States and Canada evolved, English associations spread from east to west and north to south. By the late nineteenth century the same cultural forces had also reached the Australasian colonies.

This book is the story of how these associations flowered, detailing what they did and why. It explores charity, mutual aid, national celebration, remembrance of homeland, imperial and monarchical devotion, and all the other impetuses that caused the English abroad to maintain links with home and across the diaspora. As well as positive aspects of immigrant ethnic culture, the book also interrogates the darker side of expatriate culture as Old World conflicts with the Irish reappeared within immigrant communities. A comparative and transnational approach is used to assess English associational culture alongside Scottish and German examples, and goes on to chart how this culture was developed from American roots into colonial branches and became a truly global phenomenon.

The English diaspora in North America draws upon incredibly rich and mostly untapped array of primary sources from New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Toronto, Ottawa, Kingston, and London. These materials include association archives and journals, newspapers and numerous contemporary accounts that the study weaves into a story that has remained untold until now.