Burns and the St Andrew’s Societies of North America

This article explores the extent to which the commemoration of Burns amplified the philanthropic principles underpinning St Andrew’s and other societies committed to relieving distress amongst Scottish immigrants. With examples taken from across North America, analysis falls on how these societies remained true to their constituted aims before and after the literary and cultural projection of Scotland’s ethnic symbolism was enhanced by the commemoration of Burns from 1820. How was Burns’s legacy absorbed into the instrumental aims of the St Andrew’s society? And what do we learn of diasporic national identity from this process?