The Irish immigrants came at a time of economic and social change in the United States.
Competition for jobs between native-born Americans and immigrants, along with a rise in anti-Catholic sentiment, led to much ill will toward the Irish.
The political manifestation of this movement, called the American Party or "Nativists," used the Irish as scapegoats for society's problems and party activists created a volatile atmosphere in Maine.
In 1854, a Bath mob burned the building being used as the Catholic Church and ravaged the homes of Irish Catholics.
