Anne Anderson Becomes First Female Member of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick
Ambassador Anne Anderson in the green jacket of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick after she became the first woman admitted to the organization in its history.
By R. Bryan Willits, Editorial Assistant
Irish Ambassador Anne Anderson became the first women to be inducted into the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick, an organization that has had an exclusively male membership since it was founded in Philadelphia in 1771.
Twenty other women were also admitted as members at the Friendly Son’s 245th Annual St. Patrick’s Day Gala on Saturday, March 12. Anderson’s inclusion is also special since the only other individual to be an “adopted” member of the society in its 245-year existence was George Washington.