On this day in 1976, President and Mrs. Ford hosted the Prime Minister of Ireland, Liam Cosgrove, for a state dinner in the White House. 

Appropriately, green botanicals were a theme for the day. During the arrival ceremony, Prime Minister Cosgrave met President Ford on the South Driveway and pinned a sprig of Irish moss and shamrocks on the President’s lapel.

“In addition to the bonds of history and family,” President Ford said in his welcome speech for the Irish delegation, “our nations share a deep devotion to independence, democracy, religious liberty, and individual freedom.”

For the state dinner that evening, Mrs. Ford chose table centerpieces featuring statues of Kentucky Derby winners ringed by natural bark, moss, ferns, and, of course, shamrocks.

The dinner menu itself included Irish Mist liqueur and concluded with Irish coffee.

To commemorate the American Bicentennial and celebrate the Irish-American relationship, the Cosgraves presented the Fords with a crystal vase made by the Irish company Waterford Crystal. This custom vase features a profile of George Washington.

Author: Lauren White

1. https://ford.artifacts.archives.gov/objects/11514/bicentennial-crystal-vase?ctx=bba16fa2bc47ba9d1f400c0b0ba712e7c4464cf9&idx=15 ↩︎