The Irish were undoubtedly the most significant group of settlers in the Ottawa Valley in terms of numbers, as such they had the largest influence on the accents spoken there. In some townships, as many as 95% of the population claimed to be of Irish ethnicity in 1941. While much of Irish immigration can be attributed to the 19th-century famines, the Irish were also drawn to the Ottawa Valley for work opportunities, examples being in the thriving timber industry at the time as well as infrastructure projects.
