Columbia Red Branch
Columbia Red Branch started with a history thesis, a medieval re-enactment and a set of homemade hurleys. Twenty-five years on, the club from the Portland and Vancouver area fields hurling, Gaelic football and camogie, and it has a national hurling title to show for it.
From Homemade Hurleys to Nationals
In 1990 Todd Brothers was writing a master’s thesis on medieval Irish history when he found references to hurling in ancient Irish law. About eleven years later he took a class in the game at the Pennsic War, a medieval re-enactment in Pennsylvania. Back home in Vancouver, Washington, he and his friends made their own equipment and taught themselves to play. The club dates its founding to 2001.
The team registered with the GAA in 2005 and first went to the national championships in 2011. At the 2014 USGAA Finals in Boston they won their first game at that level, beating Indianapolis 3-12 to 4-7 after extra time. The club is now based in Portland, runs as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and hosts the annual Gorge Cup tournament.
Junior C Champions in San Francisco
The big day came in 2017, when the Red Branch hurlers won the USGAA Junior C national championship in San Francisco. It is recorded on the national roll as Columbia Red Branch, NW, and it took the club up to Junior B.
Its regular opposition comes from the Northwest Division, a spread-out region that includes the Seattle Gaels, Tacoma Rangers and hurling clubs in Montana, with the Seattle Gaels as the main rivals. In 2026 Red Branch travelled across the country to the USGAA Finals in Canton, Massachusetts, entering both Junior D football and Junior D hurling.
Todd Brothers
Red and Black
The name comes from Irish mythology. The Red Branch were the elite warriors of Conchobar mac Nessa, King of Ulster, and the club’s own history page singles out Cú Chulainn as their most famous member. The team plays in red and black.
This FanFile covers Columbia Red Branch as a club rather than one particular jersey. Check the crest, sponsor, manufacturer label and product code on your own shirt to identify its specific season and edition.
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Club Links
Sources & Further Reading
- Columbia Red Branch: About the club
- OPB: The national champions you never knew Portland had
- JOE: Around the World in 80 Clubs, Columbia Red Branch
- USGAA: Northwest Division club directory
- Play Hurling: USGAA hurling roll of honour
- KPTV: Keeping Irish sports alive in Portland (March 2026)
Facts checked: 11 November 2026.