Chinese Immigration Railroads

Others groups, on the other hand, such as Native Americans, Chinese immigrants, and railroad workers, had to face against discrimination and hardships. The railroad was a significant advancement, not just because it was the first railroad to connect both sides of the US, but also because it offered new opportunities to settlers. The railroad made it possible for settlers to travel quickly

In conclusion, Chinese immigrants came to America for gaining money and return to China. This is the main purpose for the most Chinese immigrants. Most of them worked at Railroad Company, so many laborers died after they began working. All

Since its founding, the United States has attracted immigrants from all over the world and consists of a variety of different cultures. Immigration has had an enormous impact on American society and economy and shaped the country remarkably.

The building of the First Transcontinental Railroad was a key symbol of the Industrial Revolution beginning in the United States. The railroad crossed the middle of the country and connected the eastern portion to the west. The building began in Sacramento, California and continued all the way to Council Bluffs, Iowa, resulting in 1,776 miles of new rails that were a staple for both the transportation of people and goods. Less lives were lost on the hazardous trails through the Rocky Mountains and thus the West Coast experienced an increase in population. The railroad greatly impacted the nation, as it united the people and also allowed for the improvement of the speed of shipment and price of goods throughout the nation. With the constant

Economically, they filled a significant need for cheap labor in booming American industries. The large numbers of immigrants helped keep labor cost down for Big Business and different groups were often put against each other in competition for the cheapest workers. Politically, different immigrant groups became active members of various labor organizations and unions, pushing to change pro-business laws and establish regulations governing working conditions and wages. And socially, American culture as it is known now was formed by this influx of immigrants. People from all over the planet brought with them not only their labor but also their cultures, helping to contribute to the mosaic that is the American way of life. These immigrants, as shown by the prejudice and discrimination directed towards them, were not always welcome. In economic hard times, immigrants were blamed for job shortages and family hardships, used as scapegoats for larger problems. Nativist movements were directed against the Chinese, Japanese, Italians, and others, especially during the 1880s and 90s. As evidenced by the Chinese Exclusion Act and later legislation that limited immigration from Japan and other regions, this anti-immigrant sentiment went as high up as the nation's capital. This history was simply a repeat of the nativism and hatred directed against the Irish and Germans of the 1840s and 1850s and is similar to that experienced in America today by immigrants from Mexico and Latin America. In the area of immigration, history repeats

During the time of construction, the First Transcontinental Railroad not only unified America, but unified the world through the lens of American Exceptionalism. Subsequently, American Exceptionalism is the idea that the United States is unique among all other nations of the world through the idea of democracy and liberty. The construction of the First Transcontinental Railroad brought workers from all over the globe, uniting them in order to achieve a common goal: transforming the world. Out of the 10,000 total workers constructing the First Transcontinental Railroad, nearly two-thirds of them were Chinese, and many more were Irish. This idea of American Exceptionalism and the idea of prosperity in the United States is one of the main reasons that the First Transcontinental Railroad brought many immigrants from around the world to the United States during the mid 1800s. Conclusively, the idea of being unique among other nations through freedom, liberty, and democracy is what drove immigrants to come to the United States in order to

When they arrived in America most of the Chinese immigrants moved west. Most of the Chinese immigrants moved west because they wanted to get jobs in rural areas and build homes for their families. A lot of Chinese immigrants got jobs working on building railroads. The Chinese immigrants were very good at this job, because they got paid very low wages, and that affected the pay rates of white Americans, European immigrants, and Russian immigrants. In the 1882 Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act. This act stated that Chinese laborers could not enter the country, because chinese immigrants accepted low wages, and also affected the pay rates of others. However Immigrants from Italy and Russia did not have to go through this. They also had an easier time getting jobs because of

“If any act symbolized the taming of the Northwest frontier, it was the driving of the final spike to complete the nation’s first transcontinental railroad.”1 The first railroad west of the Mississippi River was opened on December 23, 1852. Five miles long, the track ran from St. Louis to Cheltanham, Missouri. Twenty-five years prior, there were no railroads in the United States; twenty-five years later, railroads joined the east and west coasts from New York to San Francisco.2

During the years the tracks were being made, the first settlers began to move westward. Once gold was discovered in these areas, people started to travel across the nation to find gold in California. Chinese Immigrants soon began discovering the gold while mining. Traveling overland before the railroad was completed, took approximently five to six months. Travelers were through rugged mountains and arid desert. “The transcontinental railroad would make it possible to complete the trip in five days at a cost of $150 for a first-class sleeper.” (Digital History). This was an ever lasting change in America. Going from $1,000 and a five to six month trip, to an $150 and five day trip was drastic. Even though, the railroad took many years to connect, it has still been used in todays society.

In 1860, the United States had more railroad track than the rest of the world combined. Shipping freight by rail became much more practical and affordable, easily beating out the use of steamboats. The railroad directly led to the increase of urban centers. Chicago, for example, virtually quadrupled its population during the 1850’s. By the 1880’s, there were at least 93, 267 miles of rail that stretched across the plains and just ten years later, there were 163,597 miles of rail. By 1862, Congress passed the Pacific Railroad Act, which gave the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific Railroads responsibility for building the transcontinental railroad. Congress also granted both railroads lands and millions of dollars of government loans. May 10, 1869, after six long years of hard intensive labor, the tracks of the two railroads finally met at

To begin, Chinese laborers faced the most trouble during the westward expansion as result of dangers in the work environment. For instance, the Chinese were hired because the Central Pacific Railroad company knew they had previous experience with this type and thought they would be perfect the most laborious work. As explained by John Doolittle “The first Chinese

My topic is about the railroad Chinese workers that worked on the central pacific railroad. The Pacific Railroad Act was passed in 1866. This act created the Union Pacific that started in Omaha, Nebraska heading west and the Central Pacific starting in Sacramento, California heading east. The railroad was built to connect California to the Union. But to make the railroad you need workers. The Union had set flayers needing 5,000 workers but only about 600 showed up for the job. The Chinese were hired to work on the railroad after the Union saw that they needed more workers. The Chinese workers did the most dangerous jobs working with explosives and working under harsh weather. Despite this they were paid the least compared to the other workers.

There was also hostile reaction of the Native Americans towards the immigrants. The Native Americans believed the railroad posed threat to their existence, since it would displace them from their lands against the treaties they sighed with the government. They constantly attacked the laborers who were constructing the railroad. For example, The Chinese immigrants experienced worse racial discrimination during the work. For instance, the California law from getting full citizenship prohibited them, yet they were forced to pay tax. The Irish immigrants also faced hostile reception by the native race.

The transcontinental railroad was built by two major companies, the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific. The Central Pacific company worked eastbound. They faced the treacherous terrain of the Rocky Mountains, landslides, and winter snowdrifts. Central Pacific would hire Chinese immigrants. These Chinese immigrants, “... made up 85 percent of the Central Pacific workforce.” (Holt McDougal,

By 1870 the Chinese population made up 8.6% of California and constituted 25% of the labor force. Chinese immigrants came to U.S. between 1849 and 1882 until the law was placed in 1882 to prevent Chinese immigrants from entering or remaining in the United States. Under the Chinese Exclusion Act Chinese laborers that already reside in the U.S. were allowed to leave and return with a reentry certificate from customs. This was then challenged by Chew Heong vs. United States in 1884. Immigration officials denied former residents who couldn’t obtain the certificates because of being out of the country when the act was passed. The court then decided to rule that Chinese people could reenter without a certificate if he/she was a resident at the time