Essay about From Ireland to America

In the early 1800s life in Ireland wasn’t easy, Irish citizens got by day to day by farming and relying on the potato. The potato was their main source of food and money. With out the potato the Irish would have nothing. No one was prepared for what was about to happen in 1845, the beginning of the Great Irish Potato Famine.

In the mid-late 1840's, The Irish Potato Famine caused people to immigrate to the United States.

     Nineteenth-century Ireland was the most densely populated country in Europe: in 1800, its population was 4.5 million, and by 1841, it had risen to eight million (Kinealy 15). Yet much of this population existed in condition of sorrow and misery lay in the dependence of the peasantry on just one staple crop, the potato; in western countries like Mayo and Galway, nine-tenths of the people ate nothing else (MacManus 602). Here was a disaster waiting to happen, made worst by the rapid rise in population in the first half of the century which forced the peasants to subsist on smaller plots of land (O Grada, The Great Irish Famine 63).

The book, “The Irish Way” by James R. Barrett is a masterpiece written to describe the life of Irish immigrants who went to start new lives in America after conditions at home became un-accommodative. Widespread insecurity, callous English colonizers and the ghost of great famine still lingering on and on in their lives, made this ethnic group be convinced that home was longer a home anymore. They descended in United States of America in large numbers. James R. Barrett in his book notes that these people were the first group of immigrants to settle in America. According to him, there were a number of several ethnic groups that have arrived in America. It was, however, the mass exodus of Irish people during and after the great

The Irish people would have freight, terror, death and eventually peace with these changes. The potato famine started with blight being discovered by European farmers. The Irish government started to export potatoes and grains to continental Europe to help the Europeans avoid a famine (Smith, 2011). By the end of August of 1845, Ireland was freighted to find out that blight had found its way to their produce (Smith, 2011). The blight in Ireland set off a chain of events that led to the Irish people dying in more ways to get out of Ireland. The government started trying to feed their people by importing corn and grains for food (Smith, 2011). This was not enough to help the young, old and sick. Many of theIrish people were led to complete financial ruin. By the end of 1851 more than a million Irish had died due to hunger and disease exacerbated by malnutrition(Smith, 2011).The only answer for many Irish families was to take a risk and get on a coffin boat and flee to another country. North America was a safe haven for many Irish people. They dreamed of the life they would live in the U.S.A. Nearly 1 million people arrived in many cities which include New York, and Boston (Smith, 2011). When the Irish people arrived, it was a sad reality they did not think they would face. The conditions were despicable. Many families were moved into small rooms with no sanitation, ventilation, day light or electricity (Smith, 2011). The families were charged about $1.50 per week to live in extreme poverty (Smith, 2011). This led to unsanitary conditions for the communities. Diseases were able to thrive in those conditions and one of the more common disease was cholera . The Irish people usually stayed in close proximity to each other and would make a small Irish community. The Irish community strived to make money. They were only hired for unskilled jobs

The United States saw an influx of Irish immigrants due to the Great Famine (potatoes) in Ireland.

During the 18th century the Irish slowly began their migration to America. Centuries of oppression from Protestant English rule had forced them to live very poor lives under strict rules, in some cases having to renounce their Catholic beliefs and having to abandon their Gaelic

When many think of the times of immigration, they tend to recall the Irish Immigration and with it comes the potato famine of the 1840s' however, they forget that immigrants from the Emerald Isle also poured into America during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The assimilation and immigration of the Irish has been difficult for each group that has passed through the gates of Ellis Island or South Boston. Like every group that came to America, the Irish were looked down upon; yet, in the face of discrimination,

The first sight of Chinese immigrants came in 1848 on the coast of California. These immigrants came left all they knew back in the Guandong Providence in search of a more prosperous American future. Overpopulation mixed with economic and political crisis were the defining factors for their departure. During 1815-1855 on the entire opposite side of America, Irish immigrants were landing in Boston and New York. Their appearance in America can be divided through the time period in which they came. 1815-1844 Irish immigrants left their native island due to British encroachment, cruel landlords, as well as a explosive population growth from around four million to nine million. Yet, from 1845-1855 a majority of Irish immigrants left due to a fungal infection that wiped out the primary crop in Ireland, the Potato. While the Irish and Chinese had their separate reasons for leaving their original domicile, they ended in the same country facing the same racial

National problems have led one to flee his country and take part in illicit businesses to obtain a life of higher quality. The Constitutional Rights Foundation observes that between 1845 and 1855 more than 1.5 million adults and children left Ireland to settle in America because of poverty, starvation, and disease. Disease had demolished Ireland’s potato crops and the Potato Famine killed more than one million people in five years. The immigrants who reached America settled in Boston, New York, and other cities where they lived in tough conditions (Constitutional Rights

Between 1820 and 1850 the United States seen a large wave of Irish immigrant groups enter the United States (Lyman, 2015). Most of these Irish immigrants were farmers and unskilled laborers who were in search of better economic opportunities. With the failed potato crop in Ireland, famine resided and the Irish people could no longer support their families and find employment. They also were leaving behind British colonial oppression of the Irish citizens (Lyman, 2015). They were in search of a better life and thought the United States was the answer, however when they arrived they were not greeted with open arms.

When many think of the times of immigration, they tend to recall the Irish Immigration and with it comes the potato famine of the 1840s' however, they forget that immigrants from the Emerald Isle also poured into America during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The assimilation and immigration of the Irish has been difficult for each group that has passed through the gates of Ellis Island or South Boston. Like every group that came to America, the Irish were looked down upon; yet, in the face of discrimination, political, social and economic oppression, the Irish have been a testament to the American Dream as their influence in

Immigrants from Ireland were driven to the United States due to the Great Famine of 1845-1850. Many people were almost completely dependent on potatoes, an easy-to-raise crop, due to Britain’s change of religion. These potatoes then fell victim to the unknown disease that left many families starving, and people dead. Families saved money for several winters to be able to send even one person to the United States, although they would only be able to arrive if they managed to survive the unsanitary and unsafe journey over. After arriving, many Irish immigrants began working in factories, or took jobs in the households of native-born families - then sent money back to Ireland to feed their suffering families, or to pay for another family member

People were left with nothing to eat and no way to make money to support themselves. Many wandered the countryside, begging for food or work. Others ate grass and weeds to survive. Those who could afford it or those peasants, whose landlords paid the way, left the country in search of a better life. Many Irish set sail to the United States. Boston, Massachusetts seemed to be the Irish port of choice. Although it seemed that life for the Irish could not get any worse, the journey to Boston was yet another horror the Irish had to endure. Ship owners often crowded hundreds of desperate Irish onto rickety vessels labeled "coffin ships." In many cases, these ships reached port only after losing a third of their passengers to disease, hunger, and other causes (Virginia 2003). Because so many hungry Irish died on their disgusting crossing to Boston, the Atlantic Ocean became known as the "Bowl of Tears."

The Irish Potato Famine was a period of starvation, disease and emigration, and was known as one of the biggest tragedies from 1845 to 1847. Many people depended on potato crops to survive; however [comma] the potato crops acquired blight, a disease that caused the potatoes to rot while still in the ground. No good crops could be grown for two years [comma] causing Irish tenant farmers unable to pay rent and was forced off their land causing over 21,000 people to die of starvation. The Irish Potato Famine caused many people to leave Ireland to seek work overseas in areas such as England and America. The Irish Potato Famine had a big impact on the history and the economy of Ireland.