Late nineteenth century and early twentieth century marks the time period for massive immigration from around the world to come to the United States. The United States was the land of opportunity and development for all the people. The industrial development after the Civil War increased due to expansion of railroads which, led to increase in demand for labor. Many immigrants came to the United States with the aim of working on American farms and railroads and in American factories. Many people moved to the United States from various countries to find better opportunities and develop their living standards. The majority of jobs were at the industries. The industrial labor composed of skilled laborers and unskilled laborers. Immigrants, due …show more content…
And with the massive immigration, the laborers who denied working for the employer under unsuitable conditions were replaced by the immigrant laborer who was willing to work under those conditions. The immigrants came to the United States with high expectations for better opportunities but, they faced many challenges which made their experience different from expectations. The immigrants from across the globe came to the United States with the purpose of finding better opportunities than their native land. The industrial development after Civil War increased significantly due to the railroad expansion which, not only made the transportation of goods to industries faster and easier but also, created the shortage of laborers. The immigration, that was low before the Civil War, increased to a significant amount …show more content…
The drastic increase in immigration was seen as a problem for the Americans because they thought that the immigrants are stealing their jobs. This resulted into racial discrimination ranging from work to the personal lives of the immigrants. The labor at the industries consisted of skilled and unskilled laborers. Immigrants took the jobs that required unskilled labor as they were in financial need and do not have any experience working in the industries. No regulations were placed by the government for the treatment of laborers by the employers. So, the immigrant laborers worked in bad working condition and for low wages. Due to the low wages, the entire family, including children, had to work so that the basic necessities are fulfilled. Some jobs actually required for the children to work as they could perform small labor. For example, when Chairman asks Thomas O’Donnell about the mandatory child labor for employment of parents, he states that “There are so men in the city to work, and whoever has a boy can have work, and whoever has no boy stands no chance.” (Chairman, p.69). This shows how it was challenging for the immigrant parents to work without making their children work. The bad working conditions for laborers were great problem as well. The safety of laborers was put in jeopardy due to bad working
Since many laborers were immigrants, they frequently spoke different languages and harbored racial and cultural biases. Many only planned to stay in America long enough to earn enough money to return to their homelands
The change in transportation led to social changes as well. Due to the construction of railroads in the urban areas there was more settlement in places where transportation was available such as New York. Due to the increase in transportation, white plantation owners increased their need for slave labor on the cotton farms as well as stricter slave code policies were increased in the South. Due to the advanced railroad system Americans are able to move westward very easily. All the migrants were in search for a new life and quick riches. In 1848-1855 Americans moved west because of the California Gold Rush. The gold rush attracted Chinese migrants to the western United States. Some migrants planned to take advantage of the public lands that the federal government was selling in order to
The immigrants were not the only ones undergoing difficulty, however. The United States also experienced difficulty taking in the immigrants. Since almost all immigrants were in dire need of jobs, they tended to settle in urban areas where jobs could be easily located. Often times, immigrants would settle in areas dominated by other immigrants who speak the same language or were from the same country. Consequently, the cities became more congested than ever, and city services were not always successful in keeping up with the surge of newcomers. Although most immigrants were able to find and pursue jobs, many of them were jobs that native-born Americans refused to practice. Regardless of their jobs, living conditions, and/or nationalities, immigrants grew to play a huge part in many areas of American society.
Until the late nineteenth century, the United States was still an agrarian community. As factories sprouted to process the products obtained from agriculture and to manufacture farm equipment, there rose
Many people from all over the world saw America as a place to create a better life for them and their family. America was a place full of many job opportunities, ones that were not available anywhere else in the world. It was in America that people from different nations saw the chance to escape the place they originally lived because of unfair government or as a chance to have money to send back to their family in their homeland. The period after the civil war was an era of tremendous migration from southern and eastern Europe as well as from China, because of all the opportunities that were available here that were not available anywhere else. Migration was also prominent within America when African Americans
During the late 1800s, inhabitants from all parts of the world made the decision to leave their jobs and homes to immigrate to the United States. They fled rising taxes, famine, crop failure, land and job shortages, to come to the United States. Perceived to be one of the greater countries for economic opportunity, many sought freedom from religious and political persecution. Around twelve million immigrants arrived in the United States between 1870 and 1900. Before the Civil War, the majority of immigrants were from Germany, Ireland, and England. There would be a drastic change in the next three decades. After the Civil War, immigrants
Before long, groups of men had come together to build the transcontinental railroad. A railroad company in the East worked from their side, and a company in the West laid tracks beginning in that territory. Each company raced to see who could lay the most tracks because the more tracks were placed, the more money the company would make (Hakim, p. 59). With the railroad being built, immigration begins to happen. Men, woman, and children emigrated from Ireland, China, Scandinavia, England, and Greece. With so people coming to the United States, there was not enough food, clothing, shelter, and many other things to go around. This situation created the need for more jobs and
In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s many immigrants came to the United States for a better way of life. I chose this particular question because I am first generation American.
By the time of the Civil War, the technologies upon which the First Industrial Revolution was based were established in the United States. In the years following the war, the nation's industrial energies were focused on completing the railroad and telegraph networks of the North, rebuilding those of the South, and expanding those of the West. Once the devastating depression of the 1870’s depleted, the stage was set for the Second Industrial Revolution.
The factory jobs were controlled by owners and bosses, who showed little regard for workers and their wellbeing. Workers forced themselves into work during even extreme illnesses; one absence or mistake and they might be replaced without question. These low wage jobs came with few benefits and no rights; there was nothing in place that protected the livelihood of the worker. Immigrant’s willingness to work all the time created these conditions.
After the Civil War, the United States went through a period of rapid industrialization which affected the nation dramatically. Industrial growth, the spread of railroads, the rise of big businesses, and the appearance of labor unions during these decades created a modern industrial economy, and American workers and farmers faced new challenges in adapting to these changes.
Another major hardship that was faced by most immigrants was the way that they were treated. Often times they were treated like second-class citizens and were thought to be inferior to the natural born citizens. They also seemed to only be able to hold jobs that no one else really wanted to do, for very low wages. Most of the time people would
Immigration was a huge part of the industrial revolution, some migrated legal, some illegal. Either way, many immigrants came to the United States searching for a dream, the American dream to be precise. This leads to the question; Why did people immigrate to America? There can be many answers to this question, but some of the most important answers are: political, others economic, while yet others religious, whatever the case was, the United States became a mix of different cultures. However, the main reason for immigration was because of the “Industrial Revolution” Industrial Revolution is basically the changes in industry from the 18th century to the 19th century that started in Britain
The process of manufacturing all the natural resources that were brought by the railroads from the west was to be done by immigrants that would accept cheap labor, this process was called industrialization. Companies arise to the world of society, many of those companies own factories that manufactured and made useful natural resources. Also technology starts to play an important role in American life and on the future meaning that technological companies surged. All this manufacturing made by the factories that were owned by the companies promoted a general advancement.
Many immigrants came to America seeking freedom, jobs, and land while others were running from famine and war. While immigrants ran from the problems of their native land, they were running into new problems in America. Americans feared the immigrants would take their jobs or have the right to vote. This fear caused discrimination against the immigrants due to their diverse backgrounds from Germany, Ireland, and China. Immigrants that came to America faced the hardship of discrimination because they did not only stand out with their culture but also because Americans didn’t necessarily want them in America.