1870-1920s Immigration To America Essay

In the eyes of the early American colonists and the founders of the Constitution, the United States was to represent the ideals of acceptance and tolerance to those of all walks of life. When the immigration rush began in the mid-1800's, America proved to be everything but that. The millions of immigrants would soon realize the meaning of hardship and rejection as newcomers, as they attempted to assimilate into American culture. For countless immigrants, the struggle to arrive in America was rivaled only by the struggle to gain acceptance among the existing American population.

Immigration has always been a major part of America. In fact, without immigration the creation of America would not have been possible. The majority of immigrants came to America for religious freedom and economic opportunities. However, for the most part before the 1870’s most immigrants were Protestants from northern and western Europe. These immigrants often migrated to the United States as families and usually lived on farms with family or friends who had already migrated beforehand. A lot of immigrants came to America with a plan or goal in mind. They often had saved up money for the long immigration overseas, were skilled in a certain trade, or had already been educated at a high level. Sadly, this would not last. Immigration

Initially, the United States received about sixty percent of the world 's immigrants from 1820 to 1930. Population expansion in developed areas of the world, improved methods of transportation, and America 's desire to populate available space were all factors for this occurrence. Through the nineteenth century, the United States was in the midst of agricultural, and industrial expansion. The aspiration for inexpensive, unskilled labor and the profits made from importing immigrants fueled the movement. Immigrants were largely responsible for the rapid development of the country and the economy, their high birth rates increased the U.S. population.

There were many reasons motivating the immigrants to come to America. A few of them were mainly being free, and having better jobs. So economic opportunity, and religious or political freedom. They wanted to be around a free atmosphere, where they didn't have to be controlled and follow rules. Another reason was because they wanted to be reunified with their family. Some of their family had already ventured out to America before them, and told them about America's benefits and they decided to follow along. America's land was cheap, and had an abundance of hiring jobs. Once immigrants heard about this they were ecstatic and immediately planned on coming to America. For the abundance of jobs America was hyped up in many countries as the 'land of opportunity'. Really the motivation for

Throughout the history of the United States immigration has become apart of our country’s fabric which, began centuries ago. Only to become a hot topic in the US in recent years with its primary focus being illegal immigrants. Illegal immigration is when people enter a country without government permission. As of 2008 the Center for Immigration Studies estimated that there are 11 million illegal immigrants in the US which is down from 2007‘s 12.5 million people. Although the Center for Immigration Studies estimates are very different from other estimates that range from 7 to 20 million. While the Pew Hispanic Center estimated in March of 2009 there are 11.1 million illegal immigrants and that number is from March 2007’s peak of 12

In the late 1800s , America became the land of new opportunities and new beginnings and New York City became the first landmark for immigrants. New York City was home to Ellis Island, the area in which migrants were to be handed for freedom to enter the nation. Living in New York City gave work and availability to ports. In time the city gave the chance to outsider's to construct groups with individuals from their nation , they were classified as new and old settlers. Old outsiders included Germans, Irish and, English. The new outsiders incorporated those from Italy, Russia, Poland and Austria-Hungary. In 1875, the New York City populace was a little 1 million individuals contrasted with the 3,5 million it held when the new century

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

The migration of foreigners to the United States has been one of the most powerful forces shaping American history this was especially true between 1860 and 1920. (American A Narrative History, Pg. 827). When immigrants traveled to the new land it was an arduous journey. Arriving in large cities often without their families or understanding the language was difficult.

Migration took on many forms in the US in the late 1800s. Not only did immigrants come from Europe and China, there was also migration within the US. Farmers had to migrate east because of their failing farms, and some blacks had to migrate within their own wards because parts of them had become such horrid slums. The cause of all this migration can be boiled down into one word. Industrialization caused the influx of immigrants because of the need for labor in America, this influx led to the formation of slums due to the high numbers of immigrants coming over.

Then in the second half of 1800s, precisely in 1850, the United States Census reviewed the "nativity" of citizens, both who were born in and outside the US, for the first time. During the next decade (1851–1860) another 2,598,214 immigrants arrived in the U.S. Still in that period in 1854, The Know-Nothings, a nativist political party that wanted to increase restrictions on immigration, especially the immigration from Catholic Ireland. The protestant Americans were afraid of growing Catholic immigration because they would be under control of the Pope. After in 1855, Castle Garden is inaugurated as New York's principal point of entry. In the next couple years, 1861 to 1870

When most people think about immigration to the United States, they think of the U.S. as being the “land of opportunity,” where they will be able to make all of their dreams come true. For some people, immigration made their lives richer and more fulfilled. This however, was not always the case. A place that is supposed to be a “Golden Land” (Marcus 116) did not always welcome people with open arms. Even after people became legal citizens of the United States, often times the natural born Americans did not treat the immigrants as equals but rather as outsiders who were beneath them in some way. In some situations, people’s lives were made worse by coming to the “land of opportunity.” Often times people were living no better than they

This graph shows the amount of immigrants from 1900 - today. I’ve noticed that from 1931 through 1940 the scale had gone down quite a bit, due to the great depression. As of 2001-today it looks like there has been the highest immigration population there has ever been.

I chose to right an immigration guide but before we start that I would like to give a little background.

The migrations in the 1918 to the United States is considered to be the largest migrations ever recorded in history. Most of these migrants came from Europe and they were looking for ways to improve their life after World War I. However, the Americans are anxious when it comes to entertaining the culture and ideologies of these immigrants. The war also took its toll on the labor pool of the American manufacturing industries men are drafted overseas to fight and that the working population would be decreased. The working population then created Unions which uphold the rights of the workers to have higher income and shorter work time periods. Majority of the members of the union are immigrants. However, after the war, there was a laborer surplus

Being brought into America as an immigrant in the late 1800s and early 1900s was certainly challenging. First, there were reasons why we wanted to leave our old country, which is called a push factor. Push factors included population growth, agricultural changes, crop failures, the Industrial Revolution, and religious and political turmoil (Source A). Then, there were reasons why America was the place to travel to, which is called a pull factor. Pull factors included freedom, economic opportunity, and abundant land. People came to America for many different reasons. They also came from many parts of the world. People that travelled to America before the year 1880 were referred to as “old” immigrants. They came from Northern and Western Europe, and were mainly protestant. They had cultures similar to those of the American settlers, spoke English, and were quick to assimilate to the American way of life. They were also literate and skilled. People that travelled after 1880 were called “new” immigrants. They came from Southern and Eastern Europe, along with other parts of the world. They were mainly Catholic and Jewish, and were culturally different than Americans. They were illiterate and unskilled, and objected to assimilate to American life (Source C). “Old” immigrants became nativists, and were favored by other nativists. Nativism is the favoring of native-born people of a country rather than the immigrants. Nativists formed anti-immigrant groups, such as the American