1. IMMIGRATION Coming to America

2. Where did they come from?
MOSTLY FROM:
Northern/Western Europe (Before Civil War) English, Scots, Irish, Germans, Scandinavians
Southern /Eastern Europe (After Civil War) Italians, Greeks, Slavic peoples (Poles, Slovaks, Czechs, Croats, Serbs, Ukrainians, Russians, Armenians)

3. To clarify…
Before 1880, most European immigrants came from northwest Europe
After 1880, most European immigrants came from southwest Europe

5. Push and Pull Reasons of Course!
Why did they leave?
Push and Pull Reasons of Course!

6. Over-Population

7. How much did the US Population change over time?
US population 1860: million
US population 1920: million
What a HUGE addition - 30 million more people!

8. How many Immigrants came to the United States?

9. Lack of Jobs

10. Government Tyranny

11. Crop Failures!
Land Shortages!

12. Famine

13. High Taxes/ Cost of Living

14. Political or Religious Persecution

15. How did immigrants get here?
Steamships made of iron and steel
2-3 weeks to 1 week by 1900
Created “birds of passage”-single male worker who came for a short time, earn money, and return home

16. Steerage – for the “Economically Disadvantaged”
Most immigrants traveled in Steerage (large open area under the ship’s deck)
Cheap fares
Limited toilet facilities with no privacy

17. Steerage postcard

20. Ports of Entry Boston Philadelphia Baltimore Seattle San Francisco
But New York was most popular!

21. Entrance to USA
In 1886 greeted by Statue of Liberty in NY harbor

22. What do you think she represented to immigrants?

23. 70% of all European immigrants arrived in NYC
Castle Garden
70% of all European immigrants arrived in NYC
Overwhelmed by 1890!

24. ELLIS ISLAND
In 1892 an immigration center opened at Ellis Island in NY harbor to “process” those in lower-class/”steerage”
Immigrants were given a medical check-up and asked a series of questions

25. ELLIS ISLAND “Gateway to America” or “Golden Door”
70% of European immigrants arrived in NYC
Processed through within hours or days

35. The caption reads . . .
Held at Ellis Island – Undesirable emigrants to be taken back by steamship company that brought them
Sometimes immigrants were “quarantined” (isolated to prevent the spread of disease): tuberculosis, small pox, measles
Some were even deported due to serious diseases: trachoma or other reasons

36. Deportation of “idiots, imbeciles, feeble-minded persons, epileptics, insane persons; …persons with chronic alcoholism
The Ellis Island record of an immigrant who deemed "feebledminded" by US officials, then summarily deported. (source: ForgottenEllisIsland.com)

37. After the Medical Exam, an interview…
Name?
Occupation?
Who paid your fare?
Can you read or write?
How much money do you have?
Have you been to prison or in a poorhouse?
Where are you going?
Do you have a job already?

38. Angel Island - California
The Ellis Island of the West Coast

39. Angel Island Located in San Francisco Bay Poor conditions:
Overcrowded
Poorly ventilated
Filthy conditions
Men and women, including husbands and wives, were separated and not allowed to see or communicate with each other again until they were admitted to the country.

40. Immigrants were processed over a longer period of time: weeks or months vs. days on Ellis Island

41. Urbanization – Growth of the Cities!
Most immigrants tended to settle in the city of their arrival (i.e. - land in Ellis Island, stay in New York…)
Ethnic neighborhoods develop – people in the neighborhood share a common language, food, history, etc…(i.e. – Little Italy, Little Greece, Chinatown, etc

42. Where Did Immigrants Settle?
Only 2% of Immigrants went to the south –why?

43. Immigrant Work Unskilled jobs Low paying – even children had to work
Long hours
Factory work – tedious, tiring, dangerous
So many people needed jobs – you could be replaced very easily – don’t even think about calling in sick!

44. Jobs for European Immigrants
Limited opportunities
Mines, mills, and factories
Friends and relatives helped each other

45. Asian (Chinese) Immigrants
Viewed with suspicion and subject to hostility because the culture was so different!
Kept to themselves with other Chinese immigrants

46. Jobs for Chinese Immigrants
On the railroad (Transcontinental Railroad in particular)
Agriculture
Mining
Fishing
Food Prep.
Laundry

47. A Chinese Laundry

51. Chinese Exclusion Act
Racism and the loss of jobs fuels Anti-Chinese sentiment in California.
In response to California labor unions, the U.S. government bans all Chinese laborers from entering the country in 1892!
This and other Chinese restriction laws remain in effect until 1965!

52. Jobs for Japanese Immigrants
Worked in private business and were not involved much with unions, unlike the Chinese

53. Immigration Restrictions
Poor Economy
War
Racism
Overpopulation
All lead to official restrictions on U.S. Immigration

54. How do you limit the amount of immigrants coming into a country?
Limiting Immigration
How do you limit the amount of immigrants coming into a country?
Quotas – a limit placed on the number allowed to immigrate
Exclusions – preventing a group from immigrating

55. The Gentleman’s Agreement
Most notably…
The Gentleman’s Agreement
In California, Asian students attended segregated schools.
Japan protests, so…
T. Roosevelt made a compromise with Japanese officials.
According to the Gentleman’s Agreement – America promised not to segregate Japanese students and Japan promised not to send Japanese workers to America

56. Example of a Quota
Immigration Act of 1924 – limited the number of immigrants from each country.
the 1890 US Census totaled the amount of immigrants in the US, and then restricted immigration to 2% of each individual group’s total
IE. There were 200,000 Italian immigrants in the US in Only 4,000 Italians were allowed entry each year.

57. What about Mexico?
Starting in 1902 immigration from Mexico was PROMOTED for jobs in the farming and mining industries of the Southwest
…how does that differ from today?

58. The Growth of the Cities
Urbanization!

59. Filled w/ tenements – low cost apartments, designed to hold many families
Very poor living conditions
Rats, Open Sewers, Disease, & Fire
Immigrant Ghettos

64. City Growth
Urbanization – the growth of the cities!

65. Rise of Political Bosses
Political Machine – unofficial city org. that kept a party / group in power.
Headed by a single leader / “Boss”

66. Rise of Political Bosses
Most Famous - William “Boss” Tweed
Ran Tammany Hall - Democratic Party in NYC

67. Rise of Political Bosses
That doesn’t sound so bad…..
City government grows powerful to provide for people’s (immigrants) needs
Fire protection, transportation, etc
Exchange of favors
Politicians offer jobs, loans, help finding a place to live
They helped poor people when gov’t or industry would not

68. …so what’s the problem?
All those “gifts” were given with understanding that you would support the “machine”. You had to vote for who they wanted and not complain about it. …if not, you could find yourself without a job or a home!

69. “the Tammany Tiger destroys democracy…”
Is that true democracy?
Other candidates didn’t stand a chance
“the Tammany Tiger destroys democracy…”

70. Brought down by Political Cartoonist – Thomas Nast