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Immigration

Immigration. American Studies Miller/Dustin. Why did people come to America?. “Land of Opportunity” Religious freedom Promise of a better life “Birds of passage” Poverty, famine, land shortages, competition for industrial jobs at home Desire for fortunes in gold

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Immigration

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  1. Immigration American Studies Miller/Dustin

  2. Why did people come to America? “Land of Opportunity” Religious freedom Promise of a better life “Birds of passage” Poverty, famine, land shortages, competition for industrial jobs at home Desire for fortunes in gold Jobs – railroads, industries (Heritage Discovery Center) Push-Pull Theory of Immigration

  3. European Immigrants • 1870-1920 – 20 million European immigrants arrived in the U.S. • Prior to 1890, most came from western and northern Europe (Great Britain, Ireland, Germany) • After 1890, most came from southern and eastern Europe (Italy, Austria-Hungary, Russia) • 1905-1914 – one million immigrants were arriving yearly • Religious intolerance, rising European population (doubled to 432 million between 1800-1900) and lack of industrial jobs pushed people from their homeland (Public Broadcasting System – PBS)

  4. Chinese and Japanese Immigrants 1848 California Gold Rush lured Asian workers (Ambrose) • 1851-1883 – about 200,000 Chinese immigrants arrived • Asian immigrants helped build the Transcontinental Railroad and others, connecting the eastern and western United States • Hawaiian planters’ recruitment of workers led to increase in immigrants coming from Japan • Annexation of Hawaii in 1898 further increased Japanese immigration (Santa Clarita Valley History of Photographs) By 1920, 200,000 Japanese immigrants lived on the West Coast

  5. West Indies and Mexican Immigrants 1880-1920 – 260,000 immigrants arrive from West Indies (Jamaica, Cuba, Puerto Rico) • Mexicans came for work and to escape political turmoil • The National Reclamation Act (1902) improved irrigation methods in U.S. and created farmland and work opportunities for Mexican farm workers (Republican Voices) Annexation of Texas (due to Mexican War and Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo 1848) automatically made Mexican Americans residents (Latin American Studies) One million Mexicans farm workers over the next 20 years arrived in the United States

  6. Life for Immigrants • Difficult journey – stormy, uncomfortable, frightening trip by sea, between one and three weeks • Ellis Island (primarily Europeans) and Angel Island (primarily Asian) inspection stations – physical exam, documents, questionnaires, literacy tests • Culture shock • Finding a place to live, getting a job, alien language and customs (Wright Assoc.) (Rootsweb) New ethnic communities helped immigrants socially, financially, medically, religiously and educationally

  7. Immigrant Restrictions • Nativism • American Protective Association (1887) launched anti-Catholic attacks • Colleges, businesses, social clubs, employers refused services to immigrants • Immigration Restriction League (1894) campaigned to keep out “undesirable” classes • Chinese Exclusion Act (1882) banned entry to all Chinese except students, teachers, merchants, tourists, and government officials • Gentlemen’s Agreement (1907-1908) Japan’s government agreed to limit emigration to the U.S. (Latin American Studies)

  8. Ellis Island “The Golden Door” (both photos fromEllis Island)

  9. Angel Island (all three photos from the National Park Service)

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