More handpicked essays just for you.
Impact of immigration on culture
Impact of immigration on the culture
Soc 500 irish immigration research paper
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Irish Immigration 18001880 INTRODUCTION The history of Ireland "that most distressful nation" is full of drama and tragedy, but one of the most interesting stories is about what happened to the Irish during the mid-nineteenth century and how millions of Irish came to live in America (Purcell 31). Although the high point of the story was the years of the devastating potato famine from 1845 to 1848, historians have pointed out that immigrating from Ireland was becoming more popular before the famine and continued until the turn of the twentieth century. In the one hundred years between the first recording of immigrants in 1820 and the passing of immigration restrictions in 1924, over four and one half million Irish immigrated to the United States. HOW THEY PAID TO COME TO AMERICA Most of the pre-famine immigrants were single men who found jobs as laborers in the North and Northeast (Purcell 32). Although these were low paying jobs, they were still better than what they had in Ireland. Another thing typical of the Irish immigrants in the pre-famine years was something called the chain migration (Purcell 36). The first immigrants found jobs, saved most or all of their money, and sent money or tickets for sailing on the ships to relatives in the old country. By very hard work, immigrants made it possible to pay for their entire family to follow them to America. To save up all of the passage money was very difficult but they worked hard and did it. Many immigrants from other countries also used the chain migration idea, and it is still common for immigrants to use this system. However, the Irish were the first to use chain migration in such a big way. THE LAWS OF IMMIGRATION During the 200 years that this ... ... middle of paper ... ...live in a free land, and a more full appreciation of the life we lead today, as well as a thankfulness to those who, long ago, paved the way. Bibliography: WORKS CITED Anderson, Kelly. Immigration. San Diego: Lucent, 1993. Danilov, Dan. Immigrating to the USA.1st ed. British Columbia: Self-Counsel, 1978. Danilov, Dan. Immigrating to the USA. 5th ed. British Columbia: Self-Counsel, 1989. Gmelch, Sharon. Irish Life and Traditions. Dublin: O'Brien, 1986. Griffin, William. The Irish Americans. Hong Kong: Hugh Lauter Levin, 1998. "Immigrants." November 1993. 10 November 1998 . Long, Robert Emmet.Immigration. Dublin: H. W. Wilson, 1996. Purcell, L. Edward. Immigration. Phoenix: Oryx, 1995. Reimers, David. The Immigrant Experience. New York: Chealsea House Publishers, 1989. Sandler, Martin. Immigrants. New York: Eagle, 1995.
Throughout the history of America people have been immigrating to America from multiple countries. People have arrived from all over Eastern and Western Europe, Asia and many other places. One country that people had immigrated from was Ireland. The Irish settled into America because of the Anti-Catholic Penal Laws in 1790. Most of the Irish were Catholic so they fled to America. The Irish also came to America because of a summer with constant rain and little sun that in turn destroyed their popular crops. Pushing this further, the Irish came to America because of the Potato Famine. Lastly, the Irish came back to America because of Hart-Cellar Act. This Act
The Irish Travelers began arriving in the United States during the Great Famine in Ireland in the mid 19th century. It is believed they are descendants of landowners and laborers who were displaced by Oliver Cromwell’s military campaign in Ireland in the 1600’s. As they maintain no written records of their history, their true heritage is still of some debate. Arriving in this country they were known as the Irish Horse Traders for their dealings in the horse trading industry. It has been suggested that as far back as their arrival they were engaging in schemes to defraud potential customers.
The 18th Century was a time where most immigrants were of Irish, British, and German descent. From the 1890’s, through the next couple decade, Italians, and Jews would be the cause a new wave of immigration. Between 1900 and 1915, 3 million immigrants would take the journey, and travel to America. They would come through the famed “Ellis
In the years from 1860 through 1890, the prospect of a better life attracted nearly ten million immigrants who settled in cities around the United States. The growing number of industries produced demands for thousands of new workers and immigrants were seeking more economic opportunities. Most immigrants settled near each other’s own nationality and/or original village when in America.
Immigration to America from Europe was at an all time high in the mid-1800s. After the potato famine in Ireland in the 1840s, a large group of Irish immigrated to the United States. Since then, increasing numbers of Irish people have been moving to the United States, especially in Chicago. The Irish had come to realize that the United States really is the land of opportunity. With jobs being available to the immigrants, many more shipped in to start new lives for their families. However, for quite a while they did not live in the nicest of areas in Chicago. Many of the Irish resided in low-class areas such as overcrowded parts around the Loop, and out in the West Side. Not only did the West Side shelter the Irish, but many Germans and Jews lived in that area.
Slowly throughout the 19th century the Irish made their way out of poverty into middle-class status, by taking advantage of growing industrialization. 2nd generation immigrants were able to use labor unions for upper ward mobility into middle-class. Then post WWII many Irish took advantage of the GI Bill, which allowed them to go to college and get low mortgages. Today Irish are still a strong part of America’s middle class (pg. 290).
Lemay C. M. and Barkan R. E., 1999, ‘US immigration and naturalization laws and issues’, Greenwood Publishing Group
During the mid 1840’s, blight in the potato crops in Ireland caused widespread starvation and migration of Irish citizens to the United States. Yet, the massive loss of life and massive exodus could have been avoided if British taxation upon the working class of Ireland was nullified. Though the struggle for liberation was already taking place, the potato famine furthered the cause and helped spread awareness. Furthermore, the potato famine made the average Irish family more reliant upon the government for subsidies and supports to get by.
Erika, Lee. "U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Laws and Issues." Journal of American Ethnic History. Vol. 20. Issue 2 (2001): n. page. Web. 18 Apr. 2013.
Throughout the history of this nation there are thousands of upon thousands of immigrants coming to this country and achieving the American dream. The Irish immigrated to the United States in 1840 – 1850s in big numbers driven by hunger and by the oppression of the British. Many of them became successful politicians, police officers and businessmen. One of the brightest examples in the history of Irish immigration success is Henry Ford. His grandfather immigrated in the 1840s escaping the potato famine. Henry Ford himself was born in a poor family in Dearborn, Michigan went on to become the most successful car builder in the country (Hennigan). Between 1880 and 1920 the first wave of Italians mainly from South Italy immigrated in the United States (Hendin 13). Many escaped from the poor countryside in Southern Italy to seek better life in America. Shining ex...
During the nineteenth century the amount of immigration to the united states was increasing rapidly. The largest proportion of these “new” immigrants were from Italy, Russia, and Ireland. There was a combined reac...
The first mass wave of immigration to the United Sates started in 1820. The people that came to the United States were from Germany, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Bohemia, Ireland, and a small number of Chinese. Roughly fifteen million people emigrated from 1820 to 1880. There were three main causes for the mass immigration. There was the Revolutions in Europe, mainly in Germany. Then there was the 1848 California Gold Rush. The third reason for this immigration was the end of the Mexican-American War. The two main groups that immigrated to the United States were Germans and the Irish, as a result of the Revolutions in Europe.
Until the 1860s, the early immigrants not only wanted to come to America, but they also meticulously planned to come. These immigrants known as the “Old Immigrants” immigrated to America from many countries in Northern and Western Europe, known as, Sweden, Norway, Scandinavia, Wales and Ireland. Some of them traveled to Canada, but most of them came to the U.S. seeking freedom they didn’t get in their own countries. Ireland had also recently suffered through a potato famine, where the citizens were left poor and starving. Most settled in New York City and other large cities, where they worked in factories and other low-paying jobs. The immigrants caused a great increase in population in these areas. The “Old Immigrants” tried not to cluster themselves with others of their own nationality. They would mostly try to fit in with Americans as best as they could. Many of them had a plan to come to America, so they saved their money and resources before they arrived so they could have a chance at a better life. On the other hand, another group of immigrants began to arrive
In the summer of 1847, government soup kitchens were feeding three million people a day, but by then it was too late for the hundreds of thousands of Irish people that already died. The famine, disease, and lack of support from the British government forced the Irish to emigrate to America. This mass emigration of one and a half million Irish people between 1847 and 1851 was the single most important outcome of the great famine. The Irish immigrants thought this would be the end of their journey, but in many ways it was only just the beginning. The living conditions and discrimination they experienced in America were the same as in Ireland until the American Civil War brought acceptance of Irish immigration and opened up opportunities for them. The pattern of immigration set up by the famine continued with Irish immigrants pouring into the United States through to the second half of the nineteenth century. The immigrants that arrived later on received a far warmer welcome than the famine immigrants, but many of them still felt forced into exile by the British and many of them took this belief into their new
... to Canada, however 70% of the emigrants did go to the U.S.A to work. The author states his facts on emigrants working in America as Ireland emigrants having no skills other than working in factories and on railroads. Women that could speak English obtained employment in America as servants of the rich. This article is a useful example in understanding the type of skills the Irish possessed after the emigration of the Irish to American and the jobs that the Irish obtained.