Push And Pull Factors In The Late 1800s

America is the land of opportunity. Throughout history America has been known to be the country of opportunity and freedom. It makes sense why people in the the late 1800’s and early 1900’s would give up everything to try and come start a new life here. There were a number of push factors--religious persecution and population pressures, but there were also many pull factors such as a better job opportunities and political liberties.

The relocation of so many people in the late 1800’s can be attributed to several push-pull factors. A number of the people that came over to America were from Germany, Ireland and England. In their homelands many experienced crop failure, a stagnant economy and in some cases even a shortage of food. One example of aforementioned crop failures would be the Irish Potato Famine that Ireland suffered through in the mid 1800’s. The plants were plagued with diseases and an estimated one million men, women and children lost their lives.

The immigrants that came over entered into the states using several different ports usually depending upon where they were coming from. Asian immigrants that came over typically went through the ports and centers on the west coast. People from Europe typically came over and went through

Government officials struck a deal with the immigrants and other low income households in exchange for the gain and retention of power. While there was some influence on the government, a lot of this corruption was happening in the cities. Immigrants were promised benefits and protected in exchange for the guarantee of their votes. Simply put, it was bribery on a large scale. Even though there were some essential benefits that the so-called district captains distributed, there were a number of people who still got roughed up and threatened for not voting the way they were supposed