What was immigration like in the 19th century

Lured by news of the California gold rush, some 25, Chinese had migrated there by the early s. The new arrivals were often seen as unwanted competition for jobs, while many Catholics—especially the Irish—experienced discrimination for their religious beliefs. In the s, the anti-immigrant, anti-Catholic American Party also called the Know-Nothings tried to severely curb immigration, and even ran a candidate, former U.

Following the Civil War, the United States experienced a depression in the s that contributed to a slowdown in immigration. One of the first significant pieces of federal legislation aimed at restricting immigration was the Chinese Exclusion Act of , which banned Chinese laborers from coming to America.

Californians had agitated for the new law, blaming the Chinese, who were willing to work for less, for a decline in wages. For much of the s, the federal government had left immigration policy to individual states. However, by the final decade of the century, the government decided it needed to step in to handle the ever-increasing influx of newcomers. More than 12 million immigrants entered the United States through Ellis Island during its years of operation from to Between and , a time of rapid industrialization and urbanization, America received more than 20 million immigrants.

Beginning in the s, the majority of arrivals were from Central, Eastern and Southern Europe. In that decade alone, some , Italians migrated to America, and by more than 4 million had entered the United States. Jews from Eastern Europe fleeing religious persecution also arrived in large numbers; over 2 million entered the United States between and The peak year for admission of new immigrants was , when approximately 1.

Within a decade, the outbreak of World War I caused a decline in immigration. In , Congress enacted legislation requiring immigrants over 16 to pass a literacy test, and in the early s immigration quotas were established. The Immigration Act of created a quota system that restricted entry to 2 percent of the total number of people of each nationality in America as of the national census—a system that favored immigrants from Western Europe—and prohibited immigrants from Asia.

The Bracero Program was a series of diplomatic accords between Mexico and the United States signed in that brought millions of Mexican immigrants to the United States to work on short-term agricultural labor contracts. From to , 4. The program also addressed Depression-era deportations and brought many Mexican Americans, who were largely targeted for deportation at the time, back to the states.

The program was criticized because workers often faced discrimination, harsh working conditions, and had virtually no job security. Once their contracts expired, some Braceros returned home with little money because of debts incurred to the stores located in employer-operated housing camps, while others stayed in the United States illegally and sought additional work. Immigration plummeted during the global depression of the s and World War II John's on the Avalon Peninsula.

By end of the century, the country had a population of approximately , people living in more than 1, settlements scattered across the island and Labrador. While climbing birth rates contributed much to the growing population, immigration was another important factor, particularly in the early decades of the s.

Most of the early immigrants were from southwest England or southeast Ireland. Both regions maintained regular trade routes with Newfoundland and Labrador as a result of the centuries-old migratory fishery, which made it easier for people to move across the Atlantic.

Small numbers of immigrants also arrived from elsewhere in the British Isles, including Scotland, the Channel Islands, and areas outside of southeast Ireland and southwest England. Immigration rates peaked during the early decades of the 19th century, when the country experienced much economic prosperity. By the end of the 19th century, immigration had slowed, but continued to be significant in that new peoples from places such as China, Lebanon, and Eastern Europe, had begun to arrive.

The Napoleonic Wars gave the colony an almost total monopoly of the international saltfish trade, which in turn generated much employment for local residents.

At the same time, poor harvests, the failure of local industries, and overpopulation created many social and economic hardships for people living in England and Ireland. Many chose to migrate to Newfoundland and Labrador, where a booming economy and low population made the colony capable of absorbing new immigrants. Settlement patterns in Newfoundland and Labrador were greatly influenced by the country's trade, with most immigrants settling in or near mercantile centres at St. While English settlements were dispersed across Newfoundland and Labrador, most Irish immigrants remained on the Avalon Peninsula, with smaller numbers moving to other regions within the colony.

Scottish immigrants also arrived at Newfoundland and Labrador during the 19th century. Lowland Scots migrated to the colony early in the s to take advantage of the booming fish trade. Scottish merchants established premises on the Avalon Peninsula, largely at St. John's and in Conception Bay, to become involved in the provisions and fishery supply trades.

Our emails are made to shine in your inbox, with something fresh every morning, afternoon, and weekend. In the late 19th century, immigrants came to the United States in droves. The absolute number of immigrants in the country rose from less than 2. That group of immigrants was similar in many ways to those entering the US today. Most did not speak English, followed different religious practices than the natives, and were fleeing politically or economically treacherous situations.

The majority were unskilled laborers, though a small number were highly educated. According to a recently published study , the immigrants of the late 19th and early 20th century have had a remarkably positive and long-lasting impact on the places where they settled.

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