Immigration
Late 1800’s
Learning Targets
• Know where immigrants coming into the US were coming
from.
• Know what determined how well immigrants adjusted to
American culture.
• Know what led to an increase in Chinese immigrants.
• Know where Asian immigrants entered the US.
• Know what Nativism is and its effects.
• Know why labor unions opposed immigration.
• Know the purpose of the Workingman’s
Party of California
● Be able to describe why Europeans immigrated to
the U.S. in the late 1800s.
European Immigration
• In 1890’s over half of all immigrants were from
eastern and southern Europe
• 1860-1900: 14 million immigrants
• European countries had changed
their laws to make it easier for
people to leave their homeland
• Many Europeans favored democracy over their
traditional class system
Atlantic Voyage
• Most people rode in “steerage” across the
Atlantic
• They arrived at Ellis Island
• Their success depended
on if they found others of
their own ethnicity
Asian Immigration
• People from Asia came through Angel Island
• Worked to build
the transcontinental
railroad
Nativism
• An extreme dislike for foreigners by nativeborn people and a desire to limit immigration
– Some people feared Catholics would take over the
mostly protestant US
– Labor unions felt immigrants were willing to work
for less $ and take away jobs or become strikebreakers (Workingman’s Party of California)
– Chinese Exclusion Act
Review Questions
• From where were immigrants coming into the US in the late
1800s?
• What determined how well immigrants adjusted to
American culture?
• What led to an increase in Chinese immigrants?
• Where were Asian immigrants entered into the US?
• What is Nativism and its what are its effects?
• Why did labor unions oppose immigration?
• What was the purpose of the Workingman’s Party of
California?
Essay Question and Answer:
• Describe several reasons Europeans immigrated to
the U.S. in the late 1800s.
– Many poor European Farmers came simply because the
United States had plenty of jobs available and few
immigration restrictions. Many Europeans moved to avoid
forced military service. Others especially Jews living in
Poland and Russia, fled to avoid religious persecution. By
the late 1800s, most European states had made it easy to
move to America. They had repealed laws that kept people
from leaving. At the same time, moving to the United
States offered a chance to break away from Europe’s class
system, and move to a democratic nation where
newcomers had a chance to move up the social ladder.