Immigrants Reasons:1. Lured by promise of better life2. Escape difficult conditions at home

a. Famineb. Land Shortages

3. Escape religious/political persecution4. Jobs supposedly plentiful in America5. Come to earn money then go back

(Bird of Passage)

- Europe:Northwest: English, Irish, German, Scandinavian Southeast: Italian, Russian, and Polish

- Asia:Chinese and Japanese

- Mexico and Caribbean:Mexican, Jamaican, Cuban, and Puerto Rican

Traveled by steamship to America- trip across Atlantic took 1 week- trip across Pacific took 3 weeks

Traveled in “steerage” (cheapest accommodations in a ship’s cargo hold)

As for conditions below decks, an agent for the United States Immigration Commission described them as follows:

“During the twelve days in the steerage I lived in…surroundings that offended every sense. Only a fresh breeze from the sea overcame the sickening odors. Everything was dirty, sticky, and disagreeable to the touch. In such conditions, disease and even death were not uncommon.”

Ellis Island: Atlantic side immigration station in New York Harbor - decided whether to admit or reject immigrants- 17 million immigrants passed through- Had to pass a physical health exam- Had to pass a govt. inspector’s test

a. able to work?b. have some money?c. never been convicted of a felony?

Angel Island: Pacific side immigration station in the San Francisco Bay- decided whether to admit or reject immigrants- 50,000 Chinese enter U.S. (1910-1940)- Had to pass a physical health exam- Had to pass a govt. inspector’s test (much more harsh and longer decision time)

physical health exam

govt. inspector’s test

Immigrants Faced Challenges:1. find a place to live2. find a job3. understand the language4. understand the culture

How to Cope?1. create ethnic communities

Where to live? Tenement buildings

- Multi-family dwelling in urban areas- Families shared living space- Lighting & fresh air were scarce

What conditions like?- Uncomfortable, Crowed, and Dirty- In New York, 1,231 people lived in only 120

rooms in one part of the city- In Chicago in one year, over 60% of newborns

never reached their first birthdays- Many had no home and slept in “5 cents a

spot rooms” where people paid for a small space to spend the night

An immigrant himself, Jacob Riis was well known for his photographs documenting the lives of immigrants & the urban poor in his book How the Other Half Lives

Americans saw country as a “Melting Pot”

Problem: Many immigrants

do not give up “old” culture

Outcome: immigrants numbers increased = anti-immigrant feelings emerge

Nativism: favoritism toward native-born Americans1. anti-immigration groups begin to form

- Immigration Restriction League- American Protective Association

2. demand for immigration restrictions

1882 Chinese Exclusion Act: law passed by Congress which banned Chinese immigrants for a period of 10 years (few exceptions)

1897 Congress pass law requiring literacy test for immigrants (President Cleveland veto's)

1906 San Fransico Board of Ed. Segregate Japanese school children

Outcome: Gentleman’s Agreement: Japan will limit immigration if segregation repealed