Unit 3 - ImmigrationChanges in American Life

7.2

The New Immigrants

Essential Questions/Learning Goals:

• To describe changes in immigration patterns in the late 1800’s

• To understand where and how immigrants settled and the jobs they took

• To explain the process of assimilation and efforts to restrict immigration

Key Terms:

• New immigrants

• Ellis Island

• Angel Island

• Melting pot

• Assimilation

• Chinese Exclusion Act

One American’s Story

• Where was Edward Corsi’s point of entry into the United States?

• Ellis Island

The New Immigrants

• Prior to the 1890’s where did most immigrants come from?– Northern and Western Europe

• Where were new immigrants from?– Southern and eastern Europe

• Italy, Jews, Poles, Slavs, and Russians

The New Immigrants

• What was the Point of Entry for most European immigrants?– Ellis Island in New York

The New Immigrants

• What steps had to be completed at Ellis Island before an immigrant would be allowed to enter the country?– They had to have a health inspection

• If you had in infectious disease, you were sent back to your home country

– They were asked a series of questions • If it was found that a person had a criminal

background, they were also sent back to their home country

The New Immigrants

• Where did Asian immigrants enter the United States?– Angel Island in San Francisco, California

• Where did Mexican immigrants enter the country?– Through Texas

• Was immigration into the United States difficult at this point in history?– No. It was very easy to come to America

Concept Check:

• How did the patterns in immigration change from the period before the 1890’s and afterwards?– Prior to 1890, most immigrants were from

Northern and Western Europe– After 1890 immigrants came from many other

areas including Eastern and Southern Europe, Mexico and Asia.

Settling in America:

• Where would immigrants settle once they entered the country– Wherever they could find jobs.

• This usually meant factory work in large cities

– Most would also settle into communities where other people from their home country were already living

– This resulted in the growth of ethnic neighborhoods such as…

• Little Italy

• China Town

Settling in America:

• How did these ethnic neighborhoods work together for a better life?– They often pooled their money and resources

to build churches or other places of worship– Published newspapers or magazines– Developed their own political machines with

the goal of making life better for their group

Immigrants Take Tough Jobs:

• What types of industries did most immigrants work in?– On the East coast…

• Most ended up working in factories such as sweatshops

– On the West coast…• Many Asians worked to build the railroads or

opened up their own businesses and restaurants

Immigrants Take Tough Jobs:

• What types of industries did most immigrants work in?– Japanese immigrants…

• Worked on the sugar plantations in Hawaii

– Mexican immigrants…• Worked on farms and in mines in the West

Concept Check:On white lined paper, answer the following questions as a warm-up.

• What were the most important influences on where immigrants settled in America?

• In what ways did immigrant communities help new arrivals adjust to life in America?

• How did the types of work that immigrants could find vary from one part of the country to another?

Becoming Americans

• Why is America sometimes called a melting pot?– With all of the immigration into America,

cultures blend or melt together– The process of blending into the culture of

another country is called…• Assimilation

– Did most immigrants want to be assimilated into American culture?

• Yes

Becoming Americans

• Where did a lot of the assimilation process take place?– At the workplace

• Unions often offered classes to learn English and for U.S. citizenship

Becoming Americans

• Immigrants were clearly changed by America, but how did immigrants also change America?– They brought their culture with them

• Foods• Language • Music• Customs

Becoming Americans

• Was there any resistance to immigrants from U.S. citizens?– Yes!– Many native-born Americans feared that the

immigrants would bring about changes to America that they were not in agreement with

Restrictions on Immigration:

• Why did many native-born Americans want to restrict immigration?– Many feared that immigrants would take their

jobs– What resulted from these fears?

• The 1882 restrictions on immigration were passed by Congress

– The Chinese Exclusion Act banned immigrants from China for…

» 10 years