IUIF - Immigration (Lesson)

Immigration

Ellis Island

The majority of newcomers to the United States in the 19^th century were immigrants from Europe. The main immigrant processing station for people from Europe was located at Ellis Island in New York Harbor. While not the only immigrant processing station on the east coast, Ellis Island was the largest and most representative icon of the immigrant experience. Estimates indicate that a large percentage of Americans today can trace their ancestry through immigrants processed at Ellis Island since tens of millions of immigrants entered the United States there during the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries.

Prior to the Civil War, most immigrants who came to America could be traced to Western Europe, specifically from England, France and Germany. After the Civil War, more immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe began to emigrate to the United States. Once they entered New York Harbor, these immigrants were transferred to the Ellis Island processing center. They were asked numerous questions about their reasons for coming to the United States, their health and background. Further medical exams were given to those who demonstrated illness or weakness. One example of how immigrants were checked for illness came when they were asked to take stairs to their next processing area. As these immigrants climbed the stairs, agents watched to see if they struggled up the stairs or passed their luggage to another person. Once they reached the top of the stairs, another agent marked their clothes with a chalk mark so that people could be separated for further medical examination as needed.

The journey of the immigrant didn’t end at Ellis Island. Once cleared the immigrants took their possessions (often few belongings) and worked to find new opportunities and a place to settle for themselves and their families. Many immigrants were poor or had spent a substantial amount to reach America so they could not afford to purchase land or pay for further travel. These immigrants remained in New York City or moved to other northeastern urban centers. In these locations, immigrants established neighborhoods with other people from the same country where they could live, work, educate, and raise their families. (Ex. Little Italy, Chinatown, etc. in New York City) Here immigrants could retain the cultural practices from the Old World including their religion, language and even cuisine. As the immigrants associated with others, these cultural neighborhoods blended, creating what we refer to as a “melting pot” of varied cultures. Today, this variety and inclusion is a large part of American culture, especially in the Northeast.

Angel Island

Often referred to as the “sister station” to Ellis Island, Angel Island was the main immigrant processing station on the west coast of the United States. Located in San Francisco, Angel Island’s processing system was similar to Ellis Island. However, the experience of the immigrants was different. Asian immigrants required representatives, usually family members in the United States, to verify their information. While European immigrants found housing and job opportunities in northern cities, Angel Island’s Chinese immigrants encountered discrimination. Many of the Chinese immigrants went to work on the railroads where they were viewed as inferior to immigrant workers from other nations. The Chinese immigrants were given harder jobs, forced to work longer hours and found themselves fed and housed differently than their counterparts all while being paid lower wages. Chinese discrimination in the west coast and the United States as a whole reached its peak with the passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 when Congress restricted Chinese immigration completely for many years.

Impact of Immigration

The melting pot of cultural blending from immigration still exists in the everyday lives we lead. From the food we eat, the literature we read and the music we listen to the impact of immigration is all around. Today’s influence comes from the harsh realities of the immigrant experience of the 19^th century.

Beyond the racial and cultural discrimination immigrants found, immigration, especially on the east coast, led to new societal issues. The rapid increase in immigration led to overcrowded neighborhoods, sanitation issues, crime and disease particularly in urban areas. While the increase of numbers led to an increase in industrial production, it also forced American agricultural producers to increase production to feed the masses. Both outputs helped to improve the economy.

Unfortunately, nativists’ views on immigration also increased discrimination in many areas of the United States. Many people viewed immigrants as inferior and prompted restrictions against them organizationally and politically. Many of these views and stereotypes of immigrants transformed American culture for generations and continues to fuel debate today.

Immigrants approaching the Statue of Liberty and New York Harbor. Photo by Edwin Levick, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Review

Visit the Statute of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation immigration timeline. Links to an external site.

Review the information provided by Ellis Island. Review each time period after 1790 and consider the following questions: