Unit 2A:The Gilded Age Immigration

Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

Why Immigrants Came? Jobs - factories, mines, railroads, farms Free Land - Homestead Act Education – free public schools Freedom – political and religious

of Jews in Russia in the late 1880’s Pogroms Violent massacres of Jews in Russia in the late 1880’s Many immigrants came to have religious freedom and escape religious persecution, such as the Pogroms in Russia.

How Many Came? Between 1865 and 1920 About 30 million came Nearly doubled population of U.S.

1st Wave—The “Old Immigrants” Source of original Europeans who came to America Mostly from Northern and Western Europe England, Ireland, Germany, and France Numbers grew very large from 1840s to 1880s

Germany

2nd Wave—The “New Immigrants” Came to the US from 1880s to the 1920s Where From? Southern and Eastern Europe Italy, Croatia, Slovenia, Greece, Poland Also smaller numbers from Mexico, China, Japan How Many? 2100 per day by the 1880s As many as 20 million come in the 2nd Wave

Why did they Leave? Push Factors: Old World population grew too rapidly Flocked to cities for jobs; many unemployed Freedom from military conscription Fleeing persecution (Jewish especially) Pull Factors: Letters from America painted a land of opportunity Ads from America – cheap land, labor available, need more people in new states

Industrialization as a pull factor The industrialization in the North created factory jobs This led to an increase in immigration Increased immigration led to increased “urbanization”

Steam-powered ships accelerated immigration—Crossed the Atlantic in 2 – 3 weeks

A famous steamship from 1912 The RMS Titanic – the largest, most luxurious passenger ship of the time (2222 passengers)

The Main Staircase on the Titanic

Parlor on the Titanic

Did the poor travel like this?

Steerage Large open area beneath a ship’s deck near the steering mechanism Cheap tickets Limited toilet facilities No privacy Poor food

1875 Steerage Rates from Europe to New York Average Fair: Adults $22 Children $12 Infants $3

Typical Steerage Accommodations

Centers of Immigration Most Europeans came in through the port of New York – Ellis Island Ellis Island was open from 1892-1954 Approximately 12 million people passed through its halls. They received: Medical inspections: Healthy? Needed to prevent contagious diseases from entering the nation. Legal inspections: Capable of supporting themselves? Criminals?

Ellis Island Registry Room, 1905

Tenements Low-cost apartment buildings No windows in some rooms Crowded No electricity No plumbing Sinks and toilets in hall or basement

Urban Living Conditions Crowded - Insufficient adequate housing Air Pollution – soot from factories made the air dark and foul Water Pollution - Poor sanitation – human and animal waste, garbage, rats in streets Diseases - Tuberculosis, malaria, typhoid Fire – Wooden buildings burned rapidly – No fire/safety codes Great Chicago Fire of 1871 18,000 buildings destroyed 250 died

Great Chicago Fire of 1871