Chapter 9 Section 4 Notes Growing Divisions Objectives for today: What were the causes for the huge rise in immigration to the US in the 1830s and 1840s? 2. How did Americans react to immigrants

Main Idea The United States grew increasingly diverse due to the arrival of new groups of immigrants and the growing cultural differences between the North and South The young, nation was attracting immigrants from a variety of European cultures. Some people of this diverse population did not share the “Native” Americans’ vision of America. The North and the South were becoming more distinct. Differences between working people and the middle class were widening.

Rising Immigration Thousands of jobs were created due to the Industrial Revolution. created a growing demand for cheap labor in factories and in the building of canals and railroad lines. These jobs attracted immigrants, most of whom arrived hungry, penniless, and eager to work. 1820s-143,000 immigrants 1830s-600,000 1850s-2,400,000 Nearly all of these new arrivals settled in the North and the West because the use of slave labor in the South offered few job opportunities in that region.

Irish Immigration Irish immigration soared in the mid-1840s when Ireland suffered a horrible disaster known as the Irish Potato Famine. The famine, which lasted from 1845 to 1849, caused hundreds of thousands of Irish people to flee to the United States. Most settled in northeastern cities such as Boston and New York.

Potato Famine During the summer of 1845, a "blight of unusual character" devastated Ireland's potato crop, the basic staple in the Irish diet. few days after potatoes were dug from the ground, they began to turn into a slimy, decaying, blackish "mass of rottenness." the cause was a fungus that had traveled from Mexico to Ireland. "Famine fever"--cholera, dysentery, scurvy, typhus, and infestations of lice--soon spread through the Irish countryside. Observers reported seeing children crying with pain and looking "like skeletons, their features sharpened with hunger and their limbs wasted, so that there was little left but bones." Masses of bodies were buried without coffins, a few inches below the soil.

IRISH POTATO FAMINE MEMORIAL STATUE IN BOSTON

Irish Immigration Like other immigrant groups, after settling in the United States the Irish became naturalized. That is, they applied for and were granted American citizenship. Irish men filled manual labor jobs in factories or on canals or railroads. Once established, the newcomers sent for relatives to join them. Irish communities in northern cities grew steadily.

What year did US immigration hit its peak? 2. What happened during that year?

Irish in Boston Proper Bostonians pointed and laughed at the first Irish immigrants stepping off ships wearing clothes twenty years out of fashion. They watched as the newly arrived Irishmen settled with their families into neighborhoods that became exclusively Irish near the Boston waterfront along Batterymarch and Broad Streets, then in the North End section and in East Boston. Irishmen took any unskilled jobs they could find such as cleaning yards and stables, unloading ships, and pushing carts.

Irish Immigration As their numbers grew, Irish Americans became a political force. Most were Jacksonian Democrats. The Democratic Party had reached out to these potential new voters when they first arrived, and the tactic paid off. In 1855, for example, 34 percent of all New York City voters were first-generation Irish immigrants John F. Kennedy- Grandson of an Irish- Immigrant

• Most Irish immigrants came to the U. S • Most Irish immigrants came to the U.S. poor, settling in either Boston, New York, or Philadelphia. (left) Population density of people born in Ireland, 1870; these were mostly Catholics

The Germans Many Germans came to America seeking political freedom after a series of failed rebellions across Europe in 1848. The majority of the German immigrants were peasants who bought large tracts of farmland in the Midwest, especially in Wisconsin and Missouri. Many also settled in Texas and, by 1850, made up about 5 percent of the state's population. German artisans and intellectuals tended to settle in northern cities such as New York, Chicago, and Milwaukee.

The Germans • German immigrants came to the U.S. to escape war and to better their lives. German immigrants boarding a ship for America in the late 19th century

• Those with money bought farms in the Midwest.

New Cultures These immigrants brought new cultural traditions to the United States. Most of the Irish and many of the Germans were Roman Catholic. Like Catholics in other countries, they respected the authority of the Pope in Rome as the head of the Church.. Like other laborers, the new immigrants worked long hours. After work the men gathered in taverns, often the social centers of the neighborhood. Boxing matches, horse races, and new team sports such as baseball were inexpensive diversions from the grind of daily life. Irish Catholic Church In South Boston -built 1844

Effects of Immigration • Immigrants took available jobs in factories and mines, helping the economy. 1900 US photo miners in Hazleton, PA

Immigrants face Hostility Irish and German immigrants often faced discrimination, the unequal treatment of a group of people because of their nationality, race, sex, or religion. Discrimination came from Americans who felt threatened by the presence of the newcomers or who disapproved of their culture

Immigrants face Hostility cont. One source of tension was economics. Because the Irish would work for lower wages, companies used them as strike breakers. This was not the best time for Americans to go on strike in the factories. Many of the New England mill girls lost their jobs to Irish men in the 1830s and 1840s. This caused a lot of resentment towards the new immigrants. Americans felt jobs should not be given to immigrants over native born Americans.

Immigrants face Hostility cont. A second source of tension was religion. Many Protestants disapproved of the Catholic religion. Protestants and Catholics had fought wars for centuries in Europe over this debate. Catholics protested when their children in public schools were forced to read the Protestant version of the Bible Textbooks of the time taught Protestant values. Catholics fought efforts by reformers to enact laws restricting drinking, gambling, and sports, which they did not view as immoral when practiced in moderation.

Famous 1876 editorial cartoon by Thomas Nast showing bishops as crocodiles attacking public schools, with connivance of Irish Catholic politicians.

Know-Nothing Party There was a fear in the US that the country was being overwhelmed by Irish Catholic immigrants, who were often regarded as hostile to American values and controlled by the Pope in Rome. The Know-Nothing Party was a political party aimed at passing laws and policies against immigrants in the US. The platform of the American Party called for, among other things: Severe limits on immigration, especially from Catholic countries Restricting political office to native-born Americans Mandating a wait of 21 years before an immigrant could gain citizenship Restricting public school teachers to Protestants Mandating daily Bible readings in public schools Restricting the sale of liquor

Know-Nothing Party cont. Mainly active from 1854–56, it strove to curb immigration and naturalization The movement originated in New York in 1843 as the American Republican Party. It spread to other states as the Native American Party and became a national party in 1845. In 1855 it renamed itself the American Party. The origin of the "Know Nothing" term was in the semi-secret organization of the party. When a member was asked about its activities, he was supposed to reply, "I know nothing."