2. TN Curriculum Standards:
• 1.0-Understand how industrial development
affected the United States culture.
• Understand how the influx of immigrants after
1880 affected U. S. culture.
SPI 6.4- Identify patterns of immigration and the
causal factors that led to immigration to the U.S.
SPI 6.5- Distinguish the differences in assimilation of
“old” vs. “new” immigration.
SPI 6.6- Read and interpret a primary source
document reflecting the dynamics of the Gilded Age
of American Society.
4. The “Old” Immigrants
• From 1800-1880, more than 10 million
immigrants came to the U.S.
• They were mostly Protestants from
Northwestern Europe.
• This group would be referred to as the “old”
immigrants.
• They were accepted into American culture.
5. “Old” Immigrants
The “old” immigrants
were accepted because:
• They looked the same
• Spoke the same
languages as the
Americans who were
already here
• Worshipped the same .
6. The “New” immigrants
• From 1891-1910, a new wave of immigrants
came to the U.S.
• They came from Southern or Eastern Europe
(Czech, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Polish,
Russian, and Slovaks, Arabs, Armenians,
Chinese, French Canadians, and Japanese).
• They were not as accepted as the old
immigrants.
7. The “New” Immigrants
• They looked different.
• They worshipped
differently.
• They spoke different
languages.
8. Reasons for Coming to the U.S.
• Plenty of land and work
• Higher standard of
living
• Democratic political
system
• Opportunity for social
advancement
9. The Journey
Most of the immigrants heard about the great opportunities that the U.S. had to
offer from RR and steamship promoters.
These stories were often exaggerated. Steamships charged a low rate to attract
passengers.
The ocean journey was extremely difficult. Most traveled in the steerage
(accommodations below deck on the ship’s lower levels near the steering
mechanisms).
The quarters were cramped with no privacy and very little ventilation.
12. Arriving in America
Those with criminal records (or without means to support themselves) were sent back.
Those that passed inspection went through inspectors where they had to tell about their
background, job skills, and relatives.
People with mental disorders or contagious diseases like tuberculosis or other serious health policies
were deported.
At Ellis Island, the 1st thing that they saw was the Statue of Liberty. They had to go through a physical
exam.
Newcomers 1st set their foot on U. S. soil at Ellis Island in New York Harbor or at Angel Island in San
Francisco Bay. These islands were known as immigrant stations.
14. A New Life
• Many immigrants found
that that the U.S. offered
them a better life than in
their homeland.
• Others that settled in
crowded cities faced
many hardships.
• They could only find low-
paying (unskilled) jobs.
• As a result of this, they
were generally forced into
poor housing in/near
neighborhood slums.
16. A New Life
• Immigrant/Ethnic Communities- pockets of
diverse immigrant communities where they
were able to find institutions and neighbors
that help them make the transition financially
and culturally into American life.
• Religious institutions- neighborhood churches,
synagogues, and temples provided community
centers that helped immigrants maintain a
sense of identity and belonging.
17. A New Life
Some churches offered economic assistance, daycare for children, gymnasiums, reading rooms, sewing
classes, social clubs, and training courses for new immigrants.
Many religious and non-religious organizations were formed to assist the newcomers. The
organizations were known as benevolent societies (helped in case of
sickness, unemployment, death, offered loans to start businesses, set up insurance plans).
Cultural practices- immigrants were often encouraged by employers and public institutions to adopt
American values. Older immigrants tend to cling more to their ties in the old country, while their
children adopted American cultural practices.
Immigrant worker-did the country’s “dirty work” (work that was difficult and physically exhausting).
They worked in the mines, in construction, and in sweatshops. They worked extremely long hours and
received extremely low wages. Some worked as long as 15 hours a day.
19. Settling into Ethnic Communities
Immigrants made up most of the population in Northern cities like New York,
Chicago, Milwaukee, and Detroit.
They lived in ethnic communities lie “Little Italy” and “Lower East Side”
because there they could speak their own native languages and worship in
their own synagogues. It gave them a sense of being back in their homeland.
Immigrants that learned English and fully assimilated into American culture
fared better than those that did not.
21. Chinese Immigration
Chinese had a large population (430 million) in the late 1800s and an even higher
unemployment rate. There was widespread poverty.
The Taiping Rebellion broke out in China and those that could leave left by the
thousands. They came to America to work on the RR.
They located to mostly Western cities. They worked as skilled laborers or as
merchants.
Many native-born American business owners kept them out of their
businesses, so Chinese immigrants began opening their own businesses.
Japanese immigrants also began leaving their homeland for economic
opportunities in America.
23. Nativism
The huge waves of immigrants from Europe
led to an extreme dislike of immigrants by
native-born Americans. This feeling was
known as NATIVISM.
25. Reasons Nativists were against
Immigration
• They believed that there were more Catholic
immigrants coming in than there were
Protestant Americans.
• They feared that they would undermine the
labor unions by working for less.
• Nativists began to form anti-immigrant
organizations. These organizations agreed not
to hire or vote for any Catholics.
27. Anti-Irish Sentiment
Another group that was
despised by these anti-
immigrant/anti-Catholic
groups was the Irish.
Since they had to take the
lowest paying jobs or the
dirtiest jobs, they were
thought to be lazy, ignorant,
and unworthy of any
sympathy at all.
Legislators moved to pass
laws to limit immigration. By
the late 1800s, they passed
laws banning convicts and
mentally disabled people
from immigrating to the U.S.
Immigrants also had to pay a
50 cents tax per person to
come here.
30. Chinese Exclusion
• Legislators (particularly in CA) passed laws that
banned Chinese immigration for 10 years.
Chinese immigrants that were already in the
country were banned from becoming citizens.
• Although the Chinese protested by campaigning
and suing in court, Congress did not lift the ban
until 1943 (41 years later).
• When Japanese immigration increased, the San
Francisco Board of Education required Chinese,
Japanese, and Korean children to attend racially
segregated schools.
31. Chinese Exclusion
• Before, this had only applied to Chinese school-age
children.
• When Japanese officials in Japan found out about the
forced segregation, they were furious. They voiced
their concerns with then president Theodore (Teddy
Roosevelt) and he struck a deal with the school board.
• He agreed to pass legislation to limit Japanese
immigration in exchange for them integrating the
school for Asian immigrants. This deal became known
as the Gentlemen’s Agreement.
• Legislators would later propose giving immigrants
literacy tests before they could be admitted to the U. S.
33. Separation by Class (pg. 224 in text)
• The wealthy, the middle class, and the working class
(poor) lived in separate sections of town (much like
today).
• Because of industry, more Americans moved from
working class to middle class. The middle class was
mostly made up of
doctors, lawyers, engineers, teachers, social
workers,…etc.
• As they began to make more money, they began to
move further away from the city (to escape crime and
pollution).
• Most middle class families at this time had at least one
live-in servant.
34. The Working Poor
Most families that fell into the working class category could only dream of
owning a home. They lived in crowded apartments known as tenement housing.
Families also took in boarders to supplement their low wages.
Within the working class, white males made more than African-American men,
immigrants, and women.
The whole family generally worked. Children were also forced to work in terrible
work conditions. Most of them were illiterate since they had to go to work and
not school. Since there was no Medicaid, Medicare, or Social Security at this
time, 70% of people who were over the age of 65 lived with their adult children.
35. Jacob Riis forced poverty awareness with his
writings and his pictures about the slums
