Push for National Identity, Votes, Westward Expansion (1790 – 1860)
The immigration issue demanded attention immediately following the country’s formal establishment under the Constitution. With a first wave of immigrants coming largely from the British Isles, Congress was intent on establishing a national identity and ensuring that all immigrants would be loyal to the Constitution and not the Crown. Congress also wanted to distinguish between which foreign-born individuals would have a path to citizenship, and the Black slave population which would remain ineligible.
Later in the nation’s first decade, during the presidency of John Adams, war in France and the emergence of strongly partisan political divisions led to limits on immigration out of fears of another war. Additionally, an increase in the time needed for immigrants to become citizens was motivated by a desire to limit the number of immigrant votes for opposition candidates.
Following the War of 1812, a second wave of immigrants began to arrive on our shores.
Second Immigration Wave
Demographic: Northern and Western Europe (primarily Irish and German immigrants), and Asian Countries (primarily Chinese)
Push/Pull Factors: Poverty and famine in Ireland. Economic opportunities and religious / political freedom in the US
After the War of 1812 ended and peace was reestablished between the US and Britain, immigration from Northern and Western Europe increased significantly. The industrial revolution had begun to impact agricultural communities, leaving many jobless and with few opportunities in their native lands. The largest group of immigrants (5 million) came from Germany, pulled to the US by its abundance of land and promises of religious and political freedom. Approximately 2.8 million immigrants arrived from Ireland, which experienced severe famine in the mid-19th century. These Irish Catholic immigrants initiated one of the first significant demographic shifts since American independence, and generated anti-Catholic sentiment as the American identity began to change.
In the early 1850s, thousands of Chinese people immigrated to the US to escape poor conditions in China, and like so many Americans, they were attracted by the California gold rush. While these new arrivals found employment, they experienced substantial backlash for being willing to work for below-market wages and taking jobs from Americans, and for introducing different physical and cultural characteristics into American life.
