Imm

Immigration Waves in the United States

By AiliseSchendorf
  • Oct 12, 1492

    Christopher Columbus "Discovers" North America

    Christopher Columbus "Discovers" North America
    On an expedition to find India, Christopher Columbus finds came to be called the "New World" and then later North America, which began the migration from Europe to North America.
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    First Wave

    The first wave of immigrants began in 1609. Most immigrants were from England, with smaller numbers from France, Spain, Ireland, Italy, and more. Around 500,000 immigrants came to live in Great Britain's colonies to escape religious persecution, find adventure, or in hopes of a better future. During this time, Africans were also taken to the colonies- some as indenture servants, but most as slaves.
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    Second Wave

    The second wave of European immigrants began in 1820. Most immigrants were from Germany and Ireland. Most immigrants came through Manhattan or Philadelphia. Gold was struck in California in 1848 and the beginning of the construction of the transcontinental railroad began in 1862. This wave also brought the beginning of Chinese immigrants to the United States who came to work building railroads, or to mine for gold.
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    Third Wave

    The third wave began in 1881. During the first decade of the wave, the immigrants were mostly from northern and western Europe. The second decade saw mostly immigrants from southern and eastern Europe. Chinese immigration continued steadily. Immigrants from Europe were recruited to increase population in some states and to work on railroads. Transatlantic travel became cheaper, thus 23 million new immigrants came to the United States.
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    Fourth Wave

    The passage of the federal Immigration and Nationality Act ended the system of quotas based on nationality. This brought immigrants from all over the world. Most recent immigrants are from Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. The new system capped immigration numbers by hemisphere- 120,000 from the Western Hemisphere and 170,000 from Eastern Hemisphere per year. These quotas were changed again in 1978, permitting 290,000 immigrants per year from anywhere in the world.