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Sep 5, 1565
First permanent European settlement in the United States
Established at St. Augustine, Florida, by the Spanish. -
The Declaration of Independence
The document made America an Independent country. It also charged the king of England with obstructing migration to British North America, which indicated that the colonies were interested in gaining new settlers. -
The United States Constitution
Takes effect, replacing the Articles of Confederation that had governed the union of states since the conclusion of the Revolutionary War. -
Naturalization Act of 1798 Revision
The Jefferson Administration revises the Naturalization Act of 1798 by reducing the residency requirement from 14 to five years. -
Period: to
More immigrants arrive
1,713,251 more immigrants arrive -
Homestead Act
Signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln The Homestead Act provided free plots of land up to 160 acres to western settlers who agree to develop and live on it for at least five years -
Henderson vs. Mayor of New York
The Supreme Court in Henderson vs. Mayor of New York, rules that the issue of immigration is a federal matter and not a concern for state government. -
Period: to
More Immigrants Arrive
5,246,613 immigrants arrive -
President William McKinley is shot
After President William McKinley is shot and killed by a Polish anarchist, congress enacts the Anarchist Exclusion Act, which prohibits the entry of anyone thought to be an anarchists or political extremists into the US. -
The Expatriation Act
Declares that any American woman who marries a foreign man loses her US citizenship. -
First Instance of a General Restriction of Immigrants
A literacy test for incoming immigrants becomes law. The bill was passed over the veto of President Woodrow Wilson. -
Immigration Act of 1924
Limitedannual European immigration to 2% of the number of people from that country living in the United States in 1890. -
Border Patrol
Founded as an agency of the United States Department of Labor to prevent illegal entries along the Mexico–United States border and the United States-Canada border. -
The Tydings-McDuffe Act
Authored by Maryland Senator Millard E. Tydings and Alabama Representative John McDuffie, grants the Philippines independence from the United States, but strips Filipinos of US citizenship and severely restricts Filipino immigration to the United States. -
Operation Wetback
Immigration law enforcement initiative created by Director of Immigration and Naturalization Service Joseph Swing under President Eisenhower. Cut illegal immigration at the cost of anti-Latino discrimination. -
The Immigration Act of 1965
Signed into law by Lyndon B. Johnson it abolished the National Origins Formula that had been in place in the United States. In other words, removed the national origins quota system. -
The Immigration Reform and Control Act
Allowed most illegal immigrants who had resided in the U.S. since January of 1982 to apply for citizenship, and also prohibited employers from hiring illegal immigrants. It also mandates penalties for violations of this law. -
The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act
Made it easier to deport illegal immigrants attempting to enter the U.S. without the proper documents. -
SB 1070
The Act was signed into law by Governor Jan Brewer in Arizona. "The Arizona Act additionally made it a state misdemeanor crime for an alien to be in Arizona without carrying the required documents, required that state law enforcement officers attempt to determine an individual's immigration status during a "lawful stop, detention or arrest", or during a "lawful contact" not specific to any activity when there is reasonable suspicion that the individual is an illegal immigranant"
