The Seven Eras of U.S. Immigration History

Coming to America. Ellis Island.

When my children were growing up, we would take them to NewYork City each time we went out east to see my parents and brothers who lived in Eastern Pennsylvania. On one occasion we went to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. While growing up I'd been to these sites several times but on this last visit I noticed something I'd not seen before. Immigrants came in waves. I was struck, for example, by the tidal wave of people who fled Eastern Europe during the pogroms of the early 1900s.

Recalling Ellis Island, and the current disruptive events surrounding immigration matters, prompted me to assemble this outline of our nation's immigration history. It is my aim to follow up with additional thoughts. But first, this outline as a means of establishing a context.

U.S. IMMIGRATION HISTORY

A chronological overview of the major immigration waves into the United States, starting in the 1600s, with their primary causes 

1. Colonial Era Immigration (1600s–1775)

Who came: English Puritans, Anglicans, Scots-Irish, Germans (Palatines from war-torn region of the Rhine River), Enslaved Africans (forced migration).

Reasons why they came:
Religious persecution (Puritans, Quakers)
Economic opportunity (land, trade)
Political instability in Europe
Forced labor to sustain colonial economies

EdNote: Enslaved Africans were not immigrants by choice, but their arrival profoundly shaped U.S. history and demographics.

2. Early Republic & Open Immigration (1780s–1840s)

Who came: Germans, Scots-Irish, English artisans and farmers

Reasons why they came:
Cheap or free land
Political upheaval in Europe

---Few legal restrictions on immigration
---Rapid westward expansion

EdNote: The U.S. largely welcomed immigrants with minimal regulation.

3. Mid-19th Century Mass Migration (1840s–1860s)

Who came: Irish, Germans, Chinese (especially to the West Coast)

Reasons why they came:
Irish Potato Famine
European revolutions (1848)
Gold Rush & railroad construction
Industrial labor demand

EdNote: This wave triggered the first major anti-immigrant backlash (Know-Nothing movement).

Related Link: The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882

4. Industrial Age “New Immigration” (1880–1924)

Ellis Island. Immigrants awaiting examination

Who came: Italians Jews from Eastern Europe, Poles, Hungarians, Greeks, Japanese (West Coast & Hawaii)
Reasons why they came:

Industrial jobs
Poverty & pogroms
Steamship travel made migration affordable
Chain migration through family networks

EdNote: This is the largest voluntary immigration wave in U.S. history.

5. Restriction Era (1924–1965).

Who came: Very limited European immigration, Mexican laborers (temporary programs), Internal migration of African Americans (Great Migration)

Reasons why they came:
Immigration Act of 1924 imposed ethnic quotas

Racist and eugenic thinking dominated policy

WWII labor shortages led to temporary exceptions

EdNote: This era dramatically reshaped who could not come.

6. Post-1965 Global Immigration Wave (1965–1990s)

Who came: Latin Americans, Asians (China, India, Philippines, Korea), Refugees from Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos
Reasons why they came:

Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965

Family reunification rules
Cold War refugee policy
Post-colonial global instability

EdNote: This law ended race-based quotas and transformed U.S. demographics.

7. Contemporary Immigration (1990s–Present)

Who comes:
Mexico & Central America
South & East Asia
Africa (growing share)

Reasons why they came:
Economic inequality
Political violence  
Global labor demand (tech, healthcare)
Family reunification

EdNote: Immigration today is more global than ever, but also more politically contested.

The Recurring Big Picture Pattern

Across 400+ years, U.S. immigration waves follow a repeating rhythm:

Push factors (famine, war, persecution)
Pull factors (jobs, land, safety)
Political resistance once numbers grow

Each wave was once seen as a “threat.”
Each eventually became part of the American mainstream.

Questions for Discussion

--When did your families arrive on America? What may have been the reasons they left their homelands to come here?    

--In what ways has immigration contributed to the evolution of American identity—from the "melting pot" ideal to modern "tossed salad" of multiculturalism—and how might acknowledging diverse immigrant histories challenge or enrich our national narrative?                                                                
--Over the past 70 years, how many immigrants have come to our borders because of economic hardships and social disruptions as a result of regime change shenanigans sponsored or instigated by U.S. covert actions?