The Destiny of Immigrants in Colonial America History Essay

Haonan Sun
US Labor 201
First Draft
Due 11/27
The Destiny of Immigrants
America saw an influx of immigrants in the 19th century, and this was mainly because of the promise of growth that America carried. After the birth of the United States of America, the nation started to build the strongest economy in the world. There was a lot of promise and opportunities which had not been explored, and as a young nation, the country needed new ideas and people to stimulate and maintain this growth. Immigrants were still streaming in at the time, but there was a lot of uncertainty and tension because Britain was expected to retaliate against America’s declaration of independence. However, as the country was on a path to claim its glory, the number of immigrants increased. As America was growing, Europe was going through a myriad of problems. There was famine, the social class system which condemned a group of people to cyclical poverty, and systems of power that mistreated its people. These factors coupled with the young, unexplored, and vibrant American economy attracted many European immigrants. But what were they coming to? What was their destiny in America? Well, this article seeks to explore the plight of immigrants as they made their way to America in search for growth and prosperity.
First of all, immigrants were attracted to the United States because of the promise of growth and green futures. After settling in the United States and enjoying the new lands and growth opportunities, immigrants sent letters home and boasted of their new-found land where was replete with milk and honey. Clark et al. mentions such a letter which stated “I write to say we are all in good health……my husband can go out and catch a bucket of fish in a few minutes; and John brings as many apples as he can carry, when he comes from school” (329). In the letter, the immigrant tells her mother of their new-found richness and improved status. As noted on the side of the letter, it was because of letters such as this one which led to the immigration of thousands of Northern Europeans. At this time, Europe was undergoing major changes and issues of famine, and exploitative systems of government forced many to seek for greener pastures in the United States.
A majority of the immigrants camped in the North which boasted of people with a renewed mindset when it comes to development and slavery. In the North, slavery had been abolished, and African Americans were free to look for jobs. Development in the North was rapid, and this created a need for labor. African Americans were largely unskilled and thus could not provide the needed skilled labor, and this created a room and opportunity for immigrants who took these positions. Clark et al. notes that this “demand for labor was fueled by the growth of American cities, new technologies and western settlements, a boom in commerce and industry, and rapid increase in agricultural production” (378). This growth meant that immigrants could find work and many of them joined what was at the time the category of free labor. Free labor as Clark et al. notes “was used in this period to distinguish workers in the North from the brutalities of legalized slave labor in the So...