Immigrant groups had motivations to venture to America. In Europe, they had no say in the government affairs, as it was run by the elite class and nobles. Immigrants wanted the chance to have both political and religious freedom, due to the inability for some churches in Europe to tolerate other types of faiths. Immigrants also had the desire to acquire as much land as possible, due to much of the land in Europe being controlled by the ruling class. Many of those who wished to seek new opportunities in America were excited by the potential of owning their own property.

Motivations

Congregating in CitiesWhen immigrants came to America, they often stuck by one another when finding a place to dwell. Eventually, ethnic neighborhoods were formed from these large groups of immigrants in one place. Each type of immigrant had its own part of town, especially in New York City. For example, those of Italian descent could primarily be found in Little Italy, while Chinese people lived in Chinatown. Conditions were detrimental. Many families were cramped into tight living conditions without the aid of a sewage system that eventually led to rampant spread of disease.

Today, nearly every major city in the United States has an area known as Chinatown. Newly arrived immigrants still settle in these areas, where they feel more comfortable as they adjust to life in America.

DiscriminationSome people opposed immigration to the United States during the late 19th century. Catholics were targeted by “Nativists” who desecrated and ruined many Catholic churches and places of worship. German immigrants were not liked due to their form of social structure, which involved them speaking mainly in the German language. The Nativists did not see the point of immigrating if the new citizens did not wish to learn the English language. Immigrants sometimes discriminated among themselves; the Irish attacked the Chinese during the western construction of railroads. Chinese immigration was eventually restricted by the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882-10 year moratorium on Chinese immigration.

Returning HomeMany immigrants came to America with motives besides settling and forming a new life. They came to America to make enough money to return home for a better life with their families. Immigrants were predominantly men, who left their families behind for more plentiful jobs in the United States. Immigrants would be gone for one to two years before returning to homes to start over. There were cases where opportunities were so vast in America that the males would pay for the passage of their entire families to venture to the United States.

Mulberry Street Bend, 1889

Mulberry Street Bend, 1889

5-Cent Lodgings5-Cent Lodgings

Immigrant Family Lodgings

Immigrant Family Lodgings

”Bandits’ Roost””Bandits’ Roost”

Mullen’s Alley ”Gang”Mullen’s Alley ”Gang”

ANDREW JOHNSON’SIMPEACHMENT

RICH GET RICHERPOOR GET POORER

BRIBERY-Political Machines

CREDIT MOBILIER-inflatedPrices to RR’s while investorsControlled both companies.

DAMAGED PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE

MISLED THE PUBLIC

INSPIRED POLITICAL REFORM

Political MachinesPatronage system

Political machines operated in the late 19th century. It was a fixture in American cities such as Chicago and New York. They were usually headed by a “boss,” who would have the support of not only politicians and business owners, but immigrants. Immigrants saw earning the boss’ support as a rite of passage into America. The boss would help them if, in exchange, they voted to keep his political friends in power. Some instances saw bosses use nefarious tactics, such as loans to immigrants as a bribe of sorts in order to ensure that the immigrants would vote for them.

The Irish were able to successfully use the patronage system to gain more power and influence in America.

PATRONAGE SYSTEM**CORRUPTION

**POLITICAL FAVORS“TO THE VICTOR, GO THE SPOILS”

ENDS WITH GARFIELD’S ASSASSINATION

STATES COULD REGULATE RR’S

OVERTURNED AND SAID

ONLY CONGRESS CAN REGULATE INTERSTATE

COMMERCE

PROHIBIT MONOPOLIES

UNSUCCESSFUL

HOLDING COMPANIES

RR COMPANIES

BANNED REBATES & POOLING

“REASONABLE & JUST RATES

“SOLID SOUTH”VOTED DEMOCRAT

AGAINST RECONSTRUCTION

BLACKS & VOTING

15TH AMENDMENTRIGID RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS

LITERACY TESTSPOLL TAXES

GRANDFATHER CLAUSES

JIM CROW LAWSSEGREGATION CODESPLESSY vs. FERGUSON-

SEPARATE BUT EQUAL WASCONSTITUTIONALLYNCHING, KKK

George Washington Carver

The story of the Waco Horror begins with the discovery of a body. Just about sundown near the town of Robinson, twenty-one-year-old Ruby Fryer and her brother, fourteen-year-old George Fryer Jr., returned home from chopping cotton on the family's two hundred acre farm. In the heavy heat and quiet of the late afternoon. They noticed that their mother, Lucy Fryer, was not in the house as usual. Just as George was going out to look for her, Ruby peered through the window and saw Lucy lying in a pool of blood in the doorway of the seed house, about thirty steps away. A neighbor, Chris Simon, had been away from home all day and had just come back through the big gate at the main road when he heard Ruby and George screaming and crying over their mother's body. It was probably Simon who ran for George Fryer Sr., who had been working in a different part of the field from the children, about a mile from the house. Lucy Fryer lay in the doorway of the seed house. Her skull had been bashed in at several points and her clothing was disheveled. Dr. J. H. Maynard examined her and reported at the trial that at least two of the six wounds on her head, made with a heavy, blunt instrument, could have killed her.

Mobs often paraded their victim down the main street, through black

neighborhoods, and in front of "colored schools" that were in session. Jesse

Washington, seventeen years old, was the chief suspect in the May 8, 1916 , murder of Lucy Fryer of Robinson ,

Texas , on whose farm he worked as a laborer.

After the lynching, Washington 's corpse was placed in a burlap bag and dragged around City Hall Plaza, through the main streets of Waco , and seven miles to Robinson, where a large black population resided. His charred corpse was hung for public display in front of a blacksmith shop.