German and Irish immigrants in US
From the 1830s to 1840s, the US witnessed a lot of immigrants from European countries. The immigrants left homeland countries for different reasons. This paper examines German and Irish immigrants in the US in the 1830s and 1840s. The highest number of German and Irish population immigrants in the US was experienced between the 1830s and 1840s. The Irish had different migrated to the US for various reasons. The famine from 1815 was the main reason for the migration to the US. Potatoes were the staple food in Ireland, in the late seventeenth century; more than 3.3 million Irish relied on potatoes for food. The crop was mainly dependent on poor Irish because it was cheap. The potatoes were attacked by a disease known as light blight. It destroyed potato crops leading to a famine, and most of the Irish who dependent on it believed America would offer a suitable environment for agriculture. The second reason for their migration was religious persecutions. Catholicism was the faith in Ireland. However, the country was under the colonization of British who punished Catholic Irish. Irish Catholics were denied opportunities to hold public offices, practice law, vote or even teach in a school. The US was a non-religion country, and thus Irish escaped to the US for religious freedom. Other minor factors include poverty and harsh treatment by English rulers.
Germans also had their main reason for their migration into the US. The main factor was land scarcity. The land was one of the precious commodities in German. Wealth was measured by the size of land that an individual had. As a result, in the 1830s, the price of land rose, making some people unable to acquire land. Also, some states had laws that were biased regarding land inheritance. Some states declared that land would be inherited either to the eldest or youngest son, and this made many Germans lack land. According to reports, property in the US was idle, and that seemed to settle the issue. The second factor was an advertisement about life in the US. Germans who had previously settled in the US were sending letters to Germans at home country, encouraging them to come to the US because the land was free and life in America was better than in Germany. German and Irish immigrants had both similar and varying experiences in America. Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
Life in America
Economic Opportunities
Most of the Irish who migrated to America were poor and illiterate. Due to the problems in their home country, they came empty-handed and thus they had nothing to trade. This forced them to accept any available jobs. They were ready to receive low wages, as they perceived that it was better than living in their country. Most of Irish settled along the coastline and did not go further inside the US and thus they were essential laborers in the city ports. They competed for unskilled labor with blacks who were treated as slaves. The Irish immigrants were exploited in the US for their labor, and sometimes they were treated like slaves. Through hard work, Irish immigrants were able to purchase land in the US, as it was going for as little as $5 an acre. As a result, they were ready to plant crops helping them to become economically stable.
German immigrants into the US were well equipped and had the capital to invest in the country. Most of them did not take the cheap labor, but ventured into skilled labor and small businesses in America. They specialized in occupations like tailors, furriers, brewers and shoemakers. Others became food dealers, music instrument makers and peddlers. Unlike Irish, German moved further inland and to the west after migrating, and this gave them additional advantages economically. According to research, German artisans could earn $1.50 to $2.0 per day. Unlike in Germany, women immigrants were capable of acquiring jobs in the US as maids earning $ 1.25 per week. Some Germans were financially stable when they moved to the US, and this enabled them to buy land for farming after arrival. For instance, in 1833, a German farmer bought 150 acres of land where he planted potatoes, wheat, cotton and pumpkins. This concluded that many Germans became economically successful in America.
Social Experience
Irish social experience
Many Irish immigrants worked as casual labors, and thus they had low incomes. As a result, they lived in crowd houses. Some studies conclude that more than twenty families lived in one house. Due to the harsh living conditions, diseases like cholera were among Irish immigrants, and at times it caused deaths. Discrimination was a common social experience in America. Irish immigrants were negatively stereotyped due to their foreign languages and Catholicism. Employers also stereotyped Irish as lazy, and thus some factories did not recruit them. For instance, some companies had posters labelled “No Irish Need Apply” to indicate that they did not hire Irish people. The Irish were assimilated with the native whites and by late 1830s; they were no longer treated as immigrants or discriminated. Some of the Irish words like a hooligan, whiskey and galore became part of the English terms. These words are still being used today.
The Germany immigrants were well off because they mostly engaged in businesses and skilled labor which were well paying. As a result, German immigrants were capable of standard living life and did not live in poverty like Irish. However, just like Irish, German immigrants experienced discrimination from Native Americans because they spoke a different language. For instance, their children could not attend English schools because of language. They were discriminated in job recruitment by some companies and visiting certain areas. Germans easily assimilated with Americans because they were educated and were more productive than the Irish.
Religion Experience
The Irish came to the US with their religion, Catholicism. The catholic faith was played an important role in strengthening Irish immigrants to persevere the challenges that they were going through in the US. Irish Catholicism started spreading in the US, which led to nativists organizing rallies in various parts to stop its spread. The Irish Catholics fought back to protect their religion. In 1843, the Irish engaged in weapon struggles with nativists in Philadelphia because they believed that their faith could not be interfered with.
Like Irish, Germans brought their religions with them in the US. However, German immigrants practised many religions with Catholicism and Lutheranism being dominant. The Native Americans opposed these religions, but Germans continued to practice their faiths. German Catholics and Lutherans were discriminated for continuous practice of their faiths and actively protecting anybody who wanted to interfere with their religion.
Conclusion
The Irish and German Immigrants in the 1830s and 1840s are no different from today US immigrants. They have similar causes on why they leave their homeland for the US. Most of the current immigrants come to the US, which believes that life is more comfortable in the country. For instance, Mexican immigrants risk their life to snick into the US, thinking that they are going to experience a better life. However, when they come to the US, they experience similar challenges to those experienced by Irish and German immigrants. They experience discrimination, language barrier and opposition to their faiths and beliefs.