The US government immigration policy and laws changed according to the situation and important events such as the abolition of slavery and the emigration of the Exodusters, the railroads and the Long Depression. Discover the rates of immigration that include the numbers of migrants for each decade between 1850 - 1880, the country of origin and flow of people entering the United States by year. Important events in history provide the general tendency or direction of the US Immigration Trends 1850 - 1880.

Mid 1800's US Immigration Trends: US Immigration Flow1850 - 1880
The immigration trends and flow into the United States during the mid 1800's is detailed in the following chart.

Mid 1800's US Immigration Flow1850 - 1880

1851 - 1860: 2,598,214 immigrants arrived in the US

1861 - 1870: 2,314,825 immigrants arrived in the US

1871 - 1880: 2,812,191 immigrants arrive in the US

Summary of US Immigration Trendsof the Mid 1800's
The following chart provides a summary of the mid 1800's US Immigration Trends.

Summary of US Immigration Trends - Mid 1800's

Trends 1850 - 1880: Forced migration from Africa was banned when slavery was abolished

Trends 1850 - 1880: The Exodusters started a wave of emigration within the United States

Trends 1850 - 1880: The Immigration was encouraged due to industrialization and the growth of industry and the railroads

Trends 1850 - 1880: The number of immigrants rapidly expanded showing distinct upward trends

Trends 1850 - 1880: The poor economic climate in the US led to civil unrest and prejudice against migrants

Mid 1800's US Immigration Trends: Slavery Abolished and the Exodusters
The Civil War had major ramifications on the forced immigration of African slaves and the practice of bond service. The 13th Amendment was ratified in 1865 ending slavery and bond service in the United States. In 1897 the Exodusters, thousands of African Americans from the southern states, migrated to Kansas. It was one of the first waves of emigration within the United States.

Mid 1800's US Immigration Trends1850 - 1880: The Railroads
The First Industrial Revolution heralded the building of the railroads enabling the policy of Westward Expansion supported by the belief in the Manifest Destiny of Americans. Following the Civil War the construction of the 3,500 miles long Transcontinental Railroad began in the 1800's. Many American workers including Irish laborers and ex-soldiers started work on the tracks but left due to the 1865 Nevada silver rush and railroad owners started to hire Chinese immigrants. Other immigrants flocked to the United States motivated by the prospect of free land or other forms of employment and a better life. Steamship and railroad companies recruited immigrants as customers.

Mid 1800's US Immigration Trends 1850 - 1880: The Long Depression
The Panic of 1873 led to the Long Depression which lasted for six years and resulted in economic hardships, civil unrest, protests, demonstrations and the first nationwide strikes. Immigrants were blamed for the high levels of unemployment and calls for the government to curb Immigration. There was a resurgence of Nativism in America in the 1800's which held the belief that the interests of native-born or established residents should be given a favored status compared to new immigrants.