Daily Life in Immigrant America, 1870–1920: How the Second Great Wave of Immigrants Made Their Way in America

by June Granatir Alexander

The second "wave" of U.S. immigration, from 1870 to 1920, brought more than 26 million men, women, and children onto American shores. June Granatir Alexander's history of the period underscores the diversity of peoples who came to the United States in these years and emphasizes the important shifts in their geographic origins—from northern and western Europe to southern and eastern Europe—that led to the distinction between "old" and "new" immigrants.

Alexander offers an engrossing picture of the immigrants' daily lives, including the settlement patterns of individuals and families, the demographics and characteristics of each of the ethnic groups, and the pressures to "Americanize" that often made the adjustment to life in a new country so difficult. The approach, similar to David Kyvig's highly successful Daily Life in the United States, 1920–1940 (published by Ivan R. Dee in 2004), presents history with an appealing immediacy, on a level that everyone can understand.

Genres: History

352 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[adele]

This was a great and informative review of immigration during this time period! Read for SURF 2023

[Marguerite Woodward]

I found this book to be very informative!!!! It went into detail what it was like to be an immigrant during the 1870 to 1920 time period.