Mr. Evans’ History Documents

Between 1885 and 1920, approximately 21,000,000 immigrants arrived in America. Roughly 75 percent (75%) of them entered through New York Bay and were processed at Ellis Island after the immigration station opened in 1892.

The arrival of immigrants from new parts of the world brought fears of new diseases and new germs being introduced to the United States. As a result, immigrants who arrived were first met by medical officers from the US Public Health Service (USPHS), who examined them for evidence of “loathsome or dangerous contagious diseases,” which could be grounds for sending immigrants home.

During the early years of the 20th century, trachoma, an infectious eye disease that could lead to blindness if left untreated, became one of the leading reasons for excluding immigrants on medical grounds. To check for trachoma USPHS officers would flip back immigrants’ eyelids using their fingers or a buttonhook, an implement originally intended for fastening the small buttons common on shoes and clothing at the time.

Assimilation is when a minority group adopts the beliefs, culture, and way of life of the dominant culture. During the 1890s-1900s Americans wanted the “new” immigrants to stop following their old culture and beliefs, such as religion, traditions, and customs, and instead adopt the ideals and characteristics of Americans to create one homogenous culture shared between people of all backgrounds.

Acculturation is when the minority culture is changed by the dominant culture, but the minority culture is still able to retain unique cultural markers of language, food, and customs. During the 1890s-1900s many “new” immigrants refused to give up their cultural identities in order to merge into American society.

Each of these terms can be simplified into a cultural theory, the “melting pot” theory and the “salad bowl” theory. The “melting pot” theory describes society as a mixture of people of different cultures and races who blend together by abandoning their native languages and customs. The “salad bowl” theory describes society as the integration of the many different cultures in the United States where each culture retains their own unique cultural characteristics.

Hilda Polacheck, a WPA writer, interviewed Louis T. in June 1939 as part of the Federal Writers’ Project in the 1930’s. Louis T. was a Polish Jew. Below is an excerpt from the interview, which can be found in American Life Histories: Manuscripts from the Federal Writers’ Project, 1936-1940.

This excerpt describes the difficulty and scarcity of living in China. Many Chinese immigrated to the United States because of poor living conditions in China and lack of opportunities.

November 1861.

Ralph Waldo Emerson, address on The Fugitive Slave Law, May 3, 1851

An anonymous Georgian, “Plain Words for the North,” American Whig Review

“The Compromise of 1850” by James Shields, 1850

Robert Toombs of Georgia Statement on the House of Representative Floor December 13, 1849 regarding the Wilmot Proviso.

Historical Context and Impact