1. IMMIGRATION
• Push Factor: reasons that people may choose
to LEAVE a certain area
• Pull Factor: reasons people GO to a certain
area

2. Immigration
• Between 1870 & 1920, over 20 million people
immigrated to the United States
• Some came for the promise of a better life
• Others wanted to escape difficult conditions
– Religious or political persecution
– Famine, land shortages
• “Birds of passage”
– Move temporarily, earn $ and return home

3. Old Immigrants
• Western & northern Europe
• Similar to those already in U.S.
– Protestant
– Spoke English
• Came with:
• some money
• job skills

4. New Immigrants
• Eastern & Southern Europe, Asia
• Very different from Americans
– Catholic, Jew, Buddhists, etc.
– Few job skills
– Settled in ethnically distinct neighborhoods
• Stood out because they looked different &
were subject to racism
• See map on pg. 263

6. Ellis Island & Angel Island
• European immigrants entered the U.S. @ Ellis
Island in NY Harbor
• Asian immigrants entered @ Angel Island in
San Francisco Bay

7. Response to Immigration
• Nativism: favoritism toward native born
Americans
• Job competition
• Anti-immigrant groups
• Literacy tests
• Restrictions such as the Chinese Exclusion Act

8. Political Problems
• Graft: the illegal use of influence for personal
gain (bribes)
• Patronage: giving jobs to the people who
helped a candidate get elected
• Election fraud
• Corrupt political machines

9. Political Machines
• Offered services to voters & businesses in
exchange for votes
• Organized party activities
• Popular with immigrants

10. Tweed Ring Scandal
• William Tweed: Head
of Tammany Hall, NYC
Dem. machine
• Corrupt politician who
cheated taxpayers out
of $10 million

11. Tweed
• Thomas Nast:
cartoonist who raised
awareness of corrupt
politicians like Tweed
• What happened to
Tweed?
– His sentence was
reduced to one year &
he escaped

12. Need for Reform
• Reformers wanted to replace patronage with
a merit system for civil service jobs
• Progress was made under presidents Hayes,
Garfield, and Arthur

13. Pendleton Civil Service Act
• President Arthur
• Gov. jobs would be based on performance on
an exam

14. Business Buys Influence
• The merit system negatively impacted
campaign contributions
• Politicians turned to wealthy business
owners who favored high tariffs
• Tariffs protect domestic products from
foreign competition

15. Election of 1888
Cleveland- Dem.
• Served non-consecutive
terms
• Won in 1884 & 1892
• Low-tariff platform
Harrison- Rep.
• Campaign was financed by
big businesses
• McKinley Tariff Act- raised
tariffs