In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the majority of documented migration to the United States of American came from European countries. Between 1820 and 1957, of the approximate 41 million migrants to the US, over 34 million of these came from Europe. The most commonly documented countries of origin during this time were Germany (6.6 million), Italy (4.9 million), Ireland (4.6 million), Great Britain (4.5 million), and Russia (3.4 million). The first wave of mass migration came in the 1850s, as the Great famine crippled Ireland's population, and many in rural areas of mainland Europe struggled to adapt to industrialization, and economic opportunities attracted many in the 1870s, following the American Civil War. The 1880s saw another wave, as steam powered ships and lower fares made trans-Atlantic journeys much more affordable. The first wave of mass migration from Eastern and Southern Europe also arrived at this time, as industrialization and agricultural advancements led to high unemployment in these regions.
The majority of migrants to the United States settled in major urban centers, which allowed the expansion of industry, leading to the United States' emergence as one of the leading global economies at the turn of the twentieth century. The largest wave of migration to the United states during this period came in the first fifteen years of the 1900s. The influx of migrants from Northern and Western Europe had now been replaced by an influx from Eastern and Southern Europe (although migration from the British Isles was still quite high during this time). European migration fell to it's lowest levels in eighty years during the First World War, before fluctuating again in the interwar period, due to the Great Depression. As the twentieth century progressed, the continent with the highest levels of migration to the US gradually changed from Europe to Latin America, as economic opportunities in Western Europe improved, and the US' relationship with the Soviet Union and other Eastern, communist states became complicated.
Number of documented migrants from Europe to the United States between 1820 and 1957
Year
Number of migrants
1957
169,625
1956
156,866
1955
110,591
1954
92,121
1953
82,352
1952
193,626
1951
149,545
1950
199,115
1949
129,592
1948
103,544
1947
83,535
1946
52,852
1945
5,943
1944
4,509
1943
4,920
1942
11,153
1941
26,541
1940
50,454
1939
63,138
1938
44,495
1937
31,863
1936
23,480
1935
22,778
1934
17,210
1933
12,383
1932
20,579
1931
61,909
1930
147,438
1929
158,598
1928
158,513
1927
168,368
1926
155,562
1925
148,366
1924
364,339
1923
307,920
1922
216,385
1921
652,364
1920
246,295
1919
24,627
1918
31,063
1917
133,083
1916
145,699
1915
197,919
1914
1,058,391
1913
1,055,855
1912
718,875
1911
764,757
1910
926,291
1909
654,875
1908
691,901
1907
1,199,566
1906
1,018,365
1905
974,273
1904
767,933
1903
814,507
1902
619,068
1901
469,237
1900
424,700
1899
297,349
1898
217,786
1897
216,397
1896
329,067
1895
250,342
1894
277,052
1893
429,324
1892
570,876
1891
546,085
1890
445,680
1889
434,790
1888
538,131
1887
482,829
1886
329,529
1885
358,083
1884
453,686
1883
522,587
1882
648,186
1881
528,545
1880
348,691
1879
134,259
1878
101,612
1877
106,195
1876
120,920
1875
182,961
1874
262,783
1873
397,541
1872
352,155
1871
265,145
1870
328,626
1869
315,963
1868
130,090
1867
283,751
1866
278,916
1865
214,048
1864
185,233
1863
163,733
1862
83,710
1861
81,200
1860
141,209
1859
110,949
1858
111,354
1857
216,224
1856
186,083
1855
187,729
1854
405,542
1853
361,576
1852
362,484
1851
369,510
1850
308,323
1849
286,501
1848
218,025
1847
229,117
1846
146,315
1845
109,301
1844
74,745
1843
49,013
1842
99,945
1841
76,216
1840
80,126
1839
64,148
1838
34,070
1837
71,039
1836
70,465
1835
41,987
1834
57,510
1833
29,111
1832
34,193
1831
13,039
1830
7,217
1829
12,523
1828
24,729
1827
16,719
1826
9,751
1825
8,543
1824
4,965
1823
4,016
1822
4,418
1821
5,936
1820
7,691
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US Department of Commerce, & US Census Bureau. (August 29, 2019). Number of documented migrants from Europe to the United States between 1820 and 1957 [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved December 15, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1044523/migration-europe-to-us-1820-1957/
US Department of Commerce, und US Census Bureau. "Number of documented migrants from Europe to the United States between 1820 and 1957." Chart. August 29, 2019. Statista. Accessed December 15, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1044523/migration-europe-to-us-1820-1957/
US Department of Commerce, US Census Bureau. (2019). Number of documented migrants from Europe to the United States between 1820 and 1957. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: December 15, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1044523/migration-europe-to-us-1820-1957/
US Department of Commerce, and US Census Bureau. "Number of Documented Migrants from Europe to The United States between 1820 and 1957." Statista, Statista Inc., 29 Aug 2019, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1044523/migration-europe-to-us-1820-1957/
US Department of Commerce & US Census Bureau, Number of documented migrants from Europe to the United States between 1820 and 1957 Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1044523/migration-europe-to-us-1820-1957/ (last visited December 15, 2024)
Number of documented migrants from Europe to the United States between 1820 and 1957 [Graph], US Department of Commerce, & US Census Bureau, August 29, 2019. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1044523/migration-europe-to-us-1820-1957/