Immigration in the U.S. Timeline by Greydon Cast

1607-1776 - European Colonists

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 20:44:02 UTC

Colonists came from Britain, Germany, Spain, and France to settle in North America. They were fleeing religious persecution. Columbus came from Spain to explore and find new territory, and other colonists and explorers followed in his wake.

1619 - First Enslaved Africans

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 20:48:48 UTC

Came to Jamestown, Virginia. The first two planters to buy slaves were William Tucker and George Yeardly. The slaves were originally kidnapped by the Portuguese from Kongo and Ndongo. During the trip to the Americas, many of the enslaved Africans died of sickness and hunger.

1845-1852 The Irish

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 20:53:05 UTC

The Irish came to the Americas because the British had taken control of Ireland. They were starving to death because of the Potato Famine, which happened because their potatoes were diseased. Potatoes had originally come from South America, but were then taken to Ireland and other European countries. Ireland became so reliant on potatoes that when their crops started dying, it caused a mass famine. The Irish came to North America for jobs and land. When the Irish arrived, the colonists already there put up signs saying, "Irish need not apply."

1848 - Germans

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 20:58:40 UTC

The Germans fled political persecution. They were trying to create a more democratic government and were being arrested for it. Today, about 40-60% of Americans claim to have German heritage.

1862 - The Homestead Act

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 21:04:46 UTC

The government encourages European immigrants to move out west. They're offered 160 acres of free land if they farm it and live on it for at least 5 years. This was done during the Civil War to bring in immigrants supporting the Union agenda. It also benefited homeless freedmen after the end of the war, as they could benefit from the basically free land.

1882 - Government Creates the Chinese Exclusion Act

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 21:10:47 UTC

The U.S. government decided that it didn't want the Chinese coming to the U.S., so it stopped immigration from China. One of the reasons the colonists back then did not like the Chinese was because they practiced Buddhism. This was the first major federal law restricting immigration.

1892-1910 - Italians, Greeks, Polish, and Russians

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 21:14:26 UTC

These immigrants came to Ellis Island. Processed over 12 million immigrants. Russian Jews were the largest group to come through Ellis Island to escape religious persecution. Many immigrants came through Ellis Island because they wanted to get jobs during the Industrial Revolution.

1917 - Test Requirement

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 21:20:35 UTC

They began to give immigrants literacy tests that were required in order to enter the country. The purpose for this was to attempt to reduce European immigration, although exemptions were given for people who were fleeing persecution. The Immigration Act of 1917 was put in place two years after the KKK reestablished itself with 5 million followers. A lot of the people being rejected by this test were people they did not like, which included the Jewish and Catholic.

1920-1965 - Restriction Era

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 21:35:14 UTC

Two different immigration acts, the Emergency Quota Act of 1921 and the Immigration Act of 1924, seriously limited immigration. The goal was to prevent more people from coming into the country. This was during the Booming 20's, so the government wanted to keep too many people from chasing the U.S.'s extreme wealth. They wanted to keep the money to themselves.

1965 - The Hart Cellar Act

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 21:39:06 UTC

This act abolishes the immigration quotas and emphasizes family reunification, which sparked new immigration. At this point, we had immigrants coming from Latin America, Asia, and Africa. The purpose for abolishing the quotas was that they were discriminatory against certain places. The quotas heavily favored European immigration, which was unfair.

1975-1980 - Resettlement

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 21:42:24 UTC

The U.S. resettles refugees from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. They did this to help them after the Vietnam War. During this time, the U.S. took in about 300,000 Vietnamese refugees. More than a million refugees total came in during this era.

1980 - The Refugee Act

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 21:44:47 UTC

This act was to create a process of asylum and help more refugees to be settled. The U.S. created a better system to allow more refugees in, and created the Office of Refugee Resettlement to help refugees build a new life for themselves in the U.S.

1996 - Stricter Enforcement Laws

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 21:48:37 UTC

The U.S. government begins to deport lots of immigrants. The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA) created stronger border control, and much harsher punishments for illegally staying in the U.S.

2001 - Patriot Act

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 21:52:28 UTC

Expanded stricter enforcement laws after the 9/11 attacks. The Patriot Act increased penalties for terrorism and allowed the government more power with things like wiretapping and electronic surveillance. It also increased scrutiny for immigrants from Muslim-majority countries.

2012 - DACA

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 21:55:01 UTC

DACA protects eligible undocumented youth from deportation. This meant that children born in the U.S. by illegal immigrants were given citizenship and other protections. It also allowed eligible people work authorization, so they could get a job.

2017-2021 - Border Wall

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 21:57:44 UTC

The Trump Administration imposes travel bans and limits asylum. Worked on building a border wall, but it wasn't finished. Trump had a zero-tolerance policy, anyone illegally crossing would be arrested.

2021-2024 - Biden

greydoncast — 2025-06-30 22:00:46 UTC

The Biden administration rolls back travel bans and increases migration. Biden increased border enforcement, but tried to make it easier to immigrate legally. He also increased asylum.