Page:EB1922 - Volume 32.djvu/885

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.
UNITED STATES
853


The Chinese also decreased in number, as might be expected from the policy of exclusion; in 1910 there were 71,531 and in 1920 61,686. The number of Japanese, however, increased from 72,157 to 111,025, or 53.86 per cent. About 30,000 of this increase is credited to California and a little over 4,000 to the state of Washington.

Foreign-born.—The foreign-born white pop., owing to the check in immigration resulting from the World War, increased but slightly, from 13,345,545 to 13,712,754, or 2.7% between 1910 and 1920, as against an increase of 30.7% between 1900 and 1910. The numerical increase in this group of the pop., 367,209, was much smaller than in any preceding decade since 1850. This element increased between 1910 and 1920 in 20 states and the District of Columbia, and decreased in 28 states: in the previous decade there was a gain in every state except five. Arizona and Texas showed the largest rate of increase, 67% and 50% respectively, due to Mexican immigration. Table 1 shows the foreign-born whites for the four states having over 1,000,000 of this element in 1920. In 1910 the foreign-born whites constituted 14.5% of the total pop. of the United States and in 1920, 13 per cent. The nativity of the white pop. in 1920 is shown in Table 2. Little over one-half of the total white pop., 55.3%, was native-born with native-born parents. In New England only 30.8% were in this group; and in Massachusetts less than one-third, 31.9%. According to the post-war map, the countries from which had come the largest numbers of foreign-born whites who were in the United States in 1920, were Germany, 1,686,102; Italy, 1,610,109; Russia, 1,400,489; Poland, 1,139,978; Canada, 1,117,878; Ireland, 1,037,233; England, 812,828; Sweden, 625,580; Austria, 575,625.

Table 1. Foreign-born Whites.

State 1920 1910 1900  Per cent 
increase
1910-20
 Per cent 
increase
1900-10






 Illinois  1,204,403  1,202,560 964,635  0.2 24.7
 Massachusetts   1,077,072  1,051,050 840,114  2.5 25.1
 New York  2,783,773   2,729,272   1,889,523  2.0 44.4
 Pennsylvania  1,387,298  1,438,719 982,543  −3.6  46.4


Table 2. Nativity of Whites, 1920.

Number  Per cent 



 Native parentage 58,421,957  55.3
 Foreign parentage 15,694,539  14.8
 Mixed parentage 6,991,665   6.6


 Total native-born 81,108,161  76.7
 Foreign-born white 13,712,754  13.0


 Total white 94,820,915  89.7
 Negro 10,463,131   9.9
 Other non-white races  426,574   0.4


  Total pop.  105,710,620  100.0 

The following figures show the total number of foreign-born whites in certain states, with the foreign country which had furnished the largest number in that state: California, 681,662 (Italy, 88,502); Illinois, 1,204,403 (Germany, 205,491); Massachusetts, 1,077,534 (Ireland, 183,171); Michigan, 726,635 (Canada, 164,502); Minnesota, 486,164 (Sweden, 112,117); New Jersey, 738,613 (Italy, 157,285); New York, 2,786,112 (Italy 545,713); Ohio, 678,697 (Germany, 111,893); Pennsylvania, 1,387,850 (Italy, 222,764); Texas, 360,519 (Mexico, 249,652); Wisconsin, 460,128 (Germany, 151,250).

In connexion with the problems of Americanization the statistics of citizenship of the foreign-born whites are of interest. In 1920 12,498,334, or 94% of this element, were 21 years of age and over; 6,928,027 were men and 5,570,307 were women. Table 3 shows the number in 1920 naturalized, those who had taken out first papers, aliens and those for whom no reports were obtained.

Table 3. Naturalizations, 1920.

Men Women



Number  Per cent  Number  Per cent 
 Naturalized   3,314,577  47.8  2,893,785  52.0
 First papers   1,116,698 16.1 77,558   1.4
 Alien  2,138,205 30.9  2,226,690 40.0
 No reports. 358,547   5.2 372,274   6.7

In 1910, 45.61% of the men were naturalized as compared with 47.8% in 1920, and only 8.6% had taken out first papers, as compared with 16.1% in 1920.

Statistics of immigration are often inaccurately used, no allowance being made for departures. Increasing facilities in ocean transportation, and the higher wages received by immigrants, enabling them to travel, led to a constant stream of departures in the decade 1910-20. In order to determine the net increase of pop. by immigration, it is necessary, therefore, to determine both arrivals and departures. Table 4 compiled by the Bureau of Immigration, shows the changes for the 11 years 1910-20.

Table 4. Immigrants, in thousands.

Admitted Departed



 Immigrant  Non-
 immigrant 
Total  Emigrant  Non-
 emigrant 
 Total  Added
 to pop. 








 1910  1,042   156  1,198    202 178 380 818
 1911 878 152 1,030   296 222 518 512
 1912 838 179 1,017   333 282 615 402
 1913 1,198   229 1,427   308 304 612 815
 1914 1,218   185 l,403   303 330 634 769
 1915 327 107 434 204 180 384  50
 1916 299  68 367 130 111 241 126
 1917 295  67 363  66  80 146 216
 1918 111 101 212  94  99 193 19
 1919 141  96 237 123  93 216  21
 1920 430 192 622 288 140 428 194

Beginning with 1915 there was a marked decline in immigration, due to the World War. In the five years 1910-4, the total number of immigrants was 5,174,000, and in the succeeding five years ending in 1919, only 1,173,000.

Immigrants may be classified (1) as to race or people and (2) as to country of last residence. The first is of importance as an index of the contribution of ethnic traits and characteristics; and the second as throwing light upon previous training of immigrants in social and political institutions. Tables 5 and 6 show immigration by race and by countries, for a few of the most important groups, for the years 1910 and 1920.

Table 5. Immigrant Aliens, by Race.

Race or people 1920 1910



 Number   Per cent 
of total
 Number   Per cent 
of total





 Croatian and Slovenian  493  39,562   4
 Dutch and Flemish 12,730   3 13,012   1
 English 58,366  14 53,498   5
 French 27,390   6 21,107   2
 German 7,338   2 71,380   7
 Greek 13,998   3 39,135   4
 Hebrew 14,292   3 84,260   8
 Irish 20,784   4 38,382   4
 Italian, North 12,918   3 30,780   3
 Italian, South 88,882  21  192,673  19
 Lithuanian 422  22,714   2
 Magyar 252  27,302   3
 Mexican 51,042  12 17,760   2
 Polish 2,519   128,348  13
 Portuguese 15,174   4 7,657   7
 Ruthenian 258  27,907   3
 Scandinavian 16,621   4 52,037   5
 Scotch 21,180   5 24,612   2
 Spanish 23,594   5 5,837 


Table 6. Immigrant Aliens, by Country.

1920 1910



 Number   Per cent 
of total
 Number   Per cent 
of total





 Austria 268   135,793  13
 Hungary 84   122,944  12
 Germany 1,001  31,283   3
 Greece 11,981   3 25,888   2
 Italy 95,145  22  215,537  21
 Russia 995   186,792  18
 England 27,871   6 46,706   5
 Ireland 9,591   2 29,855   3
 Norway 4,445   1 17,538   2
 Portugal 15,472   4 8,229   1
 Sweden 5,862   1 23,745   2
 Turkey in Europe 1,933  18,405   2
 Turkey in Asia 5,033   1 15,212   1
 British North America  90,025  21 56,555   5
 Mexico 52,361  12 18,691   2

It will be observed that in 1920 there was a change in the racial composition of immigration as compared with 1910. The proportion of Italians was about the same, but immigration from eastern European stocks fell off. Immigration from Austria, Hungary, Germany and Russia practically stopped after 1917. Immigration from the northern border, of both English and French Canadians, and from the southern part of Mexico, had greatly increased. Until the World War, Europe was the chief source of immigration to the United States, furnishing 90% of the total. The percentage coming from Europe fell, however, to 60% in 1915, 50% in 1916, 45% in 1917, 28% in 1918 and 17% in 1919. In 1920 it rose to 57%. After the war the return movement to Europe increased, and in 1920 emigration to that continent was in excess of immigration from it. This excess was due to emigration to south-eastern Europe rather than to the northern and western sections. The proportion