a nation of immigrants

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    Europeans discovered America

    After the Europeans discovered America, people from northwestern Europe started to immigrate there. This was in between the 1600s and 1800s. The first country that immigrated was England, and shortly after people came from Wales, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, France, and holland.
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    Late 1800s to 1920s

    In the late 1800s to the early 1900s, 40 million people from Europe immigrated to America. That is because the sailing ships were replaced by steamships. The steamships were a lot cheaper and went even faster. This lead to more people coming to America. Most of the people settled in New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, and Boston. It was for the most Poles, Greeks, Italians, Russians, and Hungarians that came to America. Some Norwegians even settled on different farms in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
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    In the mid-1800s

    In 1849 people found gold in California. That leads to people coming from all over the world to try to get some. The Irish people came in between 1845 and 1848 but left shortly after because the potato corps didn't work. That is the reason why Americans celebrate st. Patrick's day, ( to honor the Irish background that they have).
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    From 1960

    After 1960 there aren't many Europeans that immigrate to America. It is for the most only Asians and people that come from Spanish-speaking countries that try to come to America. That leads to Spanish becoming the second-largest speaking language in America. Today most of the people that immigrate to America actually do it illegally. In US-Mexico, it is set up a security fence that prevents people from crossing.