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Start of Immigration
English settlers arrive on boat to America to a settlement called James River. -
Massachusetts Requires Permission to Host Aliens
In May of 1637 a law was in Massachusetts that no citizen living in the town or colony should host an illegal alien without proper permission from authorities or the government -
The Proclaimation Act
The Proclamation act of 1763 helped stabilize the relationship between Native Americans and American citizens. The act drew a line West of the Appalachain Mountains so if American citizens had settlements in that territory they had to move back East. This helped keep the peace and decreased many deaths among the American citizens. -
First Alien Naturalization Act Enacted by the Newly Created US Government
In March of 1790 the first alien naturalization act was created by the United States government. This act created the first set of rules to be followed by all citizens in America. It limited such ruels to slaves, women, and servents. -
Congress Reduces Naturalization Residency Requirements to Five Years
In the early 1800's Congress decreased the naturalization residency from 14 years (which was created in 1798) back o five years. -
Foreign Slave Trade Becomes Illegal; 50,000 Slaves Become First "Illegal Aliens" in the US
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Supreme Court Rules That Congress Alone Can Regulate Immigration
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Statue of Liberty Unveiled; "The Huddled Masses Yearning To Be Free" Invited to Immigrate
The statue of Liberty is brought to the United States as a gift from France. Lady Liberty is a symbol of friendship and freedom for all citizens. -
Ellis Island Opens as Immigrant Entry Checkpoint
Ellis Island in New York becomes first checkpoint for Immigrants to enter into the United States. -
Supreme Court Confirms That 14th Amendment Gives Citizenship to All Persons Born in the United State
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Angel Island Immigration Station Opens
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Immigration Act of 1917 Denies Entry to Immigrants from Eastern Asia and the Pacific Islands
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Emergency Quota Act
The act greatly restricted the number of immigrants allowed to enter the country by a quota system based on their country of origin. The Act restricted the number of immigrants allowed into the country from any country annually to 3% of the number of residents from that same country living in the United States as of the U.S. Census of 1910. -
Johnson-Reed Immigration Act Reduces Quotas
It limited the total European immigration to 150,000 per year, and reduced each nationality's allowance to 2 percent of its U.S. population in 1890 -
US Border Patrol Established with Labor Appropriation Act of 1924
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Ellis Island Closes
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Illegal Immigrant Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act Allows Some 300,000 Central Americans to Become Legal Residents
Congress rewrote provisions in the Immigration and Nationality Act that pertain to the circumstances under which certain aliens subject to expulsion from the United States may become legal residents -
Controversial Arizona Bill (SB 1070) Signed into Law, Expanding the State's Authority to Combat Illegal Immigration
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President Obama Signs Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) to Allow Some Undocumented Immigrants Who Came to the United States as Children to Stay in the Country
Hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants who came to the United States as children will be allowed to remain in the country without fear of deportation and able to work, under an executive action the Obama administration
