-
1607
Jamestown, known as the first colony in the British Empire, was established in 1607, in Virginia. -
1619
In 1619, a year before English pilgrims arrived at Plymouth, Massachusetts, a group of Africans were brought to the Jamestown colony in Virginia as indentured servants. -
1620
The Mayflower was an English ship that transported the first English Puritans, known today as the Pilgrims, from Plymouth, England, to the New World. -
1786
The U.S. establishes first Native American reservation and policy of dealing with each tribe as an independent nation. -
1790
The federal government requires two years of residency for naturalization -
1798
The Naturalization Act, passed by the United States Congress on June 18, 1798, increased the period necessary for immigrants to become naturalized citizens in the United States from 5 to 14 years. -
1808
Congress bands importation of slaves. -
1845
Potato crop fails in Ireland sparking the Potato Famine which kills one million and prompts almost 500,000 to immigrate to America over the next five years. -
1849
The California Gold Rush sparks first mass immigration from China. -
1876
California Senate committee investigates the “social, moral, and political effect of Chinese immigration.” -
1880
Italy’s troubled economy, crop failures, and political climate begin the start of mass immigration with nearly four million Italian immigrants arriving in the United States. -
1900
Congress establishes a civil government in Puerto Rico and the Jones Act grants U.S. citizenship to island inhabitants. U.S. citizens can travel freely between the mainland and the island without a passport. -
1917
The U.S. enters World War I and anti-German sentiment swells at home. The names of schools, foods, streets, towns, and even some families, are changed to sound less Germanic. -
1924
President Calvin Coolidge signs a bill granting Native Americans full citizenship. -
1965
The Bracero Program ends after temporarily employing almost 4.5 million Mexican nationals.
