Immigration and Ethnic Patterns

Gold Days (1860s) - nearly 40% foreign born spawned by gold rush & labor needs Irish, Germans, English, Welch, French, Mexicans Chileans to build roads - Chile Bar / American River Chinese to dig mining tunnels and build railroads tedious, hard work largest group of migrants (35,000) segregated part of town worst discrimination 1882 - Chinese Exclusion Act

• Farming Days (1870 - 1930)
  • large influx of Europeans (most western & southern)
  • moved to similar environments (climates, landscapes)
    • Germans - moved to farming land
      • Sacramento Valley - grain crops, rice
        • wheat farming - mainstay of Cal economy
      • Santa Clara Valley - fruit orchards
      • Los Angeles Basin - citrus orchards
    • Portuguese and Scandinavians - dairy farming
      • San Joaquin valley and coastal towns
      • Gustine (over 1/2 pop. today)
    • Scandinavians: Solvang, Eureka, Rocklin
      • Masonaries
    • Italians moved to cities like San Francisco
      • large enterprising families
      • banking, produce markets,
        bakeries, fishing

• Mexican Influence - 1930s to present
  • largest ethnic group then and today
    • San Francisco's Mission District
  • seasonal farm laborers and other jobs
  • manual assembly labor during W.W.II
    • Brazero program (1950s & 1960s)
      
      

Asian Influence - 1930s to present Japanese, Koreans, Filipinos - irrigated row crops rural & urban areas; fruit stands World War II Internment camps (Power Point Facts & Pictures)

• African-American (Black) - 1940 to present
  • migrated for factory work in cities
  • largest numbers migrated for wartime employment
  • originally "porters" working for railroads
    • Oakland - railroads, shipyard
    • Los Angeles - aircraft
  • high urbanized population (non-farm workers)
    
    
• Native American
  • smallest ethnic group; rural, small towns or rancherias
  • largest population in Los Angeles
    
    
• Immigration fact & figures today (1995)
  • county with largest immigrant population
    
    
• Community College demographic statistics