Before the Irish Immigrants affected America, they immigrated to it. About 17% of the Irish immigrants came to America before the 1840s. Because of the Irish potato famine, most of the Irish immigrants arrived in America between 1845 to 1860. The Irish potato famine, or The Great Potato Famine, was caused by a late blight on potato crops year after year, starting in 1845 and slowing down by 1851. The blight, scientifically known as Phytophthora infestans, infects the leaves and edible roots of the potato plant, leaving the whole crop rotting in the fields. Because at least half of Ireland at that time, mainly her poor, depended heavily on the potato crop as the main source of nutrients, and the rest of Ireland consumed it in large
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The United States was growing, and it required men who would do heavy work such as building bridges, canals, and railroads. One of the biggest employment opportunities for the Irish was the construction of the Union Pacific Railroad. The Pacific Railroad Act of 1862 was approved by President Lincoln, but the work was postponed, due to the start of the war. In 1866, however, the great race between the Union Pacific Railroad -- starting at Omaha -- and the Central Pacific Railroad -- starting at Sacramento – began. Each team was laying tracks as fast as they could to see who could get the farthest before the two lines joined up. The work could never been done without Chinese and Irish laborers, who did the bulk of the work. The Chinese worked on Central Pacific, and the Irish worked on Union Pacific. The amount of money of the pay in both groups began to show the Irish small progress in society. The Irish workers were paid $35 a month, while the Chinese were paid only $27 a month (later rising to $30 a month). The Union Pacific Railroad was built primarily by Irish laborers from the East Coast who were civil war veterans, both Union and Confederate. Although the Irish did not face racial discrimination like the Chinese, they were still paid very little for working in dangerous territory. Irish laborers were often attacked or killed by Native American war parties and were sometimes killed by blasts of dynamite. It was said that “an Irishman is buried under every tie.” This was a high price to pay, but railroads helped pave the way of immigrant expansion across the United
The United States was growing, and it required men who would do heavy work such as building bridges, canals, and railroads. One of the biggest employment opportunities for the Irish was the construction of the Union Pacific Railroad. The Pacific Railroad Act of 1862 was approved by President Lincoln, but the work was postponed, due to the start of the war. In 1866, however, the great race between the Union Pacific Railroad -- starting at Omaha -- and the Central Pacific Railroad -- starting at Sacramento – began. Each team was laying tracks as fast as they could to see who could get the farthest before the two lines joined up. The work could never been done without Chinese and Irish laborers, who did the bulk of the work. The Chinese worked on Central Pacific, and the Irish worked on Union Pacific. The amount of money of the pay in both groups began to show the Irish small progress in society. The Irish workers were paid $35 a month, while the Chinese were paid only $27 a month (later rising to $30 a month). The Union Pacific Railroad was built primarily by Irish laborers from the East Coast who were civil war veterans, both Union and Confederate. Although the Irish did not face racial discrimination like the Chinese, they were still paid very little for working in dangerous territory. Irish laborers were often attacked or killed by Native American war parties and were sometimes killed by blasts of dynamite. It was said that “an Irishman is buried under every tie.” This was a high price to pay, but railroads helped pave the way of immigrant expansion across the United