by Michael W. Dindinger, via email on July 28, 2019FAMILY HISTORY LEARNING MOMENT
Michael's main source for this post:
Riverton FamilySearch Library
Simply put, Emigration is when a person leaves a country. Immigration is entering a country. Many stories affecting our ancestors can be found, along with the reasons that influenced their decisions. Get to know your ancestors better by turning your hearts to them, and you may discover their wonderful and faith promoting stories.
Factors
that Influenced Emigration
– (Records of those leaving a country)
·
Political
o
Military
conscription (military draft)
o
War
(danger, damage, casualties, food and other supply shortages
o
Displacement
and expulsion
o
Political
freedom
·
Religious
Factors
o
Religious
persecution
o
Religious
conversions
·
Natural
disasters – Earthquakes, Volcanos, Floods, Famine, Epidemics for example
·
Economic
hardships
o
Increased
population or lack of available land (for the common folk)
o
Lack
of work and poor wages
o
Living
conditions
o
Education
·
Friends
and Family Factors
o
Family
members who emigrated, leaving behind loved ones
o
Friends
who emigrated, leaving behind very good friends
Immigration
to North America
– (Records of those entering a country)
·
Less
than one million arrived
o
1600’s
to 1700’s
o
Mostly
from England, Scotland, France, Germany and Holland
o
Some
were freed convicts; some were indentured servants
·
Over
fifteen million arrived
o
1800’s
to 1860
o
Mostly
from Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Holland, Germany, Brittan
·
Over
twenty million arrived
o
1880
to 1920
o
Mostly
from Russia, Poland, Romania, Austria, Italy
·
Places
to look to list a few
o
FamilySearch
o
Ancestry
o
Find
My Past
o
Brigham
Young University’s Immigrant Ancestors Project
o
Ellis
Island Family Histories
