Life of the Irish in the 1800's, by Kim L.

If you don't know about the Potato Famine and the Irish  emigrating to Boston you probably want to know what was the cause of the Irish fleeing Ireland? It all started in Ireland when almost 1 million Irish left Ireland and many others died. In the1800's they came to America because  there was better opportunities in the United States (especially Boston) and also because there main food source was inedible because the potatoes caught a disease, which lead to Famine(1845 to 1849) which spread so they weren't able to eat the potatoes so people were skinny, desperate and died from starvation. Many Irish were poor or homeless like rural families living in single-windowless, mud cabins.They lived like that because  in Ireland if they had no potatoes it meant no money for them to pay the rent and not only that they were forced to leave their own country because of the British. These reasons lead the population to decrease by 20-25%. The Irish probably thought it would be a great new start leaving Ireland but they faced many harsh things like anti-Catholic discrimination, they were considered subhuman, excluded from many jobs and if they did get jobs like working in factories and on railroads but still they were low paying jobs that wasn't enough to support their families.

The Irish In Boston Project by Nate Cruz

During the mid 1840's Irish began to immigrate to America because of multiple reasons. One of the main reasons, though, is because of dire poverty caused by natural disaster of the Irish potato famine which forced the people of Ireland to America to seek a new life and new opportunities. Also, another reason why the Irish emigrated to America was to escape political persecution and religious persecution forced upon them by the British. When the Irish got to America it wasn't like how they expected, It was harder to get jobs even though they were determined, they where discriminated. Discrimination against the Irish in Massachusetts looked like a "help wanted" sign, but At the bottom it would say "No Irish Needed." That's just one example, they also faced anti-immigrants and anti-Catholics.

The Potato Famine And Irish In Boston BY: Jazmarie, and Yaya

                

The toll of the potato famine 

    The potato famine occurred in the 1800's which cause the Irish to flee Ireland. You're probably wondering what potato famine is? Well to answer your question, a potato famine is a form of starvation. Due to the famine, the population decreased 20-25% because of immigration and starvation. The potato famine began in 1845 and lasted to 1849. By the time the famine was over, many Irish had already left to America to begin a new life.  

The Irish arriving in Boston 

   The Irish faced great dehumanization in America, even in Boston. They weren't allowed to get jobs or use public bathrooms, they were called pigs,monkeys, and different animals. The Irish lived in horrible places where they could get very sick and most likely to die. The Americans didn't agree with the fact of the Irish invading the united states. Americans left their homes to move away from the Irish because they looked at them as animals and thought that they had diseases. However many Irish did find decent work such as working at factories, building railroads, babysitting, and being a made. Although many Irish had jobs they weren't being paid enough to support their families. 

         

                                                                                                                

Irish People in Boston by Michael Wuschke

In 1845, many potato crops in Ireland began to rot during an event known as the Great Potato Famine in which many Irish people began to die of starvation due to a lack of their potato supply. As a result, many Irish people decided to immigrate to the United States in hopes of a new life and finding many new job opportunities that the United States offered during the early-1850's. When they first arrived in the United States, they were treated with hostility and fear by many U.S. citizens, who viewed them as nothing more than violent drunks, and often included cartoons in newspapers that portrayed them in a stereotypical form during the mid-19th century. Many Irish people were also forced to live in squalid conditions by living in homes that were not as neat and elegant compared to other houses in the city and often got sick from various diseases as a result. It was not until the late-19th century that Irish Americans finally managed to gain political and social acceptance in the United States after enduring decades of prejudice and hatred from many U.S. citizens, while playing a major role in many important events in the United States throughout the late-19th century and after the turn of the 20th century.