Global InformationHistory of Poles in the United States information
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The history of Poles in the United States dates to the American Colonial era. Poles have lived in present-day United States territories for over 400 years—since 1608. There are 10 million Americans of Polish descent in the U.S. today. Polish Americans have always been the largest group of Slavic origin in the United States.
Historians divide Polish American immigration into three big waves, the largest lasting from 1870 to 1914, a second after World War II, and a third after Poland's regime change in 1989. Before those major waves, there was a small but steady trickle of migrants from Poland to the Thirteen Colonies and early United States, mainly comprising religious dissenters, skilled tradesmen, and adventurous nobles. Most Polish Americans are descended from the first major wave immigrants, which consisted of millions of Poles who departed parts of Poland annexed by Germany, Russia, and Austria. This migration is often called in Polish za chlebem (for the bread), because most of the migrants were impoverished peasants, who owned little or no land, and often lacked basic subsistence. Large part of those lower class migrants came from the Austro-Hungarian province of Galicia, arguably the most destitute region in Europe at the time. Up to a third of Poles living in the United States returned to Poland after a few years, but the majority stayed. Substantial research and sociological works such as The Polish Peasant in Europe and America found that many Polish immigrants shared a common objective of acquiring farming land in the U.S. or making enough money to do the same back in Poland.[1] Anti-migrant legislation substantially lowered Polish immigration in the period from 1921 to 1945, but it rose again after World War II to include many displaced persons from the Holocaust. 1945–1989, coinciding with the Communist rule in Poland, is the period of the second wave of Polish immigration to the U.S. A third, much smaller wave, came in 1989 after Poland transitioned to a multiparty market democracy.
Immigrants in all three waves were attracted by the high wages and ample job opportunities for unskilled manual labor in the United States, and were driven to jobs in American mining, meatpacking, construction, steelwork, and heavy industry—in many cases dominating these fields until the mid-20th century. Over 90% of Poles arrived and settled in communities with other Polish immigrants. These communities are called Polonia and the largest such community historically was in Chicago, Illinois. A key feature of Polish life in the Old World had been religion, and in the United States, Catholicism often became an integral part of Polish identity. In the United States, Polish immigrants created communities centered on Catholic religious services, and built hundreds of churches and parish schools in the 20th century.[2]
The Polish today are well assimilated into American society. Average incomes have increased from well below average to above average today, and Poles continue to expand into white-collar professional and managerial roles. Poles are still well represented in blue collar construction and industrial trades, and many live in or near urban cities. They are well dispersed throughout the United States, intermarry at high levels, and have a very low rate of fluency in their ethnic language (less than 5% can speak Polish).[3]
- ^ Thomas & Znaniecki 1918–1920.
- ^ Stec 1946.
- ^ Greene 1980.