Why Irish Women Migrate To Usa

After the “Great Famine” in 1845 many of the Irish people, mostly women, migrate to the U.S. in search of a better and more secure life. However, there are many other reasons why Irish women migrate to the U.S. besides being forced to move because of the famine. Most women move to the U.S. in order to find a well-paying job such as; working in textile factories, working a trade such as sewing or knitting, or doing domestic work. The Irish women that migrate to the U.S. help provide financial support for their family members back in Ireland; helping them also to migrate to the United States. Some Irish women migrate to the U.S. in order to attain a higher social and economic status; both at home and at work. Most Irish women that migrate …show more content…
help provide financial support for their family back in the homeland; helping them also to migrate to the U.S. Most of the Irish women that migrate to the U.S. have very strong affections for their family back home in Ireland. After migrating to the United States and getting well established financially; Irish women would send vast sums of money back home to their families in Ireland. The parents that help pay to send their daughters oversees to the U.S. would benefit from this investment; “Immigrating family members no longer could be viewed as potential rivals or as drains on the family’s budget but in fact turned into thriving assets”. They would also pay to help their sisters, brothers, and parents migrate to the U.S.; “The emigrants not only sent vast sums of money to kin in Ireland but facilitated other family members joining them in various spots across the globe”. When kin of the Irish women arrive in the states they would all pool their resources together to help support each other, as well as bring over other family members still in Ireland. This act of unity of coming together to support each other thrives from the strong Irish family background. After migrating to the U.S. and becoming very well settled, Irish women would help provide financial support for their families; and would work together with them to help bring them to the …show more content…
seek to attain a higher social and economic status. These very competitive women aim to attain higher level jobs and careers. Some women move from working in factories, and as domestic servants, to attaining highly paid office jobs such as, “secretaries, typists, bookkeepers, and stenographers trained in both the public and Catholic schools.” Some women aimed into attaining a career in nursing, and some were very successful at attaining it. For example, an Irish woman named Ellen O’Keefe first started working in shoe factory in Lynn; then later on she gave up the job and enrolled in Bellevue’s nursing program. Some years later she became a registered nurse. By the 1880s, many of the hospitals and medical facilities in Boston had many nursing staff that were Irish. However, the most preferred high level career that most Irish women aim for is a career in teaching. One of the main reasons why Irish women are attracted to this job is because of the, “economic security,” that it provides. This job also provides women with political connections which help strengthen the Irish in politics. These connections help Irish women to attain yet even higher goals and endeavors. One example would be a woman named Mother Jones, who was first a schoolteacher before becoming a labor activist. Most Irish women seek to attain a higher economic and social status as an office worker, as a nurse, or as a