The Entry into the U.S. Labor Market of Antebellum European Immigrants, 1840-1860

Joseph P. Ferrie

doi:10.1006/exeh.1997.0674

The Entry into the U.S. Labor Market of Antebellum European Immigrants, 1840-1860

Joseph P. Ferrie

Economics

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

40 Scopus citations

Abstract

This study examines the occupational mobility of antebellum immigrants as they entered the United States. White collar, skilled, and semiskilled immigrants left unskilled jobs more rapidly after arrival than farmers and unskilled workers. British and German immigrants fared better than the Irish; literate immigrants in rapidly growing counties and places with many immigrants fared best. These findings have implications for (1) the accuracy of estimates of immigrant occupational mobility, (2) the size of the human capital transfer resulting from antebellum immigration, and (3) the causes of the difficulty experienced by some immigrant groups in transferring their skills to the United States.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	295-330
Number of pages	36
Journal	Explorations in Economic History
Volume	34
Issue number	3
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1006/exeh.1997.0674
State	Published - Jul 1997

ASJC Scopus subject areas

History
Economics and Econometrics

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10.1006/exeh.1997.0674

Cite this

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title = "The Entry into the U.S. Labor Market of Antebellum European Immigrants, 1840-1860",

abstract = "This study examines the occupational mobility of antebellum immigrants as they entered the United States. White collar, skilled, and semiskilled immigrants left unskilled jobs more rapidly after arrival than farmers and unskilled workers. British and German immigrants fared better than the Irish; literate immigrants in rapidly growing counties and places with many immigrants fared best. These findings have implications for (1) the accuracy of estimates of immigrant occupational mobility, (2) the size of the human capital transfer resulting from antebellum immigration, and (3) the causes of the difficulty experienced by some immigrant groups in transferring their skills to the United States.",

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note = "Funding Information: * This is an extensively revised version of Chapter 4 of my dissertation (Ferrie, 1992). For comments on an earlier version, I am grateful to Stan Engerman, David Galenson, Denis Kessler, Bruce Meyer, Joel Mokyr, Clayne Pope, seminar participants at Brigham Young University, Indiana University, and the 1994 NBER/DAE Summer Institute, the editor, and three anonymous referees. Financial support was provided by the National Science Foundation (Grant SBR 93-90089), the Olin Foundation, and the Center for Urban Affairs and Policy Research at Northwestern University.",

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N2 - This study examines the occupational mobility of antebellum immigrants as they entered the United States. White collar, skilled, and semiskilled immigrants left unskilled jobs more rapidly after arrival than farmers and unskilled workers. British and German immigrants fared better than the Irish; literate immigrants in rapidly growing counties and places with many immigrants fared best. These findings have implications for (1) the accuracy of estimates of immigrant occupational mobility, (2) the size of the human capital transfer resulting from antebellum immigration, and (3) the causes of the difficulty experienced by some immigrant groups in transferring their skills to the United States.

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The Entry into the U.S. Labor Market of Antebellum European Immigrants, 1840-1860

Abstract

ASJC Scopus subject areas

UN SDGs

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