Large scale Indian immigration to U.S. during 19th century

During the 19th century, most of the immigration to the continental U.S. were from southern China, though certainly there were many Japanese and Filipino immigrants as well. This continued until the Chinese Exclusion Acts -

Initially, Japanese and South Asian laborers filled the demand that could not be met by new Chinese immigrants. The 1900 census counted 24,326 Japanese residents, a sharp increase, and 89,863 Chinese residents. The first South Asian immigrants landed in the United States in 1907, and were predominantly PunjabiSikh farmers. As immigration restrictions specific to South Asians would begin two years later and against Asians generally eight years after that, "[a]ltogether only sixty-four hundred came to America" during this period.[27] Like the Chinese and Japanese immigrants of the time, these South Asians were predominantly men.[27]South Asian migrants also arrived on the East Coast, although to a lesser extent in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, predominantly Bengali Muslims who worked as craftsmen and merchants, selling 'exotic' goods such as embroidered silks and rugs

Interestingly, the other major 19th century population movement for labor was from India:

An early trade in Asian labourers is believed to have begun sometime in or around the 16th century. Social and political pressure led to the abolition of the slave trade throughout the British Empire in 1807, with other European nations following suit. Labour-intensive industries, such as cotton and sugar plantations, mines and railway construction, in the colonies were left without a cheap source of manpower.[8] As a consequence, a large-scale slavery-like trade in Asian (primarily Indian and Chinese) indentured labourers began in the 1820s to fill this vacuum. ...

By the 1820s, many Indians were voluntarily enlisting to go abroad for work, in the hopes of a better life. European merchants and businessmen quickly took advantage of this and began recruiting them for work as a cheap source of labour.[43][44] The British began shipping Indians to colonies around the world, including Mauritius, Fiji, Natal, British East Africa, and British Malaya. The Dutch also shipped workers to labour on the plantations on Suriname and the Dutch East Indies. A system of agents was used to infiltrate the rural villages of India and recruit labourers. They would often deceive the credulous workers about the great opportunities that awaited them for their own material betterment abroad. The Indians primarily came from the Indo-Gangetic Plain, but also from Tamil Nadu and other areas to the south of the country.[22]

Given that China and India have been the most populated areas of the world for quite some time, it makes sense that the places that were exporting surplus labor were from those two places. Though the rise in Eastern European and Russian immigration in the 19th century was also because of additional population thanks to improved agricultural techniques. So, how could there be South Asian migrants to the U.S. in the 19th century, similar to Chinese immigration?

I'm also curious if there were any massive voluntary population migrations during that time period besides Chinese/Indian laborers.
 
During the 19th century, most of the immigration to the continental U.S. were from southern China, though certainly there were many Japanese and Filipino immigrants as well. This continued until the Chinese Exclusion Acts -



Interestingly, the other major 19th century population movement for labor was from India:



Given that China and India have been the most populated areas of the world for quite some time, it makes sense that the places that were exporting surplus labor were from those two places. Though the rise in Eastern European and Russian immigration in the 19th century was also because of additional population thanks to improved agricultural techniques. So, how could there be South Asian migrants to the U.S. in the 19th century, similar to Chinese immigration?

I'm also curious if there were any massive voluntary population migrations during that time period besides Chinese/Indian laborers.
British rule over India would make this difficult as the British controlled who left and went to India during this time.
 
According to the coolie article, the British allowed French importation of Indian laborers to Reunion Island. And there were Dutch shipping of such workers to their East Indies colonies as well. Maybe the U.S. (either the gov't or mining companies) could negotiate for workers from the Brits, if they were were inclined to.
 
I'm mostly wondering how they would have coexisted with the locals during that era, and how the existence of such diaspora communities would have affected North American cultures.
 

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Despite religious freedom laws, 19th century Indian immigration would probably be strongly opposed due to the new "pagan" religion.
 
Bring Indians in the same time Afro Caribbeans start migrating to NYC. Establish these people as shop owners and land owners in the south and black inner city.

Push them to bring laborers from the commonwealth and later India directly using money to make them "white" to a southern governor and political elite. Get more to come, mix, have those mixed kids continually identify as Indian, those kids marry more Indians coming in.

Having say southern Indians be a buffer group up north would be very helpful and may alleviate tensions so long as they don't perpetuate anti-black sentiments.
 
It's Amerikkka (and more broadly the New World), of course they'll become anti-black.

The easiest method for any Asian or Portuguese immigration wave is plantations: Hawaii, California somewhat, and the South. If enough blacks go North, or are killed in some kind of political conflict, or urbanize within a more industrial South, or get sterilized/killed by Progressives or racists in the postwar south... that opens up a huge market for Asian labour from any number of sources.

Much like with Indians in the Caribbean, and the Portugee before them, they could act as a middle class caste down South. For a more lower-class, less mercantile minority, the Filipinos would offer a Christian labour source, and IIRC the Javanese in Surinam never advanced quite like the Indian or Chinese diasporas.
 
Despite religious freedom laws, 19th century Indian immigration would probably be strongly opposed due to the new "pagan" religion.

Not really though, looking at the east Asian immigrants they religiously assimilated quite fast. Only if the Indian immigrants were Muslim could I see them keeping on to their faith. Even though culturally there are still places like Chinatown across the major cities (even though only a minority of them permanently stayed within a Chinatown). And I believe Chinatowns only sprung up because the majority of the immigrants were from a similar culture (various Chinese cultures), immigrants from elsewhere like Japan didn't really form huge communities like those which still stand today although they did form small ones that eventually assimilated.


Also if people get too afraid of "pagan" religions they'll probably fund massive missionary efforts into it hoping it will go away. Or try and stop people of said religion from entering the country.
 
Despite religious freedom laws, 19th century Indian immigration would probably be strongly opposed due to the new "pagan" religion.

Yeah, I agree with that. And I would fully expect them to preserve their religion, as other members of the Indian Diaspora in the 19th century (like the diaspora in Fiji) protected their religion well.

Not really though, looking at the east Asian immigrants they religiously assimilated quite fast. Only if the Indian immigrants were Muslim could I see them keeping on to their faith. Even though culturally there are still places like Chinatown across the major cities (even though only a minority of them permanently stayed within a Chinatown). And I believe Chinatowns only sprung up because the majority of the immigrants were from a similar culture (various Chinese cultures), immigrants from elsewhere like Japan didn't really form huge communities like those which still stand today although they did form small ones that eventually assimilated.

Yes, they'd be at least partially assimilated. But, as a number of religions throughout history have learned, it is very hard to convert Hindus, and this would pop up in this time as well.

Or try and stop people of said religion from entering the country.

Yeah, I second that, though I'd see such a ban stop Sikhs and Muslims as well.
 
Bring Indians in the same time Afro Caribbeans start migrating to NYC. Establish these people as shop owners and land owners in the south and black inner city.

Push them to bring laborers from the commonwealth and later India directly using money to make them "white" to a southern governor and political elite. Get more to come, mix, have those mixed kids continually identify as Indian, those kids marry more Indians coming in.

Having say southern Indians be a buffer group up north would be very helpful and may alleviate tensions so long as they don't perpetuate anti-black sentiments.

This doesn't seem that realistic to me. For one thing, the religious differences would discourage large-scale intermarriage with whites. Beyond that, the concept of the color line was well-established by the 19th century. I think it's more likely that the definition of "black" would simply be expanded to mean "non-white," rather than specifically of African origin. (Or the term "colored" would be in more widespread use.)
 
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This doesn't seem that realistic to me. For one thing, the religious differences would discourage large-scale intermarriage with whites. Beyond that, the concept of the color line was well-established by the 19th century. I think it's more likely that the definition of "black" would simply be expanded to mean "non-white," rather than specifically of African origin. (Or the term "colored" would be in more widespread use.)
There are Chinese at this time period in the south and they assimilated and were treated as quiet well as were from niche populations in the Mississippi to assimilated populations in South Carolina in both white and elite mulatto.

The colorline wasn't at all established until the 1920s, race was always augmented by class and connection to other well established white people.

Look into the story of Nancy of St. Augustine in Spanish Florida as well, this could work in South Carolina as well
 
it is very hard to convert Hindus

To Islam yes (although British Missionaries didn't have a good run either but that was more for political and cultural reasons then they didn't like the religion), but the Protestant forms of Christianity in America at the time would be much more lax is one way to describe it.

Sure the old Hindu grandmother might believe in Hinduism fervently all her life but after Indians give birth to children on American soil they will start to lose connections to their roots and as they begin to intermarry with Whites, Blacks, Hispanics, or other immigrants they will slowly accept Christianity or become more like how many Chinese descendants in California are where they might play along with Christian rites in marriage or the like but couldn't give a toot about any particular religion.

That or end up like OTL South Korea post WW2 where they are the most fervent Christian nation in the world. (Seriously There are some crazy Christians in SK, Buddhist cemeteries often get vandalized to the point of having to have electric fences around them)
 
To Islam yes (although British Missionaries didn't have a good run either but that was more for political and cultural reasons then they didn't like the religion), but the Protestant forms of Christianity in America at the time would be much more lax is one way to describe it.

Sure the old Hindu grandmother might believe in Hinduism fervently all her life but after Indians give birth to children on American soil they will start to lose connections to their roots and as they begin to intermarry with Whites, Blacks, Hispanics, or other immigrants they will slowly accept Christianity or become more like how many Chinese descendants in California are where they might play along with Christian rites in marriage or the like but couldn't give a toot about any particular religion.

That or end up like OTL South Korea post WW2 where they are the most fervent Christian nation in the world. (Seriously There are some crazy Christians in SK, Buddhist cemeteries often get vandalized to the point of having to have electric fences around them)

Koreans converted to Christianity en masse because it became associated with the liberation movement against Japan and thus Korean nationalism.
 
Koreans converted to Christianity en masse because it became associated with the liberation movement against Japan and thus Korean nationalism.

This is true, but relatives living in America and embracing it did play a significant role in getting it out in the opening, then it became associated with anti-Japanese and thats when it took off.
 
Couldn't they have participated as part of the western settlement like the post-Gold Rush Chinese? Either as a substitute, or in addition to? Though I suppose the post-Civil War South is also a place where manpower was needed.

For a more lower-class, less mercantile minority, the Filipinos would offer a Christian labour source, and IIRC the Javanese in Surinam never advanced quite like the Indian or Chinese diasporas.

Good point there. I was looking at what other potential sources of labor existed in that time to justify mass migrations, and SE Asia seemed like a possibility, but for some reason the Javanese and others just stayed home. Filipinos were somewhat more mobile, probably due to Spanish colonial connections to the wider world.
 
Most of these labor migrations were induced by colonial forces; the Brits contracted out the Indians and the Dutch eventually brought Javans to Surinam
 
Couldn't they have participated as part of the western settlement like the post-Gold Rush Chinese? Either as a substitute, or in addition to? Though I suppose the post-Civil War South is also a place where manpower was needed.



Good point there. I was looking at what other potential sources of labor existed in that time to justify mass migrations, and SE Asia seemed like a possibility, but for some reason the Javanese and others just stayed home. Filipinos were somewhat more mobile, probably due to Spanish colonial connections to the wider world.
Filipino mutineers on a Mexican ship created the first Asian community in America like 15 minutes or so from my families home.

They were also deemed white if memory serves me correctly. They had no problems taking on European wives.
 
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