Geography and the Development - Diffusion of Human Societies

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The second factor is the Potato Famine that began in Ireland around the same time as the California Gold Rush. Potatoes were the main food source in Ireland at the time in a country that was already considered at a poverty state with terrible living conditions and widespread disease. Ireland began having troubles with growing their potatoes and the ones that were grown would rot very quickly, however desperate from starvation people would still eat these. The government attempted to set up public food dispensaries, that we know today as soup kitchens, however with the vast amount of people, these could not be maintained. This gave the Irish no other choice than to flee their own country, most headed for America directly if they could afford it and if not were taken to places like Canada and walked the remainder of the journey. Some were so sick; they passed away on the ship or were quarantined once they reached land. Ireland was predominately Catholic and was looked down upon for their religious beliefs; Americans were worried that because of this that they would never be loyal. The Irish would stick together in small groups initially but once America’s focus was turned to slavery, the attention was taken off the Irish, they enlisted to fight in war, helped build railroads and even were involved in Politics. In 1960 a descendant of an immigrant was elected as president, his name was John F. Kennedy. This was the ultimate testament to show that the Irish had been accepted into American Culture (Constitution Rights Foundation, 2010).

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Constitution Rights Foundation. (2010). The Potato Famine and Irish Immigration to America. Los Angeles, CA, USA. Bill of Rights in Action (Volume 26, No. 2) Retrieved November 4, 2014 from http://www.crf-usa.org/bill-of-rights-in-action/bria-26-2-the-potato-famine-and-irish-immigration-to-america.html

Plubins, R. (2013). Chariot. Retrieved November 3, 2014, from http://www.ancient.eu/chariot/