Family History Project

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Recommended: Essay about the history of the Philippines

Family History Project Part 1

The Philippines is a nation made up of more than 7,000 islands. During the 16th century Philippines was under Spanish rule. The Spanish-American War ended in 1898. United States defeated Spain ending with the Treaty of Paris where control to the Philippines was given to the United States after paying $20 million to the Spanish Empire. The Philippines became one of America’s first major overseas colony and became a major source of emigrants to America (Wills 182).

Although Filipinos, people of the Philippines, did not come to the United States in large numbers until 1900s, a few came to North America before then. During the 1500s, ships from Spain traveled between the Spanish colonies of the Philippines and Mexico. Filipinos were forced to serve on the ships because they were known to be excellent sailors. In 1587, Filipinos landed in Morro Bay, what is today known as San Luis Obispo, California. The ships often stopped on the California coast (Sterngass 39).

In the early 1900s, Filipinos came to the United States by ship. The trip usually took about a month. They landed in Honolulu, Seattle, or San Francisco. The fare from Manila was about $70, which was about two months’ wages for an unskilled worker. They travelled in the lowest class, which had cabins shared by four to six people.

The 1917 legislation was the first significant general restriction of immigration ever passed. All adult immigrants would have to be literate and had to take a literacy test. Although, in the case of family immigration, if the husband was literate, the wife didn’t need to be. Also, Asian immigrants were denied or “barred”, except for Japanese and Filipinos because they were held to be American nationals (Daniels 27...

... middle of paper ...

...ory of Immigration and Ethnicity in American Life. New York, NY: Perennial, 2002. Print.

"Newsroom." 2010 Census Shows Asians Are Fastest-Growing Race Group. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Mar. 2014. .

Sterngass, Jon. Filipino Americans. New York: Chelsea House, 2007. Print.

"The Philippines and the U.S.: An Enduring Connection." Filipino Americans : Asian-Nation. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Mar. 2014. .

"U.S. Immigration Legislation: 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act (Hart-Cellar Act)." U.S. Immigration Legislation: 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act (Hart-Cellar Act). N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Mar. 2014. .

Wills, Chuck. Destination America. New York: DK Pub., 2005. Print.

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