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Immigrant Press

Immigration to the US Resources

Title page of <em>Wossingen</em> (1858), a Norwegian immigrant newspaper.
Title page of Wossingen, a Norwegian immigrant newspaper, 1858.

Newspapers and other periodicals published by immigrants in their native languages provide one of the best historical primary sources for the study of the history of American immigration. In the era before World War I, approximately 1,300 foreign-language newspapers in the United States were read by millions of immigrants from Europe, Asia, and the Western Hemisphere.

Immigrant newspapers provided immigrants with news from the "old country" that the mainstream American press overlooked. More specialized periodicals that focused on topics such as religion, trades and unions, cultural organizations, fraternal societies, and political associations were directed specifically toward members of particular ethnic groups. Immigrants also produced various annual publications like almanacs, yearbooks, and calendars that highlighted important religious, cultural, and national dates for their ethnic group. In addition, immigrant newspapers and periodicals are a rich source of art, music, and literature produced by immigrants that reflect the challenges and opportunities facing newcomers to America.

Since immigrant newspapers were usually published in the native languages of immigrants, one of their major purposes and functions was language retention. Virtually every major immigrant group to the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries published newspapers in their native language. Newspapers in Chinese, Croatian, Danish, Dutch, Filipino, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Irish, Japanese, Latvian, Lithuanian, Mexican, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, and many other languages allowed immigrants to read their native language on a regular basis in a country where English was the dominant language.

While many individual immigrant newspapers were short-lived, immigrant newspapers and periodicals have never disappeared from the American scene. They continue to be published as the United States receives substantial numbers of new Hispanic, Asian, and African immigrants.

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Immigration to the US Resources

Listed below are digital resources from the Immigration to the US collection about, or related to, the immigrant press. These resources represent only a selection of what exists on these topics. More physical materials on these topics may be available at the owning repositories, some of which are open to the public.

Barton, Albert Olaus. The Beginnings of the Norwegian Press in America. Madison, Wis.: State Historical Society, 1916.

Beckerman, Ernst. Amerikanska studier. Stockholm : Z. Haeggströms förlagsexpedition, 1883.

Belisle, Alexandre. Histoire de la presse franco-américaine : comprenant l’historique de l’émigration des Canadiens-français aux Etats-Unis, leur développement, et leur progrčs : cet ouvrage contient aussi un historique des journaux publiés depuis 1838 jusqu’ŕ nos jours, les biographies des journalistes, défunts et vivants, et un supplément sur les journaux publiés par des Français ŕ New-York, en Louisiane et ailleurs. Worcester, Mass. : Ateliers typographiques de "L’Opinion publique," 1911.

Capek, Thomas. Padesát let ceského tisku v Americe : od vydání "Slowana amerikánského" v Racine, dne I. ledna 1860 do I. ledna 1910, s doplnky do zacátku 1911. New York : "Bank of Europe", 1911.

Carnovale, Luigi. Il giornalismo degli emigrati italiani nel Nord America. Chicago, Ill. : "L’Italia", [1909].

Cassel, Hjalmar. Bland Svenskar och Yankees : en Svensk tidningsmans minnen frĺn Amerika. Stockholm : A. Bonniers, 1894.

Der arme Teufel. Detroit, Mich. : [Robert Reitzel], 1892-1900.

Foreign Language Information Service (U.S.) The Work of the Foreign Language Information Service : A Summary and Survey. New York City : Foreign Language Information Service, [1921?].

Heartman, Charles F. The Necessity of Prohibiting German Newspapers : From a Different Viewpoint. New York: 1918.

Schersten, Albert Ferdinand. The Relation of the Swedish-American Newspaper to the Assimilation of Swedish Immigrants. Rock Island, Ill. : Augustana Library Publications, 1935.

Seidensticker, Oswald. The First Century of German Printing in America, 1728-1830 : Preceded by a Notice of the Literary Work of F.D. Pastorius. Philadelphia : German Pionier-Verein of Philadelphia ; Schaefer & Koradi, 1893.

Sempre avanti : the Italo-American observer. Boston, Mass. : s.n., 1919-1923.

Skarstedt, Ernst. Vĺra pennfäktare : lefnads- och karaktärsteckningar öfver svensk-amerikanska tidningsmän, skalder och författare, med porträtter samt talrika utdrag ur den poetiska och humoristiska literaturen. San Francisco, Cal. : Pĺ eget förlag, 1897 (San Francisco, Cal. : Vestkustens tryckeri).

Soihtu : sosialistinen kuukauslehti. Hancock, Mich. : s.n., 1905-1906.

Wist, Johs. B.Norsk-amerikanernes festskrift, 1914. Decorah, Iowa : Symra Co., c1914.

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