Historical Markers In the Story
Original Documents
Alexander, June Granatir. The Immigrant Church and Community: Pittsburgh's Slovak Catholics and Lutherans. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1987.
Important source on the chain migration and settlement of Slovaks in industrial Pittsburgh.
Aston, Dianne. Jewish Life in Pennsylvania. University Park: Pennsylvania Historical Association, 1998.
Brief overview of the Jewish immigrant experience in Pennsylvania history.
Beik, Mildred Allen. The Miners of Windber: The Struggles of New Immigrants for Unionization, 1890s-1930s. University Park, PA: The Pennsylvania State University Press, 1996.
Utilizing a broad range of sources, including oral history interviews, Beik documents how coal mining families from twenty-five different nationalities banded together to fight for union representation and better lives.
Beiler, Rosalind J. Immigrant and Entrepreneur: The Atlantic World of Caspar Wistar 1765-1750. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2008.
An important recent work on Caspar Wistar and the German immigrant experience in 18th century Philadelphia.
Bodnar, John, ed.. The Ethnic Experience in Pennsylvania. Lewisburg: Bucknell University Press, 1973.
A classic work on immigration and ethnic history in Pennsylvania, rich in detailed social analysis of ethnicity and major ethnic groups in the Commonwealth.
Bodnar, John, et al. Lives of the Their Own: Blacks, Italians, and Poles in Pittsburgh, 1900-1960. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1982.
In this study, Bodnar brought together a decade of new scholarship on the Pennsylvania immigrant experience as seen through three groups in Pittsburgh. The book is especially strong on neighborhood settlement patterns and importance of ethnicity and race in industrial Pittsburgh.
Bric, Maurice. Ireland, Philadelphia and the Re-invention of America, 1760-1800. Dublin: Four Courts Press, 2008.
Analyzes Ireland and America, and Irish-America during a crucial era of nationalism and political turmoil in the wider Atlantic world. The narrative focuses on Irish immigrants in early national Philadelphia and the forces of social and pluralism, and the effect of ethnicity on early 19th century American politics.
Brown, Patrick. Industrial Pioneers: Scranton, Pennsylvania and the Transformation of America, 1840-1902. Archbald, PA : Tribute Books, 2010.
Examines Scranton as a crucible of change and conflict during the industrial revolution, and offers key insights into the process of transition from an agricultural to an industrial economy, and the class tensions that accompanied dramatic social change. The author offers important insights on the notion of citizenry and an emerging world view for the industrial age.
Burstin, Barbara Stern. After the Holocaust: The Migration of Polish Jews and Christians to Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1989.
In this book Burstin used oral history interviews with 120 Holocaust survivors to contrast the experiences of Polish Catholics and Jews who later moved to Pittsburgh.
Clark, Dennis. The Irish in Pennsylvania. University Park: Pennsylvania Historical Association, 1991.
A highly readable history of the Irish contribution to Pennsylvania politics and social life over three centuries.
Davis, Allen F. and Mark H. Haller, ed.. The Peoples of Philadelphia: A History of Ethnic Groups and Lower Class Life, 1790-1940. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1973.
Now somewhat dated, this study remains an important overview of Philadelphia ethnic communities over a century and a half of dramatic urban change.
Dorsey, Bruce. "Bibles, Public Schools, and Philadelphia's Bloody Riots of 1844" in Pennsylvania Legacies., 12-17.May 2008.
Excellent brief investigation into the ethnic and religious dimensions of urban rioting in Philadelphia in 1844.
Fogelman, Aaron S. Hopeful Journeys: German Immigration, Settlement and Political Culture in Colonial America, 1717-1775. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1996.
Influential study of immigrant German communities on the eve of the American Revolution.
Frantz, John B. and William Pencak, ed.. Beyond Philadelphia: The American Revolution in the Pennsylvania Hinterland. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1998.
This collection includes original essays on the Pennsylvania countryside and the role of German and Scots-Irish settlers in the imperial conflict.
Gallman, J. Matthew. Receiving Erin's Children: Philadelphia, Liverpool, and the Irish Famine Migration, 1845-1855. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2000.
Comparative study of how the cities of Liverpool and Philadelphia met the challenge of the flood of refugees from the Irish famine.
Glatfelter, Charles H. The Pennsylvania Germans. University Park: Pennsylvania Historical Association, rev. ed. 2002.
An older, but still useful short overview of colonial German experience.
Golab, Caroline. Immigrant Destinations. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1977.
Important study of the Polish immigrant experience in industrial Philadelphia.
Gottlieb, Peter. Making Their Own Way: Southern Blacks' Migration to Pittsburgh, 1916-1930. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1987.
One of the first thorough assessments of black migration to industrial Pennsylvania.
Greene, Victor R. The Slavic Community on Strike: Immigrant Labor in Pennsylvania Anthracite. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1961.
Sophisticated but now dated assessment of Slavic immigrant workers in the anthracite coal region at turn of the 20th century.
Greene, Victor R. For God and Country: The Rise of Polish and Lithuanian Consciousness in America. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1975.
Considered the classic study of Polish and Lithuanian ethnic identity in industrial America, with important attention given to Pennsylvania.
Gregg, Robert. Sparks from the Anvil of Oppression: Philadelphia's African Methodists and Southern Migrants, 1890-1940. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1998.
Important study of how A.M.E. churches in Philadelphia attempted to help southern migrants adjust to urban life in the early decades of the twentieth century.
Heimel, Paul W. Oleana: The Ole Bull Colony. Knox Books, 2002.
The best history of concert violinist Ole Bull's ill-fated Norwegian colony in the wilds of Potter County, Pennsylvania.
Higham, John. Strangers in the Land: Patterns of American Nativism, 1860-1925. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1955.
Though now a half-century old this remains the classic study of anti-immigrant sentiments and organizations in the industrial era.
Hoffecker, Carol E., Richard Waldron, and Lorraine E. Williams, eds. New Sweden in America. Cranberry NJ: Associated University Presses, 1995.
Essays drawn from a 1988 conference commemorating the 350th anniversary of the founding of the New Sweden colony. Interdisciplinary in scope, the volume's contributors include American and European scholars who assess recent trends and place of New Sweden in the field of colonial studies.
Juliani, Richard N. Building Little Italy: Philadelphia's Italians Before Mass Migration. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1998.
Assesses the development of Italian-American identity in the city of Philadelphia.
Kenny, Kevin. Making Sense of the Molly Maguires. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998.
Important study of Irish labor unrest in the anthracite coal region, with especially good chapters on the Irish background of labor radicals.
Klepp, Susan E. and others. The Infortunate: The Voyage And Adventures Of William Moraley, An Indentured Servant. Pennsylvania State University Press, 2005.
This edited 18th-century memoir includes an insightful introductory essay that places Moraley's life and writings in historical context. The memoir itself offers rich insight into religion, social customs, and everyday life in early Philadelphia.
Magda, Matthew. The Polish Presence in Pennsylvania. University Park: Pennsylvania Historical Association, 1992.
Brief but accessible overview of the Polish immigrant experience in Pennsylvania.
Merrell, James. Into Penn's Woods: Negotiators on the Pennsylvania Frontier. New York: W.W. Norton, 1999.
Prize-winning study of Indian-white relations on the 18th-century Pennsylvania frontier.
Miller, Fredric M and others. Still Philadelphia: A Photographic History, 1890-1940. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1983.
This rich photographic history of Philadelphia includes powerful images of newcomers to the city, and their workplaces and neighborhoods.
Morawska, Ewa. Insecure Prosperity. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1996.
A detailed history of the Jewish community in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, that begins with an extensive examination of Jewish life in the Eastern European regions from which most of Johnstown's immigrants came.
Morawska, Ewa. For Bread With Butter: The Life-Worlds of East-Central Europeans in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, 1890-1940 . New York: Cambridge University Press, 1986.
Important sociological study of Hungarian and other East European presence in Pennsylvania steel and mining community.
Nash, Gary. Forging Freedom: The Formation of Philadelphia's Black Community, 1720-1840. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1990.
Significant study of Philadelphia's African-American community and its transition from slavery to freedom.
Nolt, Steven M. Foreigners in Their Own Land: Pennsylvania Germans in the Early Republic. State College: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2002.
An examination of how Lutheran and Reformed Germans in eastern Pennsylvania integrated successfully into the early American republic.
Novak, Michael. The Guns of Lattimer. New York: Basic Books, 1978.
Highly readable account of the 1897 Lattimer massacre and the lives of Slovak immigrant miners.
Perlman, Robert. From Shtetl to Milltown: Litvaks, Hungarians, and Galizianers in Western Pennsylvania, 1875-1925. Pittsburgh: Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania,, 2001.
Contrasting turn-of-the-century Jewish life in Poland, Russia, Hungary, and Galicia and the new world of industrial western Pennsylvania, this study also contains useful insights into Jewish immigrant traditions and customs, and the experience of adjusting to industrial America.
Reimers, David M. Unwelcome Strangers: American Identity and the Turn Against Immigration. New York: Columbia University Press, 1998.
Very informative study of anti-immigrant sentiments in American history.
Richter, Daniel K. Native Americans' Pennsylvania. University Park: Pennsylvania Historical Association, 2005.
Brief, highly informative study of the Native American experience in Pennsylvania; especially good on pre-Contact archaeology.
Roeber, A.G. Palatines, Liberty and Prosperity: German Lutherans in Colonial British America. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1993.
An influential study of German Protestant (High German) presence in colonial America.
Salinger, Sharon V. The Serve Well and Faithfully: Labor and Indentured Servants in Pennsylvania. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1987.
Important study of the social identity and work experience of bonded indentured servants. The author stresses the "meaning and consequences of servitude for servants" in the colonial Pennsylvania household economy.
Sandow, Robert. Deserter Country: Civil War Opposition in the Pennsylvania Appalachians. Bronx, NY: Fordham University Press, 2009.
This study explains how communities in Pennsylvania's Appalachian mountain regions opposed the Civil War and resisted, at times violently, the draft.
Smylie, James. Scotch-Irish Presence in Pennsylvania. University Park: Pennsylvania Historical Association, rev. ed. 1990.
An older, but still useful study of Ulster Scots on the Pennsylvania frontier.
Stolarik, Mark. Immigration and Urbanization: The Slovak Experience, 1870-1918. New York: AMS Press, 1989.
Important study of Slovak and East European experience in industrial America.
Takaki, Ronald T. Strangers from a Different Shore: A History of Asian Americans. Boston: Little Brown, 1989.
Best single-volume study of Asian immigrant experience in America.
Takenaka, Ayumi and Mary Johnson Osirim. Global Philadelphia. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2010.
This study places Philadelphia's recent immigrant communities in global economic context.
Thernstrom, Stephen, ed.. Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1980.
Multi-faceted one-volume set of essays that covers rich history of scores of American immigrant groups. Excellent research source.
Toll, Jean Barth and Mildred S. Gillam, eds. Invisible Philadelphia: Community Voluntary Organizations. Philadelphia: Philadelphia History Museum at The Atwater Kent, 1995.
A sprawling historical encyclopedia of voluntary organizations in the city of Philadelphia, including sections, with overviews, on ethnic and racial, religious, social service, and labor organizations; festivals; and hereditary societies.
Trotter, Joe William, and Eric Ledell Smith, eds. African Americans in Pennsylvania: Shifting Historical Perspectives. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1997.
Excellent volume of essays on the African-American experience in Pennsylvania.
Washburn, David E. The Peoples of Pennsylvania: An Annotated Bibliography of Resource Materials . Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1981.
Excellent, if now dated, annotated bibliography of resource materials dealing with the ethnic experience in Pennsylvania.
Whalen, Carmen. From Puerto Rico To Philadelphia: Puerto Rican Workers and Postwar Economies. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2001.
Rich history of Puerto Rican migration to Philadelphia since World War II, including its causes, patterns, and the communities that Puerto Ricans created in the City of Brotherly Love.
Wokeck, Marianne S. Trade in Strangers: The Beginnings of Mass Migration to North America. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1999.
An authoritative account of colonial and 18th-century immigration patterns.
Includes Daniel Rupp's 1876 "History of the Palatine Immigration to Pennsylvania," and German Palatine passenger lists from 1727 to 1808.
Early Life of the Pennsylvania Germans, 1945 http://www.sacred-texts.com/ame/elpg/index.htm
Provides valuable overview and detailed information on early patterns of German immigration to Pennsylvania.
Family Search, "Pennsylvania Emigration and Immigration" https://wiki.familysearch.org/en/Pennsylvania_Emigration_and_Immigrati...
Terrific compilation of online and print materials related to the history of immigration to Pennsylvania from the 1600s to the present
Historical Society of Pennsylvania , "Balch Online Exhibits" http://hsp.org/history-online/exhibits?keys=balch&field_topic_value=Al...
Series of online exhibits from immigrant communities in American from the Balch Institute for Ethnic Studies' exhibit program before it merged with the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.
Immaculata University, "The Duffy's Cut Project" http://www.duffyscutproject.com
Rich and growing body of materials on the 57 Irish immigrants who died near Malvern while working for Philadelphia and Columbia Railroad in 1832. Includes materials on their lives and deaths and explores early 19th-century attitudes towards industry, immigration, and disease in Pennsylvania.
Library of Congress, American Memory http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/browse/index.html
Outstanding American history site, with excellent immigration history resources and teacher lesson plans.
National Archives, "Immigration Records, (Ship Passenger Arrical Records and Lond Border Entries)" http://www.archives.gov/research/immigration/passenger-arrival.html
Excellent resource on immigration and ship records, especially pre-1900.
The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, "In Motion: The African American Migration Experience" http://www.inmotionaame.org/home.cfm
This website offers excellent information on African American migrations in United States' history.
The Society to Preserve the Millvale Murals of Maxo Vanka, "The Murals of Maxo Vanka" http://www.vankamurals.org/index.html
This website is dedicated to the commemoration and preservation of the breathtaking murals painted in the 1930s by Croatian artist Maxo Vanka in Millville's Saint Nicholas Croatian Catholic Church in Millville, Pennsylvania.
The Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies at Elizabethtown College , "Amish Studies" http://www2.etown.edu/amishstudies/
Useful site for information about Amish and Anabaptist groups, and their cultures and social world.
