There have been many significant changes in the population of the United States throughout history. These movements have responded to a great variety of factors. Three of these changes are:
During the 1600s, a great change in population occurred when the first Europeans began to settle in America. This was the beginning of the modern country. Most immigrants who moved to America at this time desired more freedom of religion and more available land. They settled in what is known as New England.During the mid and late 1800s, population in the country change severely as a result of the waves of immigrants that arrived in the country, mostly from Europe. Many Irish, Italian, German and Polish immigrants arrived during these years. These immigrants settled in large, industrialized cities. They were escaping from religious persecution, famine and war. They were also looking for better economic opportunities.The Great Migration was a movement primarily of African Americans from the rural areas of the South to the industrialized cities of the North, Midwest, Northeast and West. It occurred between 1916 and 1970. This was a movement that came from both a desire to escape segregation and a desire to find better economic opportunities elsewhere.
