Though every city in the U.S. has a distinctly American flavor, so many metropolitan areas display distinct signs of the immigrant populations that melded together to make the cities we know and love today. From Miami's Little Havana to New York City's Chinatown and Los Angeles' Little Italy, cultural enclaves continue to thrive in modern metropolitan areas and help build colorful and diverse communities.
Many cultural and ethnic enclaves have become destinations for locals and tourists alike, but these visitors bring with them a mixed bag of consequences. On one hand, increased foot traffic allows small businesses and restaurants more opportunities for business, ushering in much-appreciated cash flow. On the other hand, rising demand for goods and services can cause prices to rise, hiking up the cost of living and potentially pushing poorer individuals and families out of the community.
The gentrification of ethnic enclaves is not new. The term "gentrification" was coined by Ruth Glass in the 1960s to describe the displacement of working class folks in London, but the first examples of gentrification can be traced back to the 18th century when wealthy landowners, or the "gentry," began buying out small farmers who were struggling to accumulate the capital necessary to operate in England.
Today, ethnic enclaves continue to thrive despite the looming threats of gentrification and economic impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic. As one step towards understanding the history of these enclaves, Stacker compiled a list of the largest sources of immigrants in Savannah in 1900 by transcribing a previously untranscribed dataset from the U.S. Census Bureau. Table 35 of the Twelfth Census details the immigrant population of every city in the U.S. with at least 25,000 inhabitants as of the turn of the last century.
Read on to find out more about the historical immigrant community in your home city or explore the data on your own on our site, GitHub, or data.world.
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#1. Germany
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 980
- Percent of foreign born residents: 28.54%
National
- Number of residents: 2,669,164
- Percent of foreign born residents: 25.52%
- #1 most common country of origin
2 / 39
#2. Ireland
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 865
- Percent of foreign born residents: 25.19%
National
- Number of residents: 1,619,409
- Percent of foreign born residents: 15.48%
- #2 most common country of origin
3 / 39
#3. England
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 316
- Percent of foreign born residents: 9.20%
National
- Number of residents: 843,491
- Percent of foreign born residents: 8.06%
- #4 most common country of origin
4 / 39
#4. Russia
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 280
- Percent of foreign born residents: 8.15%
National
- Number of residents: 424,372
- Percent of foreign born residents: 4.06%
- #7 most common country of origin
5 / 39
#5. Canada
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 133
- Percent of foreign born residents: 3.87%
National
- Number of residents: 1,183,225
- Percent of foreign born residents: 11.31%
- #3 most common country of origin
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#6. Greece
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 109
- Percent of foreign born residents: 3.17%
National
- Number of residents: 8,655
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.08%
- #31 most common country of origin
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#7. Scotland
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 78
- Percent of foreign born residents: 2.27%
National
- Number of residents: 234,699
- Percent of foreign born residents: 2.24%
- #11 most common country of origin
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#8. Norway
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 68
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.98%
National
- Number of residents: 338,426
- Percent of foreign born residents: 3.24%
- #9 most common country of origin
9 / 39
#9. Austria
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 60
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.75%
National
- Number of residents: 276,702
- Percent of foreign born residents: 2.65%
- #10 most common country of origin
10 / 39
#10. France
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 58
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.69%
National
- Number of residents: 104,534
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.00%
- #18 most common country of origin
11 / 39
#11. Italy
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 56
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.63%
National
- Number of residents: 484,703
- Percent of foreign born residents: 4.63%
- #6 most common country of origin
12 / 39
#12. China
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 45
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.31%
National
- Number of residents: 106,659
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.02%
- #16 most common country of origin
13 / 39
#13. West Indies (except Cuba and Puerto Rico)
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 44
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.28%
National
- Number of residents: 14,468
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.14%
- #26 most common country of origin
14 / 39
#14. Asia (except China, Japan, and India)
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 44
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.28%
National
- Number of residents: 11,928
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.11%
- #27 most common country of origin
15 / 39
#15. Sweden
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 43
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.25%
National
- Number of residents: 574,625
- Percent of foreign born residents: 5.49%
- #5 most common country of origin
16 / 39
#16. Poland
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 43
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.25%
National
- Number of residents: 383,595
- Percent of foreign born residents: 3.67%
- #8 most common country of origin
17 / 39
#17. Hungary
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 40
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.16%
National
- Number of residents: 145,815
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.39%
- #14 most common country of origin
18 / 39
#18. Spain
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 39
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.14%
National
- Number of residents: 7,284
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.07%
- #33 most common country of origin
19 / 39
#19. Denmark
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 23
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.67%
National
- Number of residents: 154,616
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.48%
- #13 most common country of origin
20 / 39
#20. Cuba
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 17
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.50%
National
- Number of residents: 11,159
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.11%
- #28 most common country of origin
21 / 39
#21. Europe (not otherwise specified)
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 14
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.41%
National
- Number of residents: 2,272
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.02%
- #41 most common country of origin
22 / 39
#22. Holland
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 12
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.35%
National
- Number of residents: 105,098
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.00%
- #17 most common country of origin
23 / 39
#23. Roumania
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 11
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.32%
National
- Number of residents: 15,043
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.14%
- #25 most common country of origin
24 / 39
#24. Switzerland
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 10
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.29%
National
- Number of residents: 115,959
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.11%
- #15 most common country of origin
25 / 39
#25. Finland
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 6
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.17%
National
- Number of residents: 63,440
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.61%
- #22 most common country of origin
26 / 39
#26. Belgium
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 6
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.17%
National
- Number of residents: 29,848
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.29%
- #24 most common country of origin
27 / 39
#27. Born at sea
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 5
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.15%
National
- Number of residents: 8,310
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.08%
- #32 most common country of origin
28 / 39
#28. Wales
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 5
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.15%
National
- Number of residents: 93,744
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.90%
- #20 most common country of origin
29 / 39
#29. Turkey
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 5
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.15%
National
- Number of residents: 9,949
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.10%
- #30 most common country of origin
30 / 39
#30. India
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 5
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.15%
National
- Number of residents: 2,069
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.02%
- #42 most common country of origin
31 / 39
#31. South America
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 4
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.12%
National
- Number of residents: 4,814
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.05%
- #35 most common country of origin
32 / 39
#32. Bohemia
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 4
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.12%
National
- Number of residents: 156,999
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.50%
- #12 most common country of origin
33 / 39
#33. Portugal
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 3
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.09%
National
- Number of residents: 37,144
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.36%
- #23 most common country of origin
34 / 39
#34. Atlantic Islands
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 2
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.06%
National
- Number of residents: 10,955
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.10%
- #29 most common country of origin
35 / 39
#35. Africa
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 2
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.06%
National
- Number of residents: 2,577
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.02%
- #40 most common country of origin
36 / 39
#36. Other countries
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 1
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.03%
National
- Number of residents: 2,587
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.02%
- #39 most common country of origin
37 / 39
#37. Pacific Islands (except Phillipine Islands)
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 1
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.03%
National
- Number of residents: 2,659
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.03%
- #38 most common country of origin
38 / 39
#38. Central America
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 1
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.03%
National
- Number of residents: 3,911
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.04%
- #36 most common country of origin
39 / 39
#39. Australia
Savannah, Georgia
- Number of residents: 1
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.03%
National
- Number of residents: 7,041
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.07%
- #34 most common country of origin
