Welsh Americans: A History of Assimilation in the Coalfields
In 1890, more than 100,000 Welsh-born immigrants resided in the United States. A majority of them were skilled laborers from the coal mines of Wales who had been recruited by American mining companies. Readily accepted by American society, Welsh immigrants experienced a unique process of acculturation. In the first history of this exceptional community, Ronald Lewis explores how Welsh immigrants made a significant contribution to the development of the American coal industry and how their...
Search in google:
In 1890, more than 100,000 Welsh-born immigrants resided in the United States. A majority of them were skilled laborers from the coal mines of Wales who had been recruited by American mining companies. Readily accepted by American society, Welsh immigrants experienced a unique process of acculturation. In the first history of this exceptional community, Ronald Lewis explores how Welsh immigrants made a significant contribution to the development of the American coal industry and how their rapid and successful assimilation affected Welsh American culture.Lewis describes how Welsh immigrants brought their national churches, fraternal orders and societies, love of literature and music, and, most important, their own language. Yet unlike eastern and southern Europeans and the Irish, the Welsh—even with their "foreign" ways—encountered no apparent hostility from the Americans. Often within a single generation, Welsh cultural institutions would begin to fade and a new "Welsh American" identity developed.True to the perspective of the Welsh themselves, Lewis's analysis adopts a transnational view of immigration, examining the maintenance of Welsh coal-mining culture in the United States and in Wales. By focusing on Welsh coal miners, Welsh Americans illuminates how Americanization occurred among a distinct group of skilled immigrants and demonstrates the diversity of the labor migrations to a rapidly industrializing America.
Introduction 11 Emigration, Immigration 112 Superintendents, Networks, and Welsh Settlement Patterns 513 Community, Republicanism, and Social Mobility 914 Welsh American Cultural Institutions 1295 Professional Inspectors for a Disaster-Prone Industry 1556 Ethnic Conflict: The Welsh and Irish in Anthracite Country 1897 The Slav "Invasion" and the Welsh "Exodus" 2218 Welsh American Union Leadership 2499 From Nantymoel to Hollywood: The Incredible Journey of Mary Thomas 283Epilogue: Americanization and Welsh Identity 307Notes 321Bibliography 359Index 387
\ From the Publisher"A deeply contextualized study of the Welsh-American experience."—\ -Journal of Appalachian Studies\ "Offers a wealth of information on Welsh history and culture in America and Wales. . . . A comprehensive, multidimensional exposition. . . . Extensive knowledge and keen insights [are] conveyed in this monumental research effort."\ -Journal of American Ethnic History\ "A masterful survey. . . . Add[s] depth and context to an immigrant group that was crucial to American economic development. . . . [A] superb and important addition to immigration and labor history."\ -American Studies\ "A detailed and readable work based on a wide variety of sources from both Europe and the United States. Welsh scholars and comparative immigration historians will find the book to be a valuable asset in their collections."\ -Journal of Southern History\ "An assured and reflective study as well as an accesible read for all audiences."\ — West Virginia History\ "Concerns and methodology are scholarly—[Lewis's] notes offer a valuable bibliography of Welsh American primary and secondary sources—but he writes in an accessible style and takes time to spin stories of upwardly mobile Welshmen."\ — Planet: The Welsh Internationalist\ "Excellent . . . beautifully written, deeply researched. . . . A first-rate piece of scholarship."\ — The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography\ "Includes a good assessment of the Welsh interaction with other immigrants. The book's readability also makes it accessible to general audiences, particularly those of Welsh ancestry seeking a better understanding of their ethnic roots. . . . Recommended."\ — Choice\ "An important addition to the historiography of immigration and ethnic identity . . . adds a great deal to our general understanding of mining culture and industrial development."\ — Journal of American History\ \ \
