Immigration To North America

   During the highland clearances of the late 17th and into the 18 centuries, many Scottish families were forced from their lands due to the high land taxes imposed on them by England.

   Many families left for the "new World" with very little on the their backs but in the company of each other. Many families were also sworn into secrecy when the other family members were accepted as their own in the hopes that if they couldn't leave their homelands then their children would have a better future.

   Their plight was a sad one and many children never saw their parents again.

   Many were sent to Canada, United States, Australia, Africa, and various other parts world wide!

Below are a few maps to show the flood of Scots to America.

  The most Scottish movements occurred from 1650 to 1780. On the map, it shows how fast the Scottish Americans grew from 1650 to 1780. The map shows that most of the Scottish Americans immigrated to the Appalachian Mountains on the Atlantic Coast. In 1650, two-thirds of the 50,400 settlers in England's American colonies clustered in Virginia and Massachusetts.

   By 1780 the Atlantic Coast was covered with towns and farms. Especially in the 1600's with Scotland. Registers show families emigrating. Scotland had high rents, poverty, and unemployment. Less then 20% were indentured servants. America was a land of terrific opportunity and starting a new life. This might be because England was in control of Scotland in the 1600's. This is a good reason why people from Scotland might have wanted to come to America. America was a good country to move to at the time because it was the land of Opportunity and a chance for a new life. Along the way, there were many hardships for the Scots. Many of them were poor so it was hard to get a ship. They also had to deal with leaving there family and friends in Scotland.

  With so many landing on the east coast of the United States, many more landed in Eastern Canada. Pictou, Nova Scotia was the main port where the ships "The Sara", "The Hector", "The Dove"  and others landed.

  For a ship list of passengers click here