French Canadian Immigrants in the New England Cotton Industry: A Socioeconimic Profile

DESPITE THE GROWING INTEREST shown recently in the history of the immigration and settlement of French Canadians in New England, the research on this important chapter of North American history is still at an early stage. This statement is especially justified in view of the enormous magnitude of this immigration and of the exceptionally long time-period it encompassed. Among the various students that have analyzed that movement, perhaps no other had rendered a greater scientific service than Ralph Vicero. Through a skillful utilization of impressionistic sources and quantitative data, Vicero has provided a basic picture of the magnitude of the movement and of its impact on New England society. Equally important, he has made it possible to gain a clear understanding of the various stages through which that movement evolved. Subsequent studies dealing with specific time-periods, or with particular localities, have greatly benefitted from the solid starting point which Vicero's work represents. Vicero's study, however, ends with the closing of the nineteenth century. No comparable study has yet been attempted of the period from 1900 to 1929 — a period during which the immigration movement of French Canadians underwent important changes owing to critical transformations occurring in the socioeconomic contexts of both New England and Quebec.