Korean Americans have been present in the United States continuously since January 13, 1903, when 102 pioneers from Korea arrived in Hawaii to work in the growing sugar production industry. Hawaii, annexed by the U.S. in 1898, became American territory in 1900, just a few years before the first Korean immigrants arrived.
The Korean American Foundation Greater Washington describes three waves of Korean immigration:
First Wave: 1903-1949.
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- In 1903, Koreans arrived in Hawaii to work on pineapple and sugar plantations, with over 7,000 Koreans coming by 1905 to escape famines and political turbulence in Korea. About half of these workers eventually moved to the mainland, establishing businesses such as laundry and nail salons, while the rest returned to Korea. From 1905 to 1924, around 2,000 more Korean immigrants, including picture brides, moved to Hawaii and California. Mass immigration ended abruptly in 1924 with the Oriental Exclusion Act.
Second Wave: 1950-1964.
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- After Korea’s liberation from Japanese occupation in 1945 and the division into South and North in 1948, about 15,000 Koreans moved to America during the Korean War (1950-1953). The McCarran and Walter Act of 1952 nullified the 1924 Asian immigration ban, making Asians eligible for citizenship. Post-war immigrants included Korean wives of American soldiers, war orphans adopted by American families, students, professionals, and academics, who successfully integrated into American society.
Third Wave: 1965-present.
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- The 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act revoked the national quota system, leading to a steady increase in Korean immigrants. Massive numbers of Koreans, mainly white-collar workers, voluntarily moved to America from the 1960s through the early 1980s. Their children, known as the second generation, comprise the major component of the current Korean American community.
- A more extensive description of these three waves was published by Boston University’s Boston Korean Diaspora Project.
First Korean Immigrants Versus First Koreans
While Korean immigration to the U.S. began in 1903, the first group of ethnic Koreans arrived in 1883. Ten governmental representatives from the Joseon Kingdom were invited to visit America following the Korea-U.S. Treaty of Peace, Amity and Trade in 1882. They arrived in San Francisco on September 2, 1883, and were welcomed by a U.S. government delegation before traveling to Washington, D.C. This historic mission lasted until May 1884.
An extensive description of the first Koreans in America prior to Hawaii is documented in the History of the Korean Americans in the Washington Metropolitan area 1883-2005, published by the Korean American Foundation of Greater Washington.
For more information on the history of Korean immigration to the United States, refer to resources such as Korean American Studies Online, the Korean American Data Bank, and the Korean American Historical Society.