U.S. Census Office, Maps of the Pacific Coast (1874)

This series of choropleth maps from the Statistical Atlas of the United States Based on the Results of the Ninth Census 1870, published in 1874 under the direction of Francis A. Walker, depict various demographic statistics about the impact of the immigrant population on the Pacific Coast. During the 1850s, California especially experienced an increase in population thanks in part to the Gold Rush and building the Transcontinental Railroad. The latter was dangerous and laborious work (generally poorly paid) that created job opportunities for immigrants, including thousands of Chinese migrants. The maps depict the percentage of the population with a foreign-born parent or relative, further subdividing those categories to either an Irish, German, or Chinese relative. It also visualizes the total population in 1860 compared to 1870, and rates of illiteracy in the same geographic areas. This illustration can help inform our understanding of rising racial tensions, including the anti-Chinese movement in the West.