They may have headed to the 'Land of the Free' for a better life, but a set of poignant black and white pictures illustrate the brutal hardships endured by immigrant families in 19th century New York.

The previous record for foreign-born population was set in 1890 with 14.8%. Alamy Stock Photo Even if only a modest share of illegal immigrants are missed by the survey, the total population would ...

1890. Jacob A ... truly understand the dehumanizing dangers of the immigrant neighborhoods he knew all too well, Riis taught himself photography and began taking a camera with him on his nightly ...