Immigration Act of 1891

Thursday, January 01, 1891

Signed into law by President Benjamin Harrison this Act centralized immigration enforcement authority to the federal government, created the Office of Superintendent of Immigration, placed further regulations on contract labor, and expanded the list of excludable/deportable immigrants to include felons, polygamists, “all idiots, insane persons, paupers or persons likely to become a public charge”, and those suffering from infectious diseases.