Within Families, Across Borders: Lifespans of U.S. Immigrants Born in 1850–1890 Relative to Origin, Destination, and Siblings

This article explores the relationship between migration and lifespan for individuals born between 1850 and 1890 who migrated to the United States. Using micro-level genealogical data from FamiLinx, we compare migrants’ ages at death to those of the U.S.-born population, the nonmigrant population in their countries of origin, and their nonmigrant siblings. We estimate sibling fixed-effects models that exploit within-family variation in migration status, allowing us to assess the extent to which the association between migration and lifespan can be attributed to factors shared by siblings. We also examine differences in migrant mortality across major origin groups. Overall, migrants show a mortality penalty compared with U.S.-born Whites, consistent with prior research. Yet, compared with their origin populations and nonmigrant siblings, migrants display a survival advantage, in line with a healthy migrant effect. Country-specific analyses reveal important cross-origin variation: the overall penalty relative to the U.S. population is driven mainly by historically disadvantaged groups, such as the Irish and Eastern Europeans. Compared with origin populations, most groups experience lower mortality.