Immigration to Canada The first immigrants to the territory now constituting Canada were from Western Europe. The first great influx began early in the 19th century when large numbers of Europeans left their homelands to escape the economic distress resulting from the transformation of industry by the factory system and the concurrent shift from small-scale to large-scale farming. At the same time, wars, political oppression, and religious persecution caused a great many Europeans to seek freedom and security in Canada. The century following 1820 may be divided into three great periods of immigration to Canada. During the first period, from 1820 to 1860, most of the immigrants came