Immigrants who came to the U.S. before the Civil War tended to live in places with fewer immigrants as they stayed longer, unlike recent immigrants who stayed in high immigrant areas. Native-born Americans moved into cities with many immigrants, reducing the isolation of antebellum immigrants. Recent immigrants were better at avoiding low-skilled jobs when they first arrived, but were less likely to move out of these jobs compared to antebellum immigrants. Occupational mobility improved for recent immigrants, especially for those in non-low-skilled jobs. These findings suggest that concerns about the economic performance of recent immigrants may need to be reevaluated.