Category: oral history

True Immigrant Stories_16: “It Was the Tombstone of Columbus”

March 12, 2014

[This is another firsthand immigrant account in a continuing series. This entry comes from Scottish travel writer Stephen Graham (1884-1975), who in 1913 left Liverpool, England, as a steerage passenger. This is an excerpt from his book, With Poor Immigrants to America (1914), in which he described events leading up to his inspection at Ellis … More True Immigrant Stories_16: “It Was the Tombstone of Columbus”

True Immigrant Stories_20: Smiling Through the Tears

February 26, 2014

[Maud Mosher worked for the Indian Health Service for eight years before accepting a position as a matron at Ellis Island. After serving from 1903 to 1907, she left and, in 1910, wrote several articles about her experiences in Coming Nation, a well-known periodical of the times. This is an excerpt.] “It was as surprising … More True Immigrant Stories_20: Smiling Through the Tears

True Immigrant Stories_18: Waiting Without Food and Water

February 19, 2014

[This is Part 2 of American journal Broughton Brandenburg’s account of a 1903 steamship voyage with immigrants in steerage, taken from his book, Imported Americans.] “. . . In mid-afternoon. . . when we reached the slip at Ellis Island we merely tied up, for there were many barge-loads ahead of us, and we waited our … More True Immigrant Stories_18: Waiting Without Food and Water

True Immigrant Stories_15: Reaching the Promised Land

February 12, 2014

[This is another firsthand account from my collection of immigrant memoirs. Here, American journalist Broughton Brandenburg recounts his traveling on a German steamship with Italian immigrants in October 1903. This excerpt appears in his book, Imported Americans.] “Sunday fell on the 11th, and it was a pleasant day till afternoon, when it began to get … More True Immigrant Stories_15: Reaching the Promised Land

True Immigrant Stories_14: “I Was Weak in the Knees”

February 4, 2014

      [This is another firsthand immigrant account from my oral history collection.  Louis Adamic was a prominent Slovene-American writer who migrated to America in December 1913 at age 15.] “Now and then I glanced at the noisy, picturesque, garlicky crowd on the steerage deck; people of perhaps a dozen nationalities milling around the … More True Immigrant Stories_14: “I Was Weak in the Knees”

True Immigrant Stories_13: “We All Stood There Naked”

January 27, 2014

[This is another firsthand immigrant account from my oral history collection. Here, a Czech immigrant woman tells of her journey from Prague to Rotterdam and then in steerage to America in 1920.] “Three days and three nights were spent riding in local trains from Prague to Rotterdam. At Oldenzaal, four stations distant from Rotterdam, all our … More True Immigrant Stories_13: “We All Stood There Naked”

True Immigrant Tales_19: “There Was Prejudice Everywhere”

January 15, 2014

[This is another firsthand immigrant story from my oral history collection.] “My story about America begins even before I was born in Calabria in 1920.   When my uncle was eight years old and the oldest among seven brothers and sisters, his parents told him they could no longer take care of him and he would … More True Immigrant Tales_19: “There Was Prejudice Everywhere”

True Immigrant Stories_12: “I Knew It Was a Good Country”

January 7, 2014

[This is another firsthand immigrant account from my oral history collection.] “I was born in Queens County, Ireland, in 1911.  I was one of thirteen children, with six brothers and six sisters.  I attended school until 10th grade, which was the maximum education offered at that time.  On the farm where we lived, I helped … More True Immigrant Stories_12: “I Knew It Was a Good Country”

True Immigrant Stories_11: From Tipperary in 1920

December 10, 2013

[This is another in a series of firsthand accounts from my immigrant oral histories collection] “Like many more immigrants like myself, I came to this country to seek a living, because living over there [in Tipperary, Ireland] was very, very poor.  Work was scarce and hard.  I worked on a farm.  I would get up … More True Immigrant Stories_11: From Tipperary in 1920

True Immigrant Stories_10: Jordan’s Adventures Continue

November 19, 2013

[This is a continuation of last week’s blog, which you may want to read first.  Jordan’s story comes from my oral history collection.] “When we were taken to Ellis Island, naturally, there were hundreds of us and we were led, almost like sheep, here and there, and we didn’t know where we were going.  Each … More True Immigrant Stories_10: Jordan’s Adventures Continue