See What Our Family Was Up to During

. . . the Mass Immigration through Ellis Island from Italy.

1890-1920

Immigrants from Syria and Italy ventured away from their homeland for similar reasons. The young men saw no opportunity for them in their respective countries. Governments were corrupt, and the economy was very poor. They decided to go to America, where they heard a person could get rich quick. The plan was to make a lot of money and return home. This is why the young men left first. They did not realize when they set out that they would come to love more about this country, particularly freedom. Most immigrants decided to stay in America and sent for their families. Our ancestors entered this country between the years of 1890 and 1910.  These were the peak years of immigration when thousands of immigrants flooded through customs every day. 

After they traveled from their village to a major European port, they boarded a large steamer and sailed across the Atlantic Ocean.  The typical sailing season was from late spring to early autumn and lasted from two to three weeks.  Our poor immigrant ancestors traveled as steerage passengers.  This means they were housed in the dark cavities below the deck with as many as 2000 other passengers.  Conditions down there were crowded and stuffy, so they spent as much time as they could on deck in the fresh air.  This is where all passengers wished to be as the ship sailed passed the Statue of Liberty, so that they could get a glimpse of the welcoming lady.

Once the ships were docked, immigration officials boarded and checked the passenger lists.  The customs house was so crowded during these busy years, and the passengers often had to wait on the ship for hours or days before being allowed to board the ferries that would take them to Ellis Island.  The customs process was very frightening for the foreigners.  Each new arrival had to have a medical exam and an interview.  Immigration officials had to make sure the new immigrants would not become a burden on the country's welfare system.  Those who were not deported back to their port of departure were allowed to enter the United States.  Most immigrants ferried over to the tip of Manhattan, where they made their new homes a few blocks away in ethnic sections of the city.

The Arrival of a Great Ocean Steam Ship at New York. Philadelphia: C. H. Graves, c1907. Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division[reproduction number LC-USZ62-89871].
Statue of Liberty, New York City. N.Y.C., c1898. Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division [reproduction number LC-USZ62-87198]. 
Ellis Island, c1913. Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division [reproduction number LC-USZ62-40101].