Why
did people leave their homelands? |
|
Many immigrants left their homelands because they felt that a better life
was waiting for them in America. Some had lost their homes to disasters such as
floods and earthquakes. Others left because there was not enough food. In the
mid-1800s a bad disease killed many of the crops people had planted and a famine
resulted. The lack of food caused almost two million people to die. Families
felt they had to move to a place that provided a better life and future for their
children. |
Why
did people immigrate to the United States? |
|
Immigrants
came to America from their homeland for many different reasons. Some had heard
interesting and fascinating stories about the "GOLDEN LAND" called America.
They believed that the "Golden Land" meant that they could get good
fertile land, get good jobs, have plenty to eat, and send their children to good schools.
|
Would
an entire family come together? |
|
Sometimes a family would come all at once but many times they would come
separately. The oldest child and father might immigrate to the new country while the
mother and other children would stay behind. After the father and oldest child had
worked and earned money for the passage of the others, they would send for them. |
What
did people bring with them? |
|
The immigrants could not usually bring every thing they owned. The
ship companies would only allow them a certain amount of luggage. The amount they
could bring depended upon the type of fare they paid. Although some people just had
bundles tied together, others took cardboard boxes, trunks, suitcases, baskets and leather
sacks.
|
Were
you examined before you boarded the ship? |
|
Since the United States government made the ship companies responsible for
returning any unhealthy people back to their homelands, the ship companies had a doctors
check passengers before they boarded. They would cut men and boy's hair very short
and comb women and girl's hair carefully to prevent the spread of lice. |
How
long would the ocean voyage last? |
|
The voyage from the west coast of Europe across the Atlantic Ocean to to
Ellis Island usually took about 40 days. Sometimes however, it could take as long as
six months. |
Where
would an immigrant eat and sleep on the trip? |
|
If you had first or second
class tickets you would have a private place to sleep and food would be served in a dining
room. However, if you had a steerage class ticket, (the majority of immigrants were
in this group), you would sleep and eat on the bottom level of the ship. The crew
would feed you lukewarm soup, boiled potatoes, and stringy beef. The beds were
narrow and sometimes stacked three high. |
What
would they do while on the ship? |
|
If the weather was good,
people would try and stay on the deck. The children would play games such as marbles
and dominoes. They also spent time with people from many different places and learned
words from other languages. Mothers would wash their children's hair on the
deck. Other people would do chores on the ship with the sailors. |
Was
the ocean voyage dangerous? |
|
The immigrants faced many
difficulties on their journey across the ocean. Besides dangerous storms they also
had the possibilities of becoming seriously ill and dying. |
What
happened when they reached the United States? |
|
Many
immigrants' first view of the United States was at Ellis Island in New York. After
leaving the ship they were examined by doctors and other specialists. If they were
healthy they were allowed to leave Ellis Island and start their new lives. Some
immigrants were returned to their homeland. |
