History II Unit II Essay
Sheri Ahrendt
Columbia Southern University
Life was hard for me in my homeland in 1893. There was so much political unrest and poverty. It was so hard to find any work. My family and I dreamed of a future and a fortune that we heard could be made in America; a new life. We wanted out of our homeland and were willing to endure to reach our goal.
We had very little money and couldn’t afford to buy a first or second class ticket. We waited among crowds of people for our vessel heading to America. The ship ride was difficult, there were so many people, the smells were horrible, and many became ill. The voyage was so long, almost a month. There were people around us that were hoping the ship would sink just to put an …show more content…
The city looked amazing with its tall buildings. We couldn’t wait to get off the ship. Because we did not have a first or even second class ticket we had to be processed at Ellis Island. I felt so insignificant in that building. People were everywhere and we were afraid. There were so many police and government officials. Our experience taught us only to fear these people.
We were examined for diseases and those who were sick were marked for deportation. Families were separated from each other if one member was going to be deported back to their homeland. It was easy to tell those who had to endure that separation by the anguish on their faces. We heard some say if they were deported they would jump overboard before going back to the life they had come from.
We were asked questions about family in the United States, about work, and whether we had the required money to stay and others. They asked our name, we were unable to spell it for them so it was changed to something that was more American. After that we were free to go! The door to our new life was opened to us. We didn’t know the language and all the names of the cities sounded so strange to us. We had so much hope and knew our lives would be so much better here, we were so proud to be in America! (Immigration through Ellis Island - award winning documentary video film, …show more content…
I enjoy meeting with people at the dance halls. It is the people from my working class that are there. But when I am enjoying what has become the national pastime, baseball, it doesn’t matter the class. Everyone seems to be excited about the game. (Roark et al., 2013, p. 523) It has been a harder life then what I expected to encounter when I first boarded that boat. But when I am sitting at the ball field, I think to myself that it has been worth it.
References
Bernadt, J. (2014, September 10). Life in Cities & Political Machines in the Late 1800s[Video file]. Retrieved April 7, 2015, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUfQBTbWs5g
Charrington. (2014, February 3). Labor Wars: Unions and Tactics [Video file]. Retrieved April 7, 2015, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NdSOt1xtnc
Immigration through Ellis Island - award winning documentary video film [Video file]. (2008, June 4). Retrieved April 7, 2015, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4wzVuXPznk
Johnson, M. P. (2012). Reading the American past: Selected historical documents, volume 2 (5th ed.). Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin’s.
Roark, J. L., Johnson, M. P., Cohen, P. C., Stage, S., & Hartmann, S. M. (2013). The American promise: A concise history (5th ed.). Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin’s.
The immigrant. (n.d.). Retrieved April 10, 2015, from
Sheri Ahrendt
Columbia Southern University
Life was hard for me in my homeland in 1893. There was so much political unrest and poverty. It was so hard to find any work. My family and I dreamed of a future and a fortune that we heard could be made in America; a new life. We wanted out of our homeland and were willing to endure to reach our goal.
We had very little money and couldn’t afford to buy a first or second class ticket. We waited among crowds of people for our vessel heading to America. The ship ride was difficult, there were so many people, the smells were horrible, and many became ill. The voyage was so long, almost a month. There were people around us that were hoping the ship would sink just to put an …show more content…
The city looked amazing with its tall buildings. We couldn’t wait to get off the ship. Because we did not have a first or even second class ticket we had to be processed at Ellis Island. I felt so insignificant in that building. People were everywhere and we were afraid. There were so many police and government officials. Our experience taught us only to fear these people.
We were examined for diseases and those who were sick were marked for deportation. Families were separated from each other if one member was going to be deported back to their homeland. It was easy to tell those who had to endure that separation by the anguish on their faces. We heard some say if they were deported they would jump overboard before going back to the life they had come from.
We were asked questions about family in the United States, about work, and whether we had the required money to stay and others. They asked our name, we were unable to spell it for them so it was changed to something that was more American. After that we were free to go! The door to our new life was opened to us. We didn’t know the language and all the names of the cities sounded so strange to us. We had so much hope and knew our lives would be so much better here, we were so proud to be in America! (Immigration through Ellis Island - award winning documentary video film, …show more content…
I enjoy meeting with people at the dance halls. It is the people from my working class that are there. But when I am enjoying what has become the national pastime, baseball, it doesn’t matter the class. Everyone seems to be excited about the game. (Roark et al., 2013, p. 523) It has been a harder life then what I expected to encounter when I first boarded that boat. But when I am sitting at the ball field, I think to myself that it has been worth it.
References
Bernadt, J. (2014, September 10). Life in Cities & Political Machines in the Late 1800s[Video file]. Retrieved April 7, 2015, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUfQBTbWs5g
Charrington. (2014, February 3). Labor Wars: Unions and Tactics [Video file]. Retrieved April 7, 2015, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NdSOt1xtnc
Immigration through Ellis Island - award winning documentary video film [Video file]. (2008, June 4). Retrieved April 7, 2015, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4wzVuXPznk
Johnson, M. P. (2012). Reading the American past: Selected historical documents, volume 2 (5th ed.). Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin’s.
Roark, J. L., Johnson, M. P., Cohen, P. C., Stage, S., & Hartmann, S. M. (2013). The American promise: A concise history (5th ed.). Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin’s.
The immigrant. (n.d.). Retrieved April 10, 2015, from