Immigration Experience

Immigration Experience

Ashley Liddick

HIS165

April 11, 2016

Professor: Priscilla MacDonald

Immigration Experience

In the early 1900’s my father, mother, and my baby sister immigrated to the United States from Poland. We are the Dymeckski family and this is our story. Our family decided to leave our home land of Poland in hopes of building a better and brighter future for each one of us in America. We could no longer survive in Poland due to poor agricultural methods which eventually led to our family losing what land we owned. With the loss of the farm and land our family could no longer survive, and we took and sold what little we had left to buy our tickets on a boat to America. The amount we had gathered was very little, but it was enough to get us aboard a cargo ship (Energyofanation.org, 2011).

As we arrived to the cargo ship there was a medical examiner that looked over each one of us to make sure we were healthy and did not carry any obvious diseases or defects. There were questions that were asked, vaccinations to get and all of us had to be disinfected, including our belongings. Finally, with questions answered, medical exams completed, vaccinations still stinging and disinfectant still stinking, we were led to our steerage accommodations. We walked past a tiny deck space, squeezed past machinery from the ship down a steep stairway to the enclosed decks. So many of us were jammed in so tight you could barely turn around. The conditions were so crowded, so dismally dark, so unsanitary and so foul-smelling that it made many, including myself sick. When food was served, we all lined up and pass several stewards who were handing out servings and rations. Food often repelled me, due to the foul air and all the horrible smells from not to clean bodies, and nearby toilet facilities (Ohranger.com, 2008-2013).

As we started getting close to port, I got to see the huge statue of Liberty. She represented the big, powerful country which was...