Millions of people, mostly from Europe, made their way to America during the
great wave of immigration between 1880 and 1920. Many of them were children
whose stories have long been forgotten. Fortunately, some have been saved. This
essay tells the story of one child whose family immigrated to the United
States.
Alfred Levitt was born in a small Russian town in 1894. His family was very
poor. His father made horse-drawn carriages for the wealthy people in his
community. Life was hard. It took Alfred’s father six long months to build one
carriage. His customers refused to pay until the carriages were complete. In
the meantime, Alfred and his family went hungry.
Alfred Levitt was a Jew. During this time, Jews were hated in Russia. Organized
attacks called
pogroms, sometimes assisted by the government, were
carried out against Russian Jews. Many thousands were killed. In 1905, every
Jewish-owned business in Alfred’s town was ransacked and looted. His mother hid
him from the attackers. As the family huddled in fear, they longed for a better
life.
America offered hope to Russian Jews and the millions of others who wanted to
escape poverty or persecution in Europe. “In Russia,” Levitt recalled,
“everyone thought that America was such a rich country that you could literally
find gold in the streets.” Alfred was too young to do much to help his family,
but his older brothers were not. They left Russia and moved to New York. There
they became house painters. Like many other immigrants, they saved their
earnings until they could afford to buy passage for the entire family.
In 1911, Alfred and his family came to the United States. The journey was a
wonder to the teenaged Alfred. First, he and his family had to make the trek
overland to a port. He had never seen the ocean before, and the crashing waves
frightened him. Yet the trip opened up a world of possibilities. After crossing
the Atlantic, the ship approached New York Harbor. “I saw the Statue of
Liberty,” Alfred remembered, “and I was overwhelmed with a feeling of hope for
a beautiful life in a new nation.”
As he looked across the harbor from the processing station at Ellis Island,
Alfred was astounded by the view of New York City. He had come a long way from
the small town in Russia. His hometown was made of wood and stone. Now he
looked out at a gleaming, modern city, complete with skyscrapers reaching to
the sky.
Alfred felt a surge of anticipation. But first he and his family had to face
the examiners at Ellis Island to find out whether they would be allowed to
settle in America. Immigration officials lifted Alfred’s eyelids in search of
infectious diseases, listened to his lungs to rule out tuberculosis, and
checked his hair for signs of lice. His father was asked a series of questions
about his political beliefs and his plans for work and life in America.
Finally, the examination was over, and Alfred’s family was allowed to enter the
United States. You can imagine how Alfred must have felt as they left Ellis
Island for the short ferry ride to the docks in New York City.
Alfred’s amazement over his new home only grew. In Russia, everyone traveled by
horse or bicycle. In New York, people could go anywhere on the subway for just
five cents. At first, he was afraid to climb down into the dark tunnel to reach
the subway cars, but once he did, he made several discoveries. First, he
learned that people in America came from all over the world. Never before had
he seen so many races or heard so many different languages. Second, he
discovered the wonders of the American economy. Advertisements in the subway
tunnels showed all kinds of consumer products from American factories. The
variety of products was truly a wonder.
Unlike some immigrant families, Alfred’s could afford to have him attend
school. After starting at one school, he was disappointed. He was not learning
English quickly enough. He said, “I wanted to learn the American language
because I wanted to understand the American people, the American mind, and the
American culture. I wanted to be completely American.... I knew if I couldn’t
speak English, I couldn’t get a good job.”
Alfred made his way to another school where he believed he could learn the
language faster. He had to convince the principal to allow him in. The
principal gave him a test on the spot. Could he spell
accident? He
did, with two c’s. Did he know what two thirds of 15 was? The answer, 10,
earned Albert entry into the school. In Russia, few Jewish children attended
school. In America, said Albert, “I could go to school with everyone else.”
Enrichment Activity
Answer these questions:
| 1.
|
What sorts of experiences did immigrant children have? |
| 2.
|
How were they affected by the decisions their relatives made? |
| 3.
|
What does Levitt’s biography teach us about the immigrant
experience? |
| 4.
|
What sorts of stories might your relatives be able to tell about
their own childhood experiences? |
