Cousin Sofia Letter

The details on how my family arrived in America have been passed down by various members of my family. The accuracy and detail of these memories have diminished with every retelling. Some of my family arrived in America so long ago that all that remains of their experiences are rumors and stretched truths. As a story gets retold over and over it loses much of its accuracy. While much of my family history relies on this kind of storytelling, there are some in my family who were alive and experienced the challenges faced by immigrants. Though born in the United States, my maternal grandfather, Sebastian Passantino, was very familiar with the hardships of being an immigrant.

Letter from an Unknown Woman (Max Ophüls; 1948 United States) is a melodrama film that revolves around a woman’s love for a man who does not acknowledge her existence. Like the other films Max Ophüls directed in America, Letter from an Unknown Woman focuses on “impossible love” (Danks, n.d. p. 98).

On my father’s side, my grandfather’s grandfather moved to the United States in the late 1800’s from Germany. This was just before the federal government took over the immigration process. An American company had advertised in his town that they should move to the United States. Fishman, and a large amount of people from his town moved to Beloit, Wisconsin.1 Wisconsin has a high German population to this day. I imagine that they all had to pass the strict inspectors of Ellis Island. He stayed in Wisconsin and married a German woman. His son stayed in Wisconsin and married a German woman. That son was my grandfather’s father. My grandmother was a Mexican-American, born in East Los Angeles. Her mother came from Guadalajara, Mexico. I do not know why she chose to migrate.

They had to go through many physical exams before entering America and they also had to change their names. In document 1, the picture illustrates how immigrants were checked for any diseases. If they had any sickness, they were sent back to their home country. This probably made the immigrants feel startled. Additionally, in document 5, there is an image of a group of people altering their names.

Ellis Island and Angel Island presented an opportunity for success. People that wouldn't normally have a chance to succeed got to come to America and start a new life. Carl L Bankston talks about the travel to Ellis Island, “Doctors took one glance while immigrants go to the second floor. This was known as the "Six-Second exam" (Bankston, Carl L, 179). Rebman also talks about Coded Chalk Marks, she says, “A chalk mark drawn on the shoulder of an immigrant’s jacket or on his lapel indicated a wide variety of abnormalities. This system of coded chalk marks quickly identified immigrants needing further examination. Illness and medical problems were the most frequent causes of deportation. More than a dozen letters were used to indicate possible problems; for example, B: back, CT: trachoma, E: eyes, H: heart, L: lameness, Pg: pregnancy, Sc: scalp, X: suspected mental illness (a circled X meant definite signs of mental disease had been observed)” (Rebman, 24).

This is your father Aaron Rooplal. I know it would be years until it’s time for the both of you to read this letter. First, I want to apologize for being away from you so long. I know this isn't fair but I’m away for this business project in Japan just so that I’m able to provide a financially stable lifestyle for you and your superb mom who has been struggling so much on her own to take care of you both. This business project will be done before no time and I promise to come back with so many gifts for you both and make up for all the lost time.

For some the hardest part of their journey was arriving at the port. Many had to wait for paperwork, or had to travel long distances just to get to the port. This paperwork consisted of 31 questions of personal intent. Then they were finally led to the ship or maybe cargo ship and then to steerage where they were then transported to America. Steerage was the hardest part for some passengers because of the dark crowded spaces and the cold bitterness. Once on board of the boat or cargo ship there were three types of passengers, first class, second class, and third class. First and second class did not need to go through any form of customs or check out they just boarded and exited into New York. Third class passengers were not as fortunate and had to be inspected and registered into Ellis Island. During the boat ride the passengers played cards talked and learned the new language. Before these passengers left the ship medical examiners came onto the boat and checked everyone for diseases and personnel. After the immigrant exited the boat he approached a customs officer to be checked, after that they went to the money station where any foreign money you had could be exchanged for American money. From there on most immigrants were on their own and had to find a way out of Ellis Island and New

Many of them migrated to America for numerous reasons like escaping poverty and religious intolerance, but overall all of them had big dreams and high expectations for the new life they were entering into. As immigrants entered the country each and every one of them had to go through strict examinations such as physical examination and to ensure they weren’t carrying infectious diseases, those who were pronounced sickly were rejected and deported back to their

At Ellis Island, before immigrants were allowed to become a U.S citizen they had to go through a health inspection. The first thing they had to do was get inspected by the doctor. The doctor

Almost everyone who lives in America today is a descendant of an immigrant to the U.S. If an immigrant arrived between the years of 1892 and 1924, they went through the long and tedious task of being accepted through the large brick building at the notorious place of Ellis Island. There were many troubles involved with being accepted to and into America, but it was all worth it to them. Some of these problems were long and cramped boat rides, unbelievable wait time to get to the desk of the people who register the immigrants, getting started in the country was somewhat difficult if you arrived without much money.

Millions of newly arrived immigrants passed through the station during that time. Immigrants would be checked physically for any diseases to see if they would be approved to enter the United States. In the beginning of 1925 to its closing in 1954, “only 2.3 million immigrants passed through Ellis Island–which was still more than half of all those entering the United States”(Ellis Island). Other immigrants staying at Ellis Island lived in really bad conditions to the point where many immigrants couldn’t survive. Not to mention, Ellis Island wasn't even big therefore many people were cramped towards each other which made the odds of being ill a lot higher. Furthermore at Ellis Island “In June 15, 1897 a fire destroyed the buildings and killed many immigrants” (Immigration). This fire nearly killed everyone and unfortunately, only two hundred seventy people were able to survive (Immigration). Lastly, immigrants who passed Ellis Island still had to go through 1 more test to get to America. Immigrants were then lead to a “great hall where they were asked 29 questions” (Ellis Island). These questions consisted mainly of personal information like what's your name, how old are you and some history questions like what is the 4th of July (Questions Asked of Immigrants at Ellis

In the early 20th century, there were still immigrants entering the country illegally, however, it wasn’t as common as it is today. 70% of immigrants entered through Ellis Island and the law required medical inspection of all of them by the US Public Health Service. Those that were found to have communicable diseases such as venereal diseases, Trachoma, Syphilis, and Tuberculosis were barred from admission. Others of suspicion were either quarantined or marked with chalk for further inspection. Between 1891 and 1930, nearly 80,000 immigrants were turned away with the majority being elderly with limited capacity. They were rendered unable to work due to senility, poor vision, muscle deformities, and even varicose veins. From 1902 to 1930, Ellis Island Immigrant Hospital took care of many incoming immigrants that were quarantined or had illnesses.

In 1892, the government made an immigration station on Ellis Island, in a bay between New York and Jersey City, New Jersey. Every day, hundreds or even thousands of people arrived by boat and pass through inspections as they arrived, potential immigrants were escorted through a quick health exam. As immigrants climbed up a set of stairs, officials watched for symptoms of illnesses, heavy breathing, and signs of mental disturbances. These were indications that the person might not be able to find or maintain a job. Doctors then gave a "six second physical" and checked for diseases, including a contagious eye infection called trachoma. Sick people were sent to a hospital on Ellis Island to be treated, and escorted through the same immigration process again. After the physical checkup, potential immigrants were asked a series of questions by immigration inspectors.

There was so many people from different countries wanting the same thing as we did. Ellis Island was covered with long lines of people waiting for inspection. This consisted of examination by a doctor and an interview with an inspector. If a doctor saw you as sick, you would have to stay at Ellis Island until you were well again. While with an inspector, immigrants were expected to answer questions like where they were from, whether they had relatives in America or not, how much money they had, could they read or write in any language, and if they had jobs waiting for them in America or not. Most Italian immigrants had to speak to the inspector through a translator because they did not know any English. I could many Italians “refer to the island as L'Isola delle Lacrime: The Island of Tears" (Grossman, 1993). We were amongst the lucky ones that did not get sick and have to be sent back to or homeland. We only had to wait about twelve hours before being passed and were able to stay and start a new life. While many Italian immigrants scattered across the states, my family felt as if it was in our best interest to stay close.

When I finally had my passport stamped and got my luggage, I made my way towards the arrivals hall. The number of people didn’t change but in fact looked like more, probably because the hall stretched out from one end to another. I slowly pulled along my suitcase as I met my uncle and I followed him to his car. On the way there, we went in a lift which was full of people.