The Statue Of Liberty is the large copper sculpture that towers above Liberty Island at the entrance to New York Harbor in upper New York Bay. The Statue of Liberty was given to the people of the United States by France in 1884. It has become a symbol of the United States and an expression of freedom to people all over the world.

1. Where is the Statue of Liberty located?

2. What country gave us the Statue of Liberty?

3. Why were people excited to see the Statue of Liberty as their boat pulled into New York Harbor from another country?

Document 1

For centuries, people have been coming to America to make new lives for themselves and their children. They have come for many reasons - economic, social, and political. America started with a few settlers looking for a new land. Soon more started to come. Boat loads of immigrants arrived from Spain, France, and England. In the 40 years between 1880 and 1920, 27 million immigrants entered the United States. The flow of immigration eventually lessened, but never stopped. Every day new immigrants arrive, seeking a better way of life.


1. How many immigrants entered the United States between the years 1880 and 1920?

2. Explain why someone may want to leave his/her own country to come to America?

"My heart aches every time I think about that afternoon when I left my parents and friends to go to the railroad station to begin my journey to America. My mother kissed me goodbye and then stood by the doorway stiff as a statue sobbing as my father and I left the house. At the station, even my father, as hard as he tried, could not keep the tears from filling his eyes."

-Rosa Stanco, Italian Immigrant


"So at last I was going to America! Really, really going at last! The boundaries burst. The arch of heaven soared. A million suns shone out for every star. The winds rushed in from outer space, roaring in my eyes, America! America!"

-Mary Antin, Russian Immigrant

1. Where did each of these women come from?

2. Write one way in which these women's feelings about coming to America are different.

European immigrants arrived on sailing ships that took from one to three months to cross the Atlantic. When steam-powered ships became common in the 1860s the voyage lasted only about ten days. The shorter crossing time meant cheaper tickets, less chance of danger from bad weather, and a lower incidence of shipboard diseases caused by poor living conditions.

1. List two problems the immigrants had while crossing the Atlantic by ship.

The steerage immigrant received three medical exams before entering America:
1. before boarding the ship
2. during the journey
3. at Ellis Island

Only steerage passengers were required to go to Ellis Island. First and second-class passengers were given their medical and legal inspections on board the steamship. As the immigrant entered the "Great Hall" of Ellis Island, they were greeted by physicians who inspected them in an average time of 6 seconds. The doctors were looking for symptoms of over 60 different diseases and ailments. These diseases included: diphtheria, tuberculosis, typhoid, measles, mental illness, senility, lameness, physical handicaps, or any other ailment or contagious disease that would prevent an immigrant from earning a living or threatening the welfare of the public.

1. What is the job of the man on the right in uniform?


2. Name three diseases that he is looking for.

The writer Angelo Pellegrini has recalled his own family's detention at Ellis Island:
"We lived there for three days - Mother and we five children, the youngest of whom was three years old. Because of the tough physical examination that we had to go through, particularly of the eyes, there was this terrible anxiety that one of us might be rejected. And if one of us was, what would the rest of the family do? My sister was rejected at first. She had been so ill and had cried so much that her eyes were absolutely bloodshot, and Mother was told, "Well, we can't let her in." But fortunately, Mother fought back and finally made them understand that if her child had a few hours rest and a little bite to eat she would be all right. In the end we did get through."

1. Describe the author's worst fear.

2. What was one problem with the sister?

• Use complete sentences.
  
  
• Use the documents to help you answer the question, but do not simply re-write the documents
  
  
• If you have background knowledge on the the immigration experience you may incorporate that information into your essay.
  
  

Task:

Imagine you are Sara Rovner. Write a letter to a friend back home describing what it was like for you coming to America. Use information from each of these documents.

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