**This class will be taught In-Person**
The history of immigration to the United States can be graphed as an undulating landscape with twin peaks: the Ellis Island years at the turn of the 20C and the Hispanic-Asian immigration of today. The first shaped 20C America and the second is shaping the future. Our own OLLI demographic is dominated by descendants of those who came through Ellis Island, the greatest numbers of whom were Italians and Eastern European Jews. We will look at what drove them to emigrate, their voyage, the confusion of Ellis Island processing, and surviving by hanging onto their ethnicity an unwelcoming America.
Week by Week Outline
Class 1 -- Ellis Island history and late 19C America. Ellis Island opens 1892. Annie Moore arrives. First decade cut short by fire.
Class 2 – 1892~WW1. Eastern Europeans and the remaking of America. The voyage and processing procedure. Your stories.
Class 3 – 1892~WW1. Eastern Europeans and the remaking of America, cont. our stories. Class 4 – 1892~WW1. Italians and Southern Europeans and the remaking of America. Your stories. Class 5 – WW1~1924, closing the door on the ingrates. Ellis Island in semi-retirement. Your stories. Class 6 – The National Immigration Center and Museum. Summary of Ellis Island impact. Your stories.