Will Newman’s Immigration Story:

Since its establishment by the first Europeans, The United States of America has always been one of the most popular destinations that people desire to immigrate to. The most common pull factors that attract people to come live in The United States are to seek religious freedom, a higher economic status, and a more secure future for themselves and their children. Since transportation was very primitive up to the middle of the twentieth century, the first American destination for many immigrant families was Ellis Island- an island located at the south of Manhattan, New York. The classmate whom I interviewed, Will Newman considers himself to be a third generation immigrant. Ellis Island was the first destination that Will’s ancestors arrived to when they came to this country.

Will Newman’s family has a very compelling immigration story for one to learn and contemplate on its many rich qualities. The maternal side of his family is mainly of Irish ancestry. His great-grandmother, Huddy was born and raised in Ireland and came to New York in the 1920’s. She worked as a maid in New York in order to provide a decent lifestyle for herself and her family in this new and different society. Huddy was very impoverished in Ireland and became lower-to-middle class by conscientiously working in the United States. Will’s great-grandfather, Tuohy, was also born in Ireland and held a job at a department store when he came to New York. The great-grandmother and great-grandfather settled together in Yonkers, New York. Will’s grandmother, Mildred was the youngest of her five siblings. Mildred’s parents were very stern and distant from her that she treated her friends as if they were part of her immediate biological family. Her siblings were much older than her so she became friends with them as she became older and more mature. Mildred’s family emphasized hard work and as a result, her siblings became very successful individuals in their unknown fields. Will’s grandfather is a second generation American who was mostly raised by his grandmother, because his mother was unable to take care of him. Will’s great-granduncle worked in advertising and frequently travelled to Japan. He befriended Japanese immigrants and opened successful restaurants in Midtown Manhattan. Until now, the restaurants still exist and Will’s family still keeps in touch with their Japanese friends. Will is very distantly related to an Irish rent collector who was murdered in cold blood for his support of the English Monarchy and for his very arrogant and overall unpleasant personality. A story about this Irishman was written in the New York Times, but Will was not able to retrieve it from the Internet. Despite the fact that Will claims that he finds the story fascinating, he is still not very proud of this man’s actions nor of his tragic death.

Will’s paternal ancestry is also very unique and diverse. The ancestors of Will’s paternal grandmother, Dorothy Houston have resided in the United States since the 1600s. They settled in the Midwest and just like many Midwesterners at the time, they were farmers. Will’s paternal great-grandfather, Thomas lived in Budapest, Hungary and was a middle-to-upper class citizen. He was a banker and an owner of many buildings. Shortly, after Thomas escaped from Hungary for religious reasons, communists sieged his buildings in the 1930’s. In the late 1930’s, Thomas moved to three different countries. He left Hungary to go to Vienna, Austria and then left Austria to go to Paris, France. His last and final migration occurred when he moved to New York in the early 1940’s. Thomas remained in the continent of Europe for a very short time after leaving Hungary, because Jewish people were targeted by the Fascist Nazis and were put through abysmal living conditions that involved physical, economic, and emotional hardships.

Will’s paternal grandfather moved with his father (Will’s great-grandfather) to various places in Europe before coming to the United States. Will’s grandfather was a jokester and a dilettante of the card game, bridge. Unfortunately, Will has a very vague memory of his grandfather, because he passed away in the 1990’s when Will was a young child. Will’s father grew up in Stamford, Connecticut and was the youngest of his three siblings. Will’s mother was born in Manhattan, New York and grew up in Westchester, New York. The setting of her upbringing is described to be suburban with a New York City influence. Despite the NYC influence, the place still possesses the essential qualities of offering a relaxed and comfortable life.

One very bizarre story that Will learned from his mother deals with his aunt who currently resides in Switzerland. One time his aunt brought a pie to avoid entering her Irish relative’s home empty-handed. When Will’s aunt went to knock on their door, the household violated normal hospitality and sentimental etiquette by taking the pie from her and shutting the door behind on her face! This story is very hard to digest, because it makes the listener curious about the reasons behind a person’s acceptance of a pie as a gift from someone that s/he apparently despises and wants to deliberately ignore. There were no sufficient pieces of information provided during the interview that can address the reasons behind this very peculiar moment.

Will Newman’s family immigration story is very unique, because his maternal and paternal sides of the family came to the United States for various reasons- religious and socioeconomic. Will is very glad that he grew up in Westchester, New York and that he was not forced to relocate to different places, whether for economic or religious reasons like some of his ancestors. He is also very thankful that his ancestors come to the United States. He believes that if he were to move to the United States as a first generation immigrant, he would have experienced the commonly known cultural and economic challenges that all immigrants, especially those of the twenty-first century encounter during the first few years of their emigration.