Russian Immigration: Journey to America

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Russian Immigration Journey to America

• By Jenna Temkin

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A train station in my great-grandparents home
town Ztiomir.
Journey from Russia
Although Im not sure of the details, I know all
of my great-grandparents (except one) came to
America as part of a larger group of Russian Jews
who escaped anti-semitism and poverty during the
early 20th century. They escaped even more than
they could have imagined because each managed to
leave before the Holocaust.

Only a few stories have been passed down over the
generations, so I will only focus on my moms
side of the family. In most cases, one family
member immigrated to America first and sent for
others to come once he earned enough money.
Although anti-semitism followed them to America,
in general my ancestors were able to practice
their religion and succeeded in America.
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Life in Russia

• My great-grandparents Joseph and Esther Homer
  lived in Zitomir, a medium-sized town outside of
  Kiev in Russia (currently Ukraine.) However, they
  didnt know each other until they met in Chicago.
  Im unsure of what they did in Russia, but many
  citizens of Zitomir
• worked at the many printing presses
• attended trade schools
• worked in farms outside the city

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Anti-Semitism in Russia

• Jews had always faced persecution in
  Russia, but after the assassination of Czar
  Alexander II in 1881, life for Jews became much
  worse.
• Pogroms, extreme acts of
  government-supported violence against Jews, were
  instituted when these assassins took control of
  the government and blamed Jews for the Czars
  murder. Soldiers and angry mobs of Russian
  citizens burned towns and murdered many Jews.
• Czar Alexander III blamed the Jews for the
  riots and issued strict anti-semetic laws in
  1882. The May Laws banned Jews from living in
  specific towns and voting in local elections,
  restricted the number of Jews allowed in higher
  education and forbid Jews the right to own
  property.
• In 1905 Russia faced the largest amount of
  
• pogroms. In Zitomirs largest pogrom on
  April 24, 1905, a
• pro-czar terrorist group (League of the
  Russian People)
• killed 15 Jews and one non-Jew. 1905
  revolution
• Many of these pogroms left Jews without
  money,

Czar Alexnader III
Jewish Pogrom
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Escaping Anti-Semitism

• My great-grandfather Sol Cotler also lived in
  a town near Kiev on a farm. Sols father was a
  business man and owned a pop factory in town. His
  older brother Al was the first among his eight or
  nine siblings to leave for America due to pogroms
  in the area. Gradually, Sols other siblings
  immigrated to America, leaving Sol, his parents
  and younger sister Reva to immigrate in 1917.

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The Cotler's Journey
Jewish refugees in Liverpool port wait to board
ships

• It was very hard for Jews to leave Russia
  during this time, so Sol and his family were
  forced to hide in barns in order to escape. In
  one close call while hiding in a barn, Reva began
  to cry.
• In order to hide their Jewish identity,
  Sols family changed their common Jewish name,
  Goldfarb (there is some disagreement surrounding
  the true name), to the distinctly Russian Cotler.
  

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The Journey

• Jews ignored the Czars laws concerning
  immigration and usually escaped Russia at night
  and then took trains to reach West ports
• Tickets were usually easy to obtain and some were
  sold in local villages through traveling
  companies
• Immigrants boarded crowded ships and were usually
  at sea for about a week
• Fares were usually 30, depending on ship class
  level
• Steerage was the most commonly used and lowest
  class with the worst conditions including
• Crowded quarters, bad smells, unsanitary
  conditions and bad, non-kosher food
• At 26, Joseph left Zitomir aboard the Mauretania
  at Liverpool.
• 3 million Eastern European Jews
• Immigrated from 1880-1924

The Maurentania
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Ellis Island
Joseph arrived at Ellis Island June 7, 1912 and
Sol passed through in 1917. At Ellis Island
Josephs surname Ushomersky was shortened to
Homer by Ellis Island officials. This was a
common practice. Im sure most of my other
relatives arrived at Ellis Island, as well.
Most immigrants gained passage to America through
Ellis Island. When they first arrived, immigrants
checked heavy luggage before climbing the stairs
of separation, where immigrants mental health
was checked with help from interpreters.
Immigrants were then examined for infectious
diseases, like whooping cough and signs of
insanity. Immigrants who did not pass these tests
received chalk marks on their clothing and were
examined further by other doctors. Detained
immigrants were sent to dormitories for days or
weeks. The last stop was the main hall.
Immigrants waited in line for hours for an
interview with an inspector.
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Main Hall
Only 2 of immigrants were deported. Most stayed
in dormitories until money arrived or medical
conditions improved
Immigrants with luggage outside of the main gate.
Many immigrants tasted American food for the
first time in the Ellis Island dining room,
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Oy Vey The Hardships of Life in America for The
Homer's

• Joseph settled in Chicago because he had cousins
  already living there and was the oldest and first
  of six siblings to immigrate to America.
• Sending one family member to America to earn
  money to pay for the passage of the rest of the
  family was very common. The Homers arrived with
  little money. In 1912 Joseph created Homers
  Furniture Co. in order to earn money to bring his
  brother Louis to Chicago. Once Louis arrived,
  they worked extremely hard to bring the rest of
  the brothers, Abe, Jack and Henry, as well as
  their sister Fannie to America.
• Joseph and Esther arrived in America speaking
  only Yiddish. They learned English, but still
  spoke Yiddish for the rest of their lives.
  Esther, especially, spoke mostly Yiddish because
  she didnt work outside the home.
• The Homers overcame language barriers and lack
  of money and their store eventually grew into six
  Chicago area stores that remained open until
  1992.

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Life in America The Cotler's

• Sol, his parents and Reva first settled in
  New York, like many Jewish immigrants. They
  later moved to Chicago to reunite Sols brother
  Albert. They returned to their agricultural and
  business roots and later moved to a farm in
  Michigan. In the 1930s-40s, they created a
  resort in South Haven, Michigan.

Sol
The Cotlers in front of their resort.
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The Cotler's
Sol and Dena on a trip to Israel

• Sol moved to Chicago and married my
  great-grandmother Dena Davidson in 1930. Dena was
  born in Chicago with Romanian parents, who
  immigrated in the early 1900s. They opened a
  candy store soon after in the Albany Park
  neighborhood.

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Conclusion

• Despite language barriers, religious
  persecution and cultural differences, my
  ancestors eventually succeeded in providing
  better lives for themselves and their children.
• In the business world, the Homer brothers
  established a successful furniture store and the
  Cotlers created a candy (later liquor) store
  thats name, Cotlers Liquors, survived up until
  two years ago.
• Their children are the true evidence of my
  great-grandparents success. Joseph and Esther
  eventually had five children, who all attended
  college. Sol and Dena also raised two-college
  educated children who went on to successful
  careers.

Jewish immigrant Childrens first glimpse at the
Statue of Liberty
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Bibliography

• "Ellis Island History." Ellis Island. 2006.
  American Park Network. 21 Nov. 2006
  nt.asp?catid85contenttypeid341491.
• Freedland, Brenda. "Some History of Zhitomir." 26
  Nov. 2006 .
• Glassman, Deborah G. "Zhtiomer Collection Point."
  2005. 24 Nov. 2006 ne/Volhynia/ZhitomerCollection.htm.
• Hein, Avi. "The Jewish Virtual History Tour
  Russia." Jewish Virtual History. 2006. 21
• "Immigration Polish/Russian." 24 Nov. 2006
  2.html.
• Nov. 2006 urce/vjw/russia.htmlg.
• "Russia, 1905, Hundreds of Jews are Killed in
  Anti-Jewish Riots (Pogroms)." Facts of Israel. 21
  Oct. 2002. 25 Nov. 2006 com/blog/archives/000418-print.html.