My Family Background – from Ireland to USA

The Connolly family consisted of 4 people. My Dad’s name is Sean, my mom is Maureen, my sister is Kelly and I am Patrick. We lived in Dalkey, Dublin Ireland. Dublin is located in the middle of Ireland along the east coast closest to the United Kingdom. Dalkey is a small town located on the east coast of Dublin. Dublin was founded in 841 AD by the Vikings. Living conditions that the Vikings created were very primitive. Wooden huts with thatched roofs were what people lived in when they founded Dublin.

My parents purchased our house in 1880. Our house was located on Henrietta Street. In our house, we had one room two beds, a well in the front yard for clean water and we had one bucket for waste. Our neighborhood consisted of lawyers, craftsman, porters, mailmen, and carpenters. Many families shared houses as many families were stricken with poverty. With poverty rising in Dublin, this brought many concerns for my sister and me. Living conditions were becoming deplorable. The building was not being inspected correctly which lives were risked every day due to the fact of the building beginning to collapse. Conditions of the streets were unsanitary which caused the spread of diseases. Children began to die at young ages dues to the regulations not being monitored properly. Other children were either put to the streets to work at young ages or they would eventually end up in prison for petty theft.

Our families future was dim if we continued to reside in Dublin. One night after a long family meeting, my Dad made a very life-changing decision for all of us. It was time to migrate to America. Our family decided on traveling to Ellis Island to be part of the United States. My Dad hoped that America was going to provide a stable and safe environment for both Kelly and I. We chose to go to New York because my aunt and uncle lived there. They lived there because of the potato famine in the mid-1800’s. Our family was known for our tailor shop on Main Street in Dublin. In Boston, we were hoping to be able to open a shop to sell and fix clothes. With all of the rumors of the streets paved with gold and everything is stuffed with cheese and bacon is very exciting for Kelly and I. One thing in Ellis Island I am afraid of is the examinations. One rumor states that they take a hook and stick it in your eye. We packed our bags with all of our belongings before we left. It is hard to realize this is the last time I will ever be in this house. Soon my mother, my father, my sister and started our journey. We headed out to the Ferry. On the ride there we all thought about all of the things we would be able to do in America.  

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