Very good essay. Made me think of my people, and our stories. I think I told you a lot of the few I have of European ancestors. My paternal grandparents: my grandfather was Swedish, a watch maker at Peacocks in Chicago, my paternal grandmother was brought here as a toddler (I think) during the war. They came from a small country between Poland and Germany that disappeared during WWII. Sometimes we "were German," and sometimes we "were Polish" and my Nana would switch it back and forth. But I'm going with Polish, because she and my great aunts would switch to speaking in Polish when someone noticed "little ears" close by. Also, the family moved into Chicago's Polish neighborhood, not its German neighborhood. One story was the blood-soup-cooking-on-the-stove-being-called-chocolate-soup-when-the-gas-man-came story. There are few other stories (with the exception of my father kicking a mean rooster in the butt--no wonder it was mean--are not as cute), and I don't know any relatives in Sweden or Poland(?) Germany(?). I'm lucky to have a picture of my grandfather, I know! He died when my dad was 10, hit a streetcar while riding his motorcycle and was never the same mentally. Died not too long--a year or two(?) after the accident.
My American (maternal) side, American on my mother's paternal and maternal lines, we have a lot of stories/history there, one in particular I'm very proud of, which is that my great grandmother (maternal) Katharine Gifford Bryant Hardy, a suffragette, was instrumental in the building of The Women's Pavilion at the 1893 Columbian Exposition Chicago World's Fair:
"The Columbian Exposition was notable for its impressive architecture and large international attendance. Of particular importance was the Women's Pavilion. The first of its kind to have been designed by a female architect, it revealed much about the social plight of women at that time, and the need for further progress in the movement for equal rights. While its existence did not trigger significant changes for the Women's Movement, this pavilion was certainly a promising first step that would set a precedent for women's involvement in later years.
All aspects of women's involvement in the Chicago fair were overseen by the Board of Lady Managers. This governing body, the first of its kind, had authority over all the decisions regarding the Women's Pavilion. It was headed by Mrs. Potter Palmer of Chicago, and composed of a diverse group of women from all over the United States. There were two women members from each state and territory as well as nine from Chicago. Invitations were extended to women across the world for their participation. Delegations from England, France, Spain, Germany, Austria, Russia, Italy, Holland, Belgium, Portugal, Brazil, Argentina, Cuba, Mexico, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Venezuela, Algeria, Siam and Japan all participated in the planning ,and particularly the interior decoration. Many of these organizers belonged to the upper-class or even aristocracy of their societies."
And Katharine was the only woman on the Mayor's committee for the 1933 Chicago World Fair.
YOUR essay is very good. I didn't read the other one. And I thought you'd be interested because the author is from Wisconsin.
Just noticed, your mood is "sad." I'm sorry to see that! Obviously, we lost most of the European stories, too. I think people were so sad, too, to leave their home countries--mostly not by choice I think, unless young and believing the America has streets paved with gold myth, but refugees from war, starving, etc. So yes, they wanted to be Americans, but I think to forget the sorrow they ran from, the families left behind, more than wanting to be American for the sake of that. I think the older folks did not want to leave. Also, all the pain of not belonging, each new immigrant group took the pressure from the group previous, like when all the Irish came, how they were hated by the Italians (or vice versa), do you know what I mean? And did they change their own names at Ellis or were the names changed because the American agents couldn't be bothered with getting the names right? Could the agents and immigrants even communicate with each other?
My grandfather's name was Konstantine Stjernquist, and it got changed to Konstantine Werner.
Now that is interesting, I never considered that the name changes happened on this end, due to spelling or laziness.
I recently read something about London's East End, which is where the most of the immigrants came starting as far back at the 1700's when the Huegenots left catholic France. Each succeeding group, the newbies, were either tolerated or hated, but each group left something behind, in plantings or street names or architecture.
The Hmong in America, A Story of Tragedy and Hope, Thoughts by Jeff Lindsey of Appleton, Wisconsin
http://www.jefflindsay.com/Hmong_tragedy.html
Very good essay. Made me think of my people, and our stories. I think I told you a lot of the few I have of European ancestors. My paternal grandparents: my grandfather was Swedish, a watch maker at Peacocks in Chicago, my paternal grandmother was brought here as a toddler (I think) during the war. They came from a small country between Poland and Germany that disappeared during WWII. Sometimes we "were German," and sometimes we "were Polish" and my Nana would switch it back and forth. But I'm going with Polish, because she and my great aunts would switch to speaking in Polish when someone noticed "little ears" close by. Also, the family moved into Chicago's Polish neighborhood, not its German neighborhood. One story was the blood-soup-cooking-on-the-stove-being-called-chocolate-soup-when-the-gas-man-came story. There are few other stories (with the exception of my father kicking a mean rooster in the butt--no wonder it was mean--are not as cute), and I don't know any relatives in Sweden or Poland(?) Germany(?). I'm lucky to have a picture of my grandfather, I know! He died when my dad was 10, hit a streetcar while riding his motorcycle and was never the same mentally. Died not too long--a year or two(?) after the accident.
My American (maternal) side, American on my mother's paternal and maternal lines, we have a lot of stories/history there, one in particular I'm very proud of, which is that my great grandmother (maternal) Katharine Gifford Bryant Hardy, a suffragette, was instrumental in the building of The Women's Pavilion at the 1893 Columbian Exposition Chicago World's Fair:
http://lib.umd.edu/digital/worldsfairs/record.jsp?pid=umd:997
"The Columbian Exposition was notable for its impressive architecture and large international attendance. Of particular importance was the Women's Pavilion. The first of its kind to have been designed by a female architect, it revealed much about the social plight of women at that time, and the need for further progress in the movement for equal rights. While its existence did not trigger significant changes for the Women's Movement, this pavilion was certainly a promising first step that would set a precedent for women's involvement in later years.
All aspects of women's involvement in the Chicago fair were overseen by the Board of Lady Managers. This governing body, the first of its kind, had authority over all the decisions regarding the Women's Pavilion. It was headed by Mrs. Potter Palmer of Chicago, and composed of a diverse group of women from all over the United States. There were two women members from each state and territory as well as nine from Chicago. Invitations were extended to women across the world for their participation. Delegations from England, France, Spain, Germany, Austria, Russia, Italy, Holland, Belgium, Portugal, Brazil, Argentina, Cuba, Mexico, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Venezuela, Algeria, Siam and Japan all participated in the planning ,and particularly the interior decoration. Many of these organizers belonged to the upper-class or even aristocracy of their societies."
And Katharine was the only woman on the Mayor's committee for the 1933 Chicago World Fair.
love, me
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Just noticed, your mood is "sad." I'm sorry to see that! Obviously, we lost most of the European stories, too. I think people were so sad, too, to leave their home countries--mostly not by choice I think, unless young and believing the America has streets paved with gold myth, but refugees from war, starving, etc. So yes, they wanted to be Americans, but I think to forget the sorrow they ran from, the families left behind, more than wanting to be American for the sake of that. I think the older folks did not want to leave. Also, all the pain of not belonging, each new immigrant group took the pressure from the group previous, like when all the Irish came, how they were hated by the Italians (or vice versa), do you know what I mean? And did they change their own names at Ellis or were the names changed because the American agents couldn't be bothered with getting the names right? Could the agents and immigrants even communicate with each other?
My grandfather's name was Konstantine Stjernquist, and it got changed to Konstantine Werner.
love, me
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I recently read something about London's East End, which is where the most of the immigrants came starting as far back at the 1700's when the Huegenots left catholic France. Each succeeding group, the newbies, were either tolerated or hated, but each group left something behind, in plantings or street names or architecture.
Life is certainly not ever stagnant, is it?
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Board of Lady Managers?? WTF?
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