• Immigrants awaiting inspection in front of Ellis Island's Main Building

    Ellis Island

    Part of Statue of Liberty National Monument NJ,NY

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  • Ellis Island Closed Until Further Notice

    As of May 2013: Due to the conditions caused by Hurricane Sandy, the Ellis Island Immigration Museum will be closed until further notice. A projected reopening date has not yet been established, follow our twitter account for updates. More »

Stollmayer Family

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Katherine Stollmayer, c. 1914.

National Park Service, Statue of Liberty NM

In 1912, Katherine Stollmayer, age 18, left Arad, Hungary, to join her older brother, Joseph, living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She sailed on the Prinz Freidrich Wilhelm from Bremen, Germany. After a 12-day voyage to New York she traveled to Pittsburgh by train. Her brother placed a housework-wanted ad in a local paper, and Katherine was soon hired as a governess with a wealthy family. She stayed with the family for 14 years until her marriage to another Arad native, John Schmidt.
 
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Katherine Stollmayer with her mother, Elena and father, Anton before her departure for America, c. 1906.

National Park Service, Statue of Liberty NM

In 1925, Katherine sent for her parents, Anton and Elena Stollmayer, who longed to see their only children. The aged couple journeyed across Europe and sailed to New York from Le Havre, France.

Did You Know?

Angel Island aerial cropped2

From 1910 to 1940, the Angel Island Immigration Station in San Francisco Bay processed approximately 1 million Asian immigrants entering into the US, leading to it sometimes being referred to as "The Ellis Island of the West". Due to the restrictions of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, many immigrants spent years on the island, waiting for entry. Access to the island is by private boat or public ferry from San Francisco, Tiburon or Vallejo. Ferry services are reduced during the winter. More...