American Diaries: vol. 16

Nell Dunne: Ellis Island, 1904

Plot

Ellis Island 1904 Still aboard the ASTORIA February 12, 1904 "I want to get off this cold, gray ocean more than I have ever wanted anything....oh, how I just wish we would arrive and be off this smelly ship." The ship is nearing Ellis Island. Arriving in America will mean seeing her father again after two long years, but Nell Dunne is still miserable. The journey has been awful; the food is stale and the ship is filthy. Nell's mother and baby sister have been seasick off and on, and her grandmother's forgetfulness and confusion have gotten worse. And now Nell is worried about rumors saying the American inspectors at Ellis Island can send infirm, elderly people back. If Granny Rose is sent home to Ireland, Nell will have to go, too, to take care of her. Has Nell endured the arduous ocean crossing only to end up being separated frorm her family?