Meeting February 11, 2020

Meeting February 11, 2020

The Ellis Island Experience

Presenter:  Dan Niemiec

From 1892 until 1954, Ellis Island was the primary screening point for European immigrants entering the United States.  About 100 million Americans are descended from the 12 million who came through Ellis Island.  The unpleasant ordeal of the multi-week voyage was bad enough, but the ordeal of Ellis Island was likened by one writer to “the nearest Earthly likeness to the final day of Judgement”.  Dan Niemiec will help you understand what your grandparents wouldn’t tell you about the experience they went through and survived.

Bio: Dan Niemiec has given over a hundred presentations locally for nearly two decades and has spoken at several national conferences.  He has written a monthly genealogy column for “Fra Noi” (pronounced Frah-Noy) for over 15 years.  Over a period of nearly 30 years, he has traced his ancestor lines in Italy back to the mid1600s and Poland to the mid1700s.  By tracing the descendants of his ancestors to the present day, he has found, so far, approximately 87,000 relatives, none of whom will friend him on Facebook!  Let’s hope the next 30 years is as much fun as the first 30!