United States, land of immigration and passion for genealogy
The United States, a country linked to immigration, is a genealogical gold mine with Ellis Island and the place of Mormons.
The United States, a country linked to immigration
We tend to soon forget it, especially in times that run, but the very existence of the United States is linked to immigration, whether through colonization during the 17th century, or the gold rush in 1848. According to a study, 98 % of Americans would have an immigrant ancestor. Indeed, the United States has experienced 7 major waves of immigration: from 1660 to 1790, with the arrival of African slaves and Europeans fleeing religious persecutions; from 1790 to 1820; from 1820 to 1880 with the industrial revolution; In 1880-1930, motivated by the quest for the American Dream; 1930-1965; 1965-2000 with a massive arrival of Hispanics and Asians, and finally 2000-2015.
You should know that from 1820 the American authorities held the account of immigrant entries, but the returns were not recorded until 1908. If your ancestors migrated to the USA between 1892 and 1954, they will surely be passed by Ellis Island, the Federal Immigration Station. More than 100 million Americans (1/3 of the population) descend from a person who transited by Ellis Island.
We understand better why by looking at the figures: more than 12 million people have gone there.
Ellis Island, genealogical gold mine
Ellis Island's registers constituent une véritable mine d’or pour tous les généalogistes, ainsi on y trouve le prénom et le nom de chaque passager, son sexe, âge, sa date d’arrivée ainsi que son port d’origine. Cependant devant le nombre gigantesque des arrivées certaines listes ont été écrites à la va-vite et les noms de villes ou de famille ont souvent été mal orthographiés voir carrément déformés. Les migrants présentant des signes de maladie étaient renvoyés chez eux, ou gardés en quarantaine sur l’île. Les autres se voyaient octroyer le droit de pénétrer aux USA et de tenter le « rêve américain ».
Before the years 1892, it was the fort of Castle Garden which served as an immigration center, and most of the registers were also kept.
Genealogy, an international passion
La généalogie n’est pas qu’une passion française : les Américains en sont aussi férus. D’ailleurs qui n’a jamais entendu parler des mormons et de la Granite Mountain Records Vault, montagne où ils stockent des milliards de données généalogiques ?
The Mormons, or rather the Church of Jesus Christ of the Holy Days, is a Christian Church founded in 1830 by Joseph Smith. They have given themselves the aim of baptizing all their ancestors, and as all human beings would be potentially linked, they try to bring together all the existing archives, the aim being to baptize the dead, which, in the world of minds, could accept or not the sacraments accomplished by their descendants.
The United States is therefore a country where genealogy has an important place, both in a theological aspect as with Mormons, as through their past immigration.