This immigration form connects four generations of my family’s history. In 1921, my mother’s grandfather Clinio traveled from Rome to New York at the age of nineteen to find his father, a musician named Romolo who disappeared a few years earlier. Romolo promised his family he would send money and bring them to New York, but no letters ever came and they never heard from him again. Although he never found his father, Clinio used his gifts as a carpenter to find jobs throughout the city to support his mother and siblings. He helped to build the tunnels and skyscrapers that exist today. He and his wife, Rose, lived in a tenement on MacDougal Street but dreamed of having a home of their own. He was known for his selflessness, as he did free construction jobs for other immigrant families in the community. He was eventually able to build a house for his family on Staten Island, and he carved a wooden dining table for family dinners. Although Clinio died before I was born, I feel connected to him through the stories my mother tells me, and I think about his struggles and sacrifice as a laborer who worked to give his family a better life. 

– Elizabeth Higgins

Relationship:  Great-grandchild of im/migrant or more Great-grandchild of im/migrant or more