"Hail Columbus, praise to the...
In 1855, the State of New York’s Board of Emigration Commissioners established the Emigrant Landing Depot at Castle Garden. From August 3, 1855, to April 18, 1890, Castle Garden was America's first official immigration center, a pioneering collaboration of New York State and New York City. [g] Over the next 35 years, 8 million immigrants were processed here. Among the notable Americans to pass through Castle Garden are Nikola Tesla, Harry Houdini, Emma Goldman, and Joseph Pulitzer. [h]
Incoming Steamers: Vessel EMS, from Southampton & Bremen
Friday, June 3, 1887
By the time Pauline Wilhelmina Kimmerle arrived in New York City, New York, on June 3, 1887, it was close to the end of the wave of immigration. There were many systems in place to handle the traffic and to help the immigrants get to their final destination. "Before immigrating to America, some emigrants were supplied with travel guides, maps of railroad lines in America and a list of German settlements where they would be welcomed. All this was provided by Charitable Organizations in co-operation with Government Agencies." [b] Did she have a plan? Did she know where she was going? Was she scared? I'm sure she was glad to be done traveling on the ship. So onto the next leg of her journey.
From here, she would have a few different options to travel to St. Louis, Missouri. I have not found how she traveled or when she traveled, and it's possible I never will. Although there were many options as far as travel was concerned, I am going to assume she traveled by railroad. That was the most feasible mode of transportation at the time for her. Before railroads were as prevalent as they were in 1887, most immigrants traveled by waterways. Read more about
Missouri's Waterway's here. At this time though, traveling by railroad would have been the more direct route to take.
Now for what railroad she would have taken, I did extensive research. Over the years, railroad companies merged, expanded, or even disappeared so it wasn't easy determining which one could be the right one. Thanks to the Newspapers.com website, I was able to view The New York Tribune for the year of 1887 and see what railroads were running and where they were running to. The conclusion I came to was Pauline had to have taken the New York Central Railroad; also referred to as the
New York Central and Hudson River Railroad.
New York Central & Hudson River Railroad
6:30pm Fast Cincinnati and St. Louis Express
The New York Tribune - June 3, 1887
The main competition to the New York Central was The Pennsylvania Railroad. They had more options for traveling to St. Louis. There are many articles discussing the popularity of The Pennsylvania Railroad. Even with this information, I still lean toward the New York Central being the railroad that Pauline traveled. I looked at the newspaper ads for The Pennsylvania Railroad and they didn't appear to have service to St. Louis at that time. While the New York Central Railroad did not have its own track to St. Louis, they used other tracks owned by other railroads. The line that went into St. Louis was the Cleveland, Columbus & Cincinnati Railroad. So the New York Railroad leased track from them. Of course, I'm not a transportation expert. This is just all put together from my research and limited knowledge. What I do know for sure is that Pauline traveled from New York City to St. Louis to be with family and start a new life.
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Grand Central Depot
New York - ca. 1900 |
The
Grand Central Depot was about 5 1/2 miles away from Castle Gardens. I have yet to find how exactly she would have traveled up there to catch a train. There is no indication when her ship actually arrived, but it's very possible, she didn't make it to the Grand Central Depot before the train was scheduled to depart at 6:30 p.m. Robert Lewis Stevenson's book, "Across The Plains", is a diary of his experience traveling as an immigrant. I would recommend reading it to understand more about traveling by train as an immigrant. While traveling by steamer was pretty brutal for immigrants, traveling by train was not much of an improvement. The cars were not the "luxurious accommodations" you have today. They were still developing ways to keep passengers safe and provide a smooth ride. With the increase in immigrants and long-distance travel, something needed to change. Thus, the immigrant cars were created.
"The transportation of immigrants has recently received increased facilities for its accommodations upon the principal through lines. Until late years economically constructed day-cars were alone used, bu in these the immigrants suffered great discomfort in long journeys. An immigrant sleeper is now used, which is constructed with sections on each side of the aisle, each section containing two double berths. The berths are made with slats of hard wood running longitudinally; there is no upholstery in the car, and no bedding supplied, and after the car is vacated the hose can be turned in upon it, and all the woodwork thoroughly cleansed. The immigrants usually carry with them enough blankets and wraps to make them tolerably comfortable in their berths; a cooking stove is provided in one end of the car, on which the occupants can cook their food, and even the long transcontinental journeys of the immigrants are not made without hardship." [e]
"Immigrant passage is the cheapest available on trains. The immigrant cars have plain seats or benches. Each has toilet facilities and a stove at the end of the car. The conductor will rent the passenger a straw‑filled mattress for $1.25 to $2.50. The mattress may be placed on the seat or the floor between the seats. Passengers can cook their meals on the stove. The immigrant cars are built like box cars. Ventilation is poor‑. However, an entire family can travel for $1‑00 or $2.00." [f]
The journey to St. Louis from New York would have taken about 2-3 days. Which is definitely
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Union Depot - St. Louis, MO
ca. 1875
Missouri Historical Society |
better than traveling further west which could take up to many weeks. So a couple days after boarding the immigrant cars that were pulled by the Knickerbocker, Pauline would reach the end of her journey. I was under the impression she would arrive at Union Station, but upon further research, I learned that there was actually a train station before Union Station called Union Depot, built in the year 1875. It wasn't in operation for very long since it could only accommodate about 14 trains a day. Traffic volume was too high for this. So in 1894, Union Station opened her doors. That means when Pauline arrived in 1887, she would have gone through the original Union Depot.
She made it! She is in St. Louis, Missouri, USA! St. Louis was one of the cities that drew German immigrants. Pauline ended up settling in one of the German communities in the area. There were some Kimmerle's already there, so it's possible she went to live with them since her mother stayed behind in Germany. I'm sure she made friends, attended church, possibly had a job to support herself & family, and started her new life. By the time she came around, St. Louis had a well established German community. Churches, businesses, and neighborhoods were well in place. "After the [Civil] war, Missouri’s German American culture thrived. Missouri Germans held festivals, established beer gardens and breweries, performed in music clubs, built churches, and participated in politics."
[i] St. Louis became known as a little German City. To Pauline, it probably felt like a home away from home. I couldn't find exactly where she ended up, but the Kimmerle's weren't far. Pauline didn't know it, but within the next year, her life would change.
St. Louis, Missouri
ca. 1880
The city still continued to grow. New people were coming from Germany every day. Which included a man by the name of Franz Jakob Ilg (Frank Jacob). Do you remember that surname? I told you to remember. Pauline traveled with a Theresa Ilg when she came from Germany. I have not found what happened to her yet, but isn't that quite a coincidence? I have no proof if Pauline knew
[d]
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Frank Jacob Ilg
1881 |
Frank before she left Germany, but they sure hit it off in the states. He arrived in New York on September 28, 1888, on the ship Lahn. Then he came to St. Louis after that. It's possible he was coming to be with family as well. Maybe Theresa? No clue, but he DID find Pauline. How did they meet? Did they attend the same church? Unlikely since he was Catholic and she was Lutheran, but you never know. Maybe a local gathering? There were many festivals and celebrations. Was it love at first sight? I wonder what drew her to him. Was he charming? Was he funny? Did he pursue her? Deep down, I'm a hopeless romantic, so I would like to think it was something along those lines. Whatever the circumstances, they fell for each other. So much so, that Pauline ended up pregnant out of wedlock. (oops!) At least Frank did the right thing and stuck by her. They were married on November 25, 1889, at St. Nicholas Catholic Church. The church is actually still around today, so I was able to get a copy of the register.
St. Nicholas Church Register
Francisco Ilg & Pauline Kimmerle - Nov 25, 1889
St. Nicholas Catholic Church - St. Louis, Missouri
ca. 1895-1905 [j]
What a start to a new life. While it may not have been the most perfect start, the future looked hopeful for Frank and Pauline. They moved to a new city with more opportunities, found love, got married, and now have a baby on the way. Things couldn't have been better.
I wish I could say things would be great from here on out with no problems or worries, but sadly that isn't the case. This story wouldn't be the happy ending they were both looking for. I wonder if Pauline would ever regret moving to the United States. Why?
Sources:
[a]: German Settlement in Missouri: New Land/Old Ways by Robyn Burnett
https://books.google.com/
[b]: Roots Web – German's Immigrate to America
http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~ourfamilytrees/genealogy/gerim.html
[c]: New York Central Railroad - Encyclopedia of Cleveland History
https://case.edu/ech/articles/n/new-york-central-railroad
[d]: Church Register - St. Nicholas Church
[e]: Railway passenger travel: 1825-1880 by Peter Horace
https://archive.org/details/railwaypassenger00port
[f]: Iowa Railroad Guide
https://iowahist.uni.edu/Frontier_Life/Railway_Guide/RailwayGuide.htm
[g]:
Castle Garden: America's First Immigration Center
[h]:
The Battery History
[i]: German American Experience - Missouri Historical Society
https://shsmo.org/research/guides/german-american/
[j] St. Nicholas Church
Heathcott, Joseph and Dietz, Angela,
Capturing The City: Photographs from the Streets of St. Louis, 1900-1930, Missouri History Museum Press, St. Louis, Pg 91
Newspapers.com
Read more on immigrants traveling on the railroads:
The Unfolding Journey
Across the Plains by Robert Lewis Stevenson
