I remember the year 1845 when my family and I had no choice but to migrate from Ireland to America because of the great potato famine (Think Quest, 2009). As I recall the famine had affected my family and friends for two years before we had no choice but seek a better life by immigrating to America. I did not fully understand why my parents wanted to leave the place we had lived and known all our life until I grew older to learn the famine in our country had lasted another three years, a total of five, killing hundreds of thousands of our people due to starvation (Think Quest, 2009). Nevertheless, I am thankful my family and friends took the journey to America.
I remember arriving by boat in Canada after two months at sea. The journey conditions were poor and packed with many people seeking relief to America just as my family was. Many died from disease and starvation on the long voyage. I often feel that my family survived the journey on pure adrenaline created from the hope of a better life in America. It was cheaper for my family to arrive in Canada because it gave my family the option of arriving by foot or purchasing cheap fares to finish our journey to America (Think Quest, 2009). Like many of The Irish immigrants we arrived in America with very few resources or money.
At first times were tough, my family and I moved from town to town along with other Irish immigrants. My father had the joined the ranks of the other Irish Immigrants and began working on the railroads (Understanding Race, 2007). The working conditions were horrible. I remember my father working long hours of manual labor for little pay (Understanding Race, 2007). I often feel the back breaking labor is what led my father to having many health issues later on it his life. Our family found comfort in settling in small communities formed by other Irish Immigrants. Life at that point meant the whole family found a means to make money in order to survive. My mom and I found odds jobs such...