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OFF TO A NEW LAND

(The story of Ella Elliot McIntyre and John McIntyre)

by Hannah Dager

This is the story of a man and woman who grew up on the east side of the Atlantic Ocean and sailed to the western side. These people are my great-grandparents, and though I have never met them, I have been able to learn a lot about them through research for this story. Though this is a fictional story, many of the dates and details are facts I have gathered from other family members. Their life is so significant because they chose to leave their families to come make a better life for themselves.

In the late summer of 1892, a baby girl was born to the Elliott family in Bushmils, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The Elliotts named their new child Ella, and big sister Margaret was excited to have a new friend. The girls grew up in this town and eventually had another sister named Lizzie. Soon, Ella was saying good-bye to her sister Maggie, as everyone called her. Maggie was leaving for the country on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. She set sail and was off to America where her ship would port in a city called New York.

At this time, Ella was in her teen years. Though she loved her family, she could not bear to be without her sister. Shortly after her 18th birthday on August 28, she boarded a ship that would take to her to that same city where her sister was. The year 1910 and Ella was full of hopes for what the new land would hold for her. The trip was long and at times, Ella became discouraged for she was alone until she reached America.

When Ella’s ship had finally reached Ellis Island, she thought they would never get everyone off the ship and through the paperwork process. Yet as Ella stepped onto the America soil, she had a mix of emotions. She felt free and excited about exploring this new world, but she was afraid to do it alone. She did not stay in New York very long. She made her way down to Philadelphia where she was able to meet up with her sister, Maggie. The two had a wonderful reunion. Ella was able to make some friends through Maggie. She was grateful for such a wonderful friend and sister.

Maggie eventually moved to Baltimore, Maryland after she had married. She stayed there to raise her family. During this time, Maggie and Ella’s other sister, Lizzie, had also come to America. She docked in Philadelphia and lived in the Tacony area before moving to New York. Ella now remained in Philadelphia. She was so glad to have had family members to help her out, but now she often wished she was back in Bushmils. At the time she was not sure what the future would hold, so she hoped her parents would join her in America. Her dream never came true. Mother and Father Elliott remained in Ireland until their deaths.

While Ella lived and worked in Philadelphia, she met a man by the name of John McIntyre who was also in the area. He had come over to America from Belfast, Bellaghy County Derry, Northern Ireland also and docked in Philadelphia. Though he did not hold a degree in medicine, he worked at the First Episcopal Hospital in Philadelphia. His occupation there is not known, but it has been speculated that he was in security. This is gathered from the fact that after he retired, he did security work at banks.

John was twelve years older than Ella, so they had never met when they lived in Ireland. John’s job at the hospital had now ended and he was working the Philadelphia shipyard. The two met through a married couple who worked with both of them: the husband with John and the wife with Ella. John and Ella married soon after.

They moved across the Delaware River to a waterfront city in New Jersey called Camden. John took a position in the Camden shipyard while Ella stayed home to take care of their three children: Hester, John, and Ellen. Ella’s husband died many years before she did, but the children were able to care for their aging mother. She was placed in a nursing home until she died at the age of 94.

The McIntyre’s are not a family that is known in the history books for some great accomplishment. I see it however as the most courageous thing you could do: leaving your family to go to another country. I am grateful for the heritage I have as I now have ties in Ireland to explore. I consider it an honor to have family members who made the decision to make a better life for their future generations.

This information is a compilation of research by myself, my mother, Ruth, and my Aunt Het who is John and Ella’s oldest daughter.

Comprehension Questions

  1. What is the main reason John and Ella came to America?
  2. Where are the main ports that people from Ireland came to dock in?
  3. What paperwork might need to be completed before the Irish citizens could enter the American soil?
  4. Where can you infer was a large quantity of jobs available for men?

Hannah Dager

Off to a New Land

  1. Introduction
    1. Who the story is about
    2. How information was obtained
  2. II. Ella
    1. Her home and family
      1. have map of her home town and county
      2. have picture of the family
    2. Her voyage to America
      1. Show map of ocean with picture of ship
      2. Have list of names for all on the boat
    3. Ella’s journey’s in America
  3. John
    1. His home
      • compare where he lived with Ella’s home
    2. His jobs in America
  4. The marriage
    1. Where they lived
    2. Lifetime occupations
      • - show shipyards and the river

Answers to Questions:

  1. To make a better life for themselves.
  2. Philadelphia and New York/Ellis Island.
  3. Address where they will be, jobs they can do, passport.
  4. The shipyards.