Histories

Ellis Island:
    I saw the Statue of Liberty. I had heard about the magnificent sight welcoming the emigrants to their new country. I am already at the custom's office, but I want to first report my actual landing in New York.

    The steerage or 3rd passengers landed at Hoboken first, before the 2nd or 1st class passengers landed in New YorkHarbor. As the ship came into port at the New York Harbor, there was a multitude of people gathered to welcome relatives and friends they were expecting on this ship. The boat's horns and whistles were blowing amid all the waving and shouting.

    I stood there alone. There was no one expecting me. I felt like a great big statue standing there alone and watching the whole world passing me by.

    Niagara Falls is on the border of Canada, so after visiting the Falls we went across where they had a register for people to register their name. So I did. So my "John Henry" (corrected should be John Hancock) is over on the Canadian side too.

    Then, continuing our trip across country, we saw lots and lots of open country. I don't remember any of the actual cities but at the stations the Indians would pass with trays of sandwiches and different kinds of food. That's where I was introduced to apple pie, a delicious food. (Don't have pie in Germany)

    I got very well acquainted with Mr. Peterson's two children to the disgust of his housekeeper. To her, I always was, and stayed "de ole teiske" (putze) the old German girl. (Putze means working person or server.)

    Now remembering this journey, it was in the Fall of the year. If I remember rightly. I arrived in Artois on about Oct 6th or 10th. Then, as we went thru the country, we traveled thru miles and miles of wheat fields that has been harvested and left nothing but stubblefields for miles and miles or sometimes as far as the eyes could see, so that I was commencing to wonder into what kind of a God-forsaken country I had come.

    Then in Sacramento, Mr. Peterson and family and I parted ways. He saw me to my train going to Germantown and him to Oroville.

    I was disappointed arriving at the small station at Germantown; being used to a large one in Altona or Hamburg. No one was there. I had expected Mrs. Duhr, a distant relative, to meet me. So I went in and out again several times, wondering what to do, when a young man came up to me and asked me, "Sind sie freulein Jochimsen". I quickly translated it into English and answered him, "Yes, Sir I am". Then some more small talk in German followed, which I translated quicly into English and answered in English. He must of thought of me as a complete fool or idiot. It did not occur to me for several weeks afterwards that I had been addressed in German and had answered in English.

    Mrs. Duhr's home was only a block or two across the railroad. Nobody was there to meet me. They said they had expected me about 3 days earlier and had given up looking for me. The delay, caused by the trip to Niagara Falls and thereby losing connections with the emigrant train.

    I stayed a few days at the Duhr's place and then they brought me out to the Frank Lute's place half way between Germantown and Willows. Frank Lute had 3-60 acre ranches growing grain. The family consisted of Mr. and Mrs. (Ruth) Lute and a niece, but I cannot remember her name even.  She married later and lived in Woodland where I visited her and her husband once.

    I stayed and worked, I believe until after Christmas. In the meantime, Mr. Peterson had been coming from Oroville to pay me visits about every other Sunday. At times he made the trip on his bicycle up to Willows. From there he would hire a buggy and come out to the ranch and visit with me until early evening and start back to Oroville. In stormy weather he would have to pack his bike and walk on the fences across the sloughs.

    In the meantime he had propsed marriage to me and I accepted. The date was set for May 11th, 1903 at the church in Germantown. There was a large store in Germantown where I bought me a beautiful white dress and I also wore a short veil and Mr. Peterson had picked a bouquet of beautiful white roses and had brought them with him from Oroville. he walked the distance of several blocks from the Duhr's place to the church. The minister, Mr. Peterson, and myself and Mr. and Mrs. Duhr, their children; Irving as best man, and Camille as matron of honor.

    When we came from the church, we prepared for our trip to Oroville, and arrived there in the early evening where his friends greeted us and had prepared quite a banquet.

(Germantown was changed to Artois because of so much hatred.)
Written by Helene Jochimsen-Peterson