Hungarian Immigration to Cleveland, Ohio: a Microcosm of the U.S. Immigration Experience

Chain migration is when the idea of immigration "catches on" and becomes popular in a country.  Word travels from the new country to the old about the positive experiences, money, and success that fellow countrymen (especially relatives and friends) are having, thus enticing more people to immigrate.

Cleveland's Hungarian immigrant population rose from just under 10,000 to over 40,000 after 1920.  By this time, there were over 300 Hungarian-owned businesses, 81 Hungarian organizations, and six Hungarian-language newspapers.  Hungarian-Americans made up 18% of the city's population.

(1) Imagine you are a European immigrant who came to this country in the early 1900s.  Using the pictures above, or descriptions of what you see in them, write a letter (about a page in length) to a friend or relative "back home" enticing them to immigrate to America.