AMERICA: THE LAND OF OPPORTUNITY

Photos – American flag at Sagamore Hill, Teddy Roosevelt’s home & Joseph Levine's (JM's) naturalization papers, dated January 24, 1903 "and of our Independence the one hundred and twenty-seventh year."

In the late 19th century, Jews -- in towns such as Slutsk and Kletzk which may be identified as part of Poland, Russia or Belarus -- lived in fear for their future. They looked across the ocean -- to America as a land of freedom and opportunity.

Perhaps the Yiddish writer Sholem Aleichem overstated the promise, but he did capture what brought our Levine ancestors across the ocean to establish a new life here in America. Lucky for us!

“Imagine the wonders of America. To begin with, there’s the land. It’s flowing with milk and honey….And business is so good, it makes you dizzy. You can do anything you want. If you want a factory, you set up a factory. If you feel like opening a little store, you open a little store. And the size of the cities! The width of the streets! The height of the buildings!”

From Sholem Aleichem in Jenna Joselit’s, The Wonders of America