Halifax’s Museum of Immigration was a must-do on every website we looked at, so it’s to the museum we go—and we are so glad we did! What we realized is that our families have been in the U.S. for so long that we just know we’re Americans. However, many in Canada are either 1st or 2nd generation citizens. This realization helped us see the museum, and immigrants in the States, with new appreciation.
Highland Scots in their kilts exemplify immigration in Canada
Pier 21 is sandwiched between the other piers built for the cruise ships.
entrance
We were just in time for a wonderful guided tour by Zoe of the exhibit!
packing for the trip
What to take and what to leave. Such a big question.
What would you take for such a move?
One girl’s trunk for her trip in July 1955.
Ariella got help from a crew member on avoiding seasickness. On the way over, she got to see a whale, eat an orange, and try chewing gum.
Government authorities in the Netherlands restricted the amount of money the Dutch people could take out of the country, so the Dutch immigrants had to pack treasures and possessions into large wooden crates they called a “kist.”
on board
meal service
Meal service had a nicely set table for early immigrants.
Instead of washing dinnerware, they would often throw them overboard. That’s why we use paper plates.
These pieces represent the humble dinnerware of immigrants in tourist class, as well as some nicer pieces from first class.
cabins
In the 1930s as immigration numbers were down, most ships remodeled “third class” cabins into “tourist class” to encourage more people to travel. While the decor improved, the cabins still had bunk beds and wash basins but no private washrooms.
A family or a group of women and children often shared a tourist cabin that looked like the following replica. Some ships continued with “steerage” or dormitory-style sleeping quarters for many more people. This traveling was common right after WWII when troopships were used to move millions from Europe to destinations all over the world.
tourist class room for a family or group of women and children
It took between 5 and 14 days to cross the Atlantic in these cramped quarters.
reaching Halifax
Immigrants would walk from their ship (see the cruise ship on the right in the window) on a ramp through the Gateway Portal (the door on the left) to the Assembly Hall.
Between 1928 and 1971, almost 1 million immigrants entered Canada through these doors. This deck marked the end of their transatlantic journey and the beginning of their new lives. First, however, they had to pass through a series of admission procedures.
After leaving the deck, newcomers waited in the assembly hall for their interview with an immigration officer. Some received medical care, while others were retained. Immigrants had to pass through Customs before they could leave Pier 21.
The assembly hall is the large, open area in the front of this picture.
The ramp in the back takes approved immigrants to the customs area. From there they would enter the trains for Canada’ interior.
Ramp from immigration assembly hall to Customs area with a train ready to go inland.
If immigrants had problems with their papers or had a medical situation, they’d stay in this area before going to customs.
The assembly area is a large room with hard benches. When their names were called, their status was confirmed, their medical condition was approved, and civil exams were completed to determine how they were going to support themselves and if their sponsorship was in place, they went through Customs and their immigrants’ visa cards were stamped. They were free to leave. Just like that they were Landed Immigrants after a minimum of 4 hours from stepping onto Canadian soil.
The hall could seat around 600 people at a time. They put their personal baggage in wire enclosures and waited for an interview. Facilities were available for washing up, a place to relax, and an area for children to play while families waited.
Children could play while parents waited to be interviewed.
assembly hall
Speaking only English to these 600 people, many couldn’t have understood the official up front.
Sisters of Service met every ship with immigrants, helping where they could. Their translation services were invaluable. The Canadian Red Cross and Salvation Army were also in place to help the immigrants.
Their kindness would have been so appreciated.
Waiting in the assembly hall; some look happy, some not.
Customs
Guns, drugs, alcohol, and beans caused problems.
Contraband included weapons, alcohol, intoxicants, tobacco, meat products, seeds, dairy, fruits and vegetables, nuts, oils, flour, bread, and beans. These were either dangerous or could spread diseases. Kind of like crossing the border between the U.S. and Canada today.
One man was so excited about sharing his prosciutto from home with his family when he got to Toronto. Yes, it was confiscated.
confiscated items
Looks like a trunk that could go through customs easily.
Angelina’s trunk
Not so, Angelina’s grandmother had stuffed walnuts wherever there was space. When the trunk was opened for inspection, the walnuts flew everywhere. Angelina considers these walnuts her family’s first contribution to Canada.
items that didn’t make it
Until individuals got their official “Landed Immigrant” stamp, they could still be denied. While waiting for approval because of health issues or proof of sponsorship or employment, they would stay in dormitories for men and women and were free to move about. Some had to stay for up to 3 months.
Individual detention rooms were available for people considered a security risk, and those in detention were closely guarded.
Deportations were rare, because the ship that had brought them originally would have to pay for their passage if sent back.
Colonist train cars
Canadian railways provided special train cars for immigrants called “colonist cars” and were a cheap form of travel.
A whole family could cross Canada for $7, but the cars were very simple. Families had to provide their own bedding and food.
Families were given a can of spam and a loaf of white bread. Often the travelers would use this bread as pillows or to clean windows. Children would make balls out of it for throwing games.
pretty hard benches for a long trip across Canada
One mother put her 4 children in the sleeping compartment.
This train trip was a difficult one across Canada, and many asked if they had made the right choice. But most found a reason to stay. Work really started for them when they got to their destination when they had to settle in and had to learn a new language.
immigration boom years
Between 1945 and 1971, 739,882 immigrants were processed at Pier 21.
Examples of this distinct movement of people were War Brides, displaced persons, refugees, and postwar European immigrants.
War Brides were women who married Canadian soldiers who had been posted overseas during WWII. From 1941 to 1947, about 44,000 War Brides and their 21,000 children arrived in Canada. About 93% were British, and almost all of them landed here at Pier 21.
In 1947 because of a shortage of labor, Canada began accepting Displaced Persons and political refugees from Europe. About 100,000 (1/5) of the postwar immigrants fell into this group. Many came as laborers, and others were sponsored by employers, cultural organizations, or close relatives.
A majority of Displaced Persons were from France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, Austria, and Germany. The political refugees fled from former Czechoslovakia, Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, Poland, and Hungary.
They settled all across the country in both urban and rural areas and worked in such industries as agriculture, manufacturing, and construction. During these years, Pier 21 was the busiest ocean port of entry in Canada.
Operating Pier 21 depended on a wide range of staff and volunteers.
why Halifax?
Halifax was a connecting point of marine ports and shipping lines between Europe, Canada, and the U.S.
The harbor here was naturally very deep and open year-round. Railway lines linked it to the rest of Canada and the U.S.
countries sending immigrants
Canadian cities accepting immigrants. Ships could also get to Quebec and Montreal after the ice had melted using the St. Lawrence Seaway.
before Pier 21
Before Pier 21 was built in 1928, immigrants arrived at Pier 2.
The buildings at Pier 2 were designed to quickly inspect passengers and their baggage as immigrants moved from ocean liners to transcontinental trains.
British home children
Between 1869 and 1939, many children from poor families were sent to charitable rescue homes and parish workhouse schools across Great Britain. Since upper and middle class society considered these children as a threat to Britain’s social order and public safety, emigration agencies sent over 100,000 “home children” to Canada.
This program was marketed as a way to save children from poverty while also filling a need for labor in Canada. Children between 10 and 14 worked as agricultural labors and as domestic servants in Canada. Most ended up in Ontario and Quebec with little monitoring.
Some managed well, while others were abused.
But we also did a program like this in the U.S. The Children’s Aid Society sent an average of 3,000 children by train each year from 1855 to 1875 to 45 states, Canada, and Mexico. By the 1870s, the New York Foundling Hospital and the New England Home for Little Wanderers in Boston all had orphan train programs of their own. Again, some adoptions went well, others didn’t.
sports and games brought immigrants together
Whatever their origins, playing and watching sports help immigrants to connect to each other and created a feeling of belonging.
Judo, like other martial arts, came to Canada through immigration. In 1924, a Japanese immigrant opened the first judo club in Vancouver.
In 1932, judo was taken up by a local detachment of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. During WWII, all judo clubs in Vancouver were closed. As Japanese-Canadians resettled across Canada after the war, some brought their judo tradition with them.
Curling was introduced to Canada in the 1700s by Scottish settlers. By the 1890s, curling clubs were popping up across Ontario, the Maritimes, and the Prairies. Originally the clubs were only open to middle-class, English-speaking men.
The railway expansion led to the first large tournaments where teams across the country could compete.
Hockey has its roots in ball and stick games with the British, Scottish, Irish, and Aboriginals all having their own names for the game. On Outlander, season 1, we just saw the Highlander warriors playing a very rough game of sticks and balls. Perhaps this helped get them ready for war.
For many newcomers, learning about hockey can be a portal to belonging. Hockey Night in Canada is broadcast in variety of languages.
Cricket was one of the first organized sports brought to Canada from England in the 1700s by the officers of the British Army. At the time of Confederation in 1867, cricket was so popular it was declared a national sport.
Immigrants from former British colonies in Africa, the Caribbean, and Southeast Asia have brought their passion for cricket with them to Canada, reviving the game in Canada. The national cricket team has players born in Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, and the West Indies.
building the country
Immigrants have greatly contributed to the building of Canada’s major public works, including the Rideau Canal, the Toronto subway, and the Canadian Pacific Railway.
While the work was often dangerous and the pay low, the immigrants’ skills and labor helped to build works to improve Canadian landscape and prosperity.
The Rideau Canal’s original purpose was to provide a safe military supply route from Montreal to the British naval base at Kingston, Ontario. The canal took 5 years to build, and it opened in 1832. French-Canadians and Irish immigrants provided much of the labor. This was a major achievement in engineering but was dangerous to build. Workers faced poor working conditions, and injury and death were a constant risk.
While never used in war, the canal enjoyed a decade of busy cargo traffic and was an important local transportation network. It also helped immigrants move west through Ontario to the interior of the province.
Plans for Canada’s 1st underground transit system first appeared in April 1909 in Toronto (and was mentioned in a Murdock Mystery that takes place in Toronto during the early 1900s). The first line didn’t open until 1954, and additional lines were added in 1963 and 1966. This major transportation project helped expand the city and its economy.
Much of the labor was done by the large postwar waves of immigrants. Fear of deportation prevented many from speaking out about the dangerous work and the low wages. Unions grew out of the publicity on the exploitation and deaths of immigrant workers and led the government to act to ensure workers’ rights.
Part of John Macdonald’s “national dream” after Confederation in 1864 was to build a transcontinental railway both to unify the country and deter the United States’ expansion into the Northwest. British Columbia joined Confederation because of this promise.
Thousands of immigrant laborers from Europe and the United States came to work on the railway. Chinese immigrants were recruited to help build the dangerous western sections through British Columbia. But they and the First Nations workers were only paid half the wages of the white workers.
As many as 2200 of the 17,000 Chinese who signed up to work on the railroad lost their lives. The railway was completed in 1885.
While many immigrants lived close to others from their country, a mother from India said in a film we saw that she wanted her children to go to public schools instead of Indian schools because she wanted them to become comfortable with those they would be living and working with as adults. We appreciated her healthy perspective.
This museum is a great reminder of the gratitude we owe to those who choose to live and work with us.
