Ever wonder what happened to the emigrant passengers who were not admitted to America? I did. Especially after I discovered that several of our relatives were debarred . . . and sent back to . . . where?
Of the three that we know of that were debarred or not allowed to embark, one eventually was admitted many years later . . . and two perished in the Holocaust. So I wrote to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which is the government agency that oversees lawful immigration to the United States. Below is my original email to them, and their reply. The short answer is that they could have been returned to any country, and some were able to eventually get admitted. Few records remain.
—–Original Message—–
TO: USCIS History Office
Greetings,
I am doing family genealogy (circa 1913) and have a question concerning DEBARRED passengers. My understanding is that DEBARRED immigrants were not admitted to the US.
My questions:
1. How can I find where they went after debarment? E.g. Debarred from Galveston, TX. When and where (what country) did the individual go? I can’t find any departure information. Perhaps I just don’t know where to look for them.
2. Are there any records of the person’s debarrment action? Any extent files that can be viewed?
Sincerely,
Ron Miller
FROM: USCIS History Office
Thank you for writing the USCIS History Office. You are correct that debarred passengers were denied entry into the US. By law, they were to be returned to “the country from whence the came.” The shipping company was responsible for the cost of returning debarred passengers. So, for example, if the passenger boarded the ship in Bremen, Germany, he/she should have been returned to Bremen. Things could get complicated, though, because emigrants often boarded ships in countries other than their home country. So, a Russian emigrant who boarded a ship in Germany may have been returned to Germany, but German officials may not have accepted him/her. The emigrant then could have been sent from Germany to Russia or another port to which the emigrant agreed to travel. Also, if the ship returning from Galveston stopped at another port on its way back to Germany (in South America, for example), the emigrant may have left the ship there and tried to enter the US again at a later date. As you can see, it is often difficult to track emigrants who were denied entry at US ports.
As for records of the case, it is unlikely that they still exist. Port records have been destroyed. The only cases for which records still exist are those that were appealed to the main office in Washington DC. Records of these cases are now in the National Archives in DC.
If you have more information that you are willing to provide to us, our office may be able to help you determine if the USCIS hold any records related to this case. A ship name, date of arrival, and passenger information (name, date of birth, country of origin) would help us most.
Sincerely,
USCIS History Office