Lessons of History (II)

By the early 1900's, McLeod was the most famous Westie, not only in England, but in the world.

His face was all over: printed on whisky tags, on posters, in catalogs, on coasters and any sort of alcoholic publications. He was venerated by drunks and even appointed Lord by the Queen of England in 1905.

One morning in 1906, Simone, his most rebellious daughter, who could no longer live up to her father's fame, decided to leave home in search for a more peaceful place.

She ran away and headed to the port of Liverpool where she ran across a nice couple who gave her shelter and food. He was a Frenchman, who had served for many years in the Foreign Legion and his wife was an Irish cook. They told Simone they would be leaving soon for America, where they had relatives waiting for them. She agreed to join them in what turned out to be a defining moment; the moment she knew was changing the course of her life for ever.

They bought the tickets (with the money they had from selling their cow) and a couple of days later where on board a ship called "Hope" that arrived Ellis Island in January 1906 (cointidentially, one hundred years ago).

The trip wasn't easy: seasickness, dizziness, sweat, dirt and lice. But all was forgotten once they got to the port: the view of the Statue of Liberty lighting the torch on the promised land. So far, so good, if it wasn't for the health control that immigration authorities conducted on the new arrivals. They had heard on the ship that they had to pass a strict health examination that included eyes, neck, skin and, in her case, fur.

One flea could mean sending her over to quarantine or, much worse, sending her back to England, as she had heard someone on the boat comment. That was the most nerve-racking experience: the fear of being returned home. But the couple searched all over her fur and didn't find anything other than some dirt and mud. "Don't worry, you're fine. All you may need is a bath, but as far as fleas, you are much cleaner than most of the humans on this ship".

They unloaded the only suitcase they carried and Simone, walked down the stairs, past the immigration booth. They got their names registered, their passports stamped and 'voila!', sooner than they thought they were already in America...

(copy of the registry of the passengers of the S/S "Hope", 1906, Simon's great-great-grandmother appears listed as Simone McLeod, photo courtesy of Ellis Island Archives)