08/27/2026
Every journey to America had a story. Some even unfolded before reaching shore.
In 1904, 23-year-old Russian wrestler Wolfe Lichtman boarded the Merion in Liverpool, bound for America. Somewhere along the voyage, he organized a wrestling tournament among his fellow passengers.
Lichtman defeated every steerage passenger who stepped into the ring—until he faced John Devine, a University of Pennsylvania athlete representing the cabin passengers. Devine won their best-of-three match, and Lichtman didn’t wrestle again for the rest of the voyage.
When the Merion arrived in Pennsylvania, Lichtman stepped ashore and continued on to New York City, carrying with him a story that might easily have been lost to history.
𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐖𝐞 𝐆𝐨𝐭 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞 - every Thursday, uncovers the human stories behind our Arrival Records Collection, now expanded to include ports across the United States.
𝘉𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘫𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘺.
𝘉𝘦𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘫𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘺 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺.
𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴.
Visit the Records Discovery Center at The Ellis Island National Museum of Immigration to find your story.
