The Atlantic Crossing

The Emigrants

This flow follows the emigrants’ passage from embarkation through hardship at sea to the first sight of New York.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

Aboard the Charlotta Aboard the Charlotta from "The Emigrants". Aboard the Charlotta A new environment The emigrants board a cramped brig carrying cargo and seventy-eight passengers.

Aboard the Charlotta from "The Emigrants". Aboard the Charlotta A new environment The emigrants board a cramped brig carrying cargo and seventy-eight passengers.

Aboard the Charlotta A new environment The emigrants board a cramped brig carrying cargo and seventy-eight passengers. Farmers accustomed to stable ground must learn to live by the ship’s movement. Dependence begins Their quarters are crowded, poorly ventilated, and divided by canvas. The voyage places people, food, water, and safety under the authority of shipboard rules.

A World Without Bearings A World Without Bearings from "The Emigrants". A World Without Bearings Repeated horizons The emigrants see water in every direction and struggle to tell whether the ship is making progress.

A World Without Bearings from "The Emigrants". A World Without Bearings Repeated horizons The emigrants see water in every direction and struggle to tell whether the ship is making progress.

A World Without Bearings Repeated horizons The emigrants see water in every direction and struggle to tell whether the ship is making progress. Familiar signs of seasons, roads, and settled land disappear. Time at sea They mark days in an almanac and measure distance through waiting. Their lives become dependent on winds and a captain whose navigation they cannot verify.

Sickness in the Hold Sickness in the Hold from "The Emigrants". Sickness in the Hold Bodies under strain Seasickness, poor food, foul air, and illness weaken passengers and children.

Sickness in the Hold from "The Emigrants". Sickness in the Hold Bodies under strain Seasickness, poor food, foul air, and illness weaken passengers and children.

Sickness in the Hold Bodies under strain Seasickness, poor food, foul air, and illness weaken passengers and children. Those who are ill must endure crowded quarters with little privacy or effective care. Human cost Deaths turn the hold into a place where daily life and burial are close together. Each loss makes the journey’s promise harder to trust.

The Atlantic Feels Endless The Atlantic Feels Endless from "The Emigrants". The Atlantic Feels Endless Suspicion and delay Persistent westerly winds and fog prolong the crossing.

The Atlantic Feels Endless from "The Emigrants". The Atlantic Feels Endless Suspicion and delay Persistent westerly winds and fog prolong the crossing.

The Atlantic Feels Endless Suspicion and delay Persistent westerly winds and fog prolong the crossing. Passengers wonder whether the ship is lost, and their patience gives way to fear and irritation. A voyage without return Distance becomes emotional as well as geographical. The emigrants recognize that returning to Sweden would require another crossing they can scarcely imagine making.

Land at Last Land at Last from "The Emigrants". Land at Last First American shore The Charlotta enters New York harbor, where houses, piers, and green trees appear through the morning mist.

Land at Last from "The Emigrants". Land at Last First American shore The Charlotta enters New York harbor, where houses, piers, and green trees appear through the morning mist.

Land at Last First American shore The Charlotta enters New York harbor, where houses, piers, and green trees appear through the morning mist. After the empty sea, the land seems almost miraculous. Arrival without security The passengers disembark weak and shabby, carrying what remains of their possessions. They have reached North America but still must discover where and how to live.

April 14, 1850

The first weeks after leaving the Baltic Sea

During the long middle passage

The eighth week, in the fog and contrary winds

Midsummer Eve, 1850