Damm 1 ved by Kayla Davis ‘Samantha Damm Professor Raymond ‘UWRT 1103 19 July 2015 Finding My Roots Many people take for granted all that their ancestors did in order for them to have a better life, 1am one of those people, Prior to receiving this project, I never thought about where my family originated from, After countless hours on Ancestory.com I am excited to say that not only 4401 know where my family originated from, but also some exciting details that | would have never known about iI had not been assigned this project. at yen Hans Christian Kruuse Damm was born on September 24, 1867 in a smallCity ie— -Deamazk.called Bredballe, Hans is my great great grandfather and is the reason that I live such a wy privileged life here in America. I recently Was given the opportunity to vist Denmark in November of 2014, While was exploring this beau country 1 tayedin a bf city leaed “Denmark called Aarhus, which is located only an hour away from where Hans grew up. > Although tam not sure why Hans decide to leave ‘Denmark, I suspect that he wanted to create a beter life | for himself'and his family. Hans was just seventeen years tb cd when e decided that he was ready to venture off Xt land len is prs nd ! 2 lea ts ae the land of opportunites leaf his parent girlfriend, Louise behind. The-capitehof Denmarleis- Copeahagon,which-is two hours from copenna gen, capital OF Denmark, 16 where Hans resided. In order to make it to America, Hans had to travel to Christiania whielis a eity located in sewmloosted-wathinCopenhagen. Hans departed from Christiania on November 13, 1884 andDamm 2 arrived in New York, New York fifteen days later on November 28, 1884 ("S/S Island, ‘Thingvalla Line."). Once Hans arrived in America he moved to a house on East 136" street located in his houce by working aS the Bronx (Ancestory.com). He was able to afford this werking-asa house mover and a contractor. Ten years later Hans became naturalized and received all of the benefits of an American citizen. The first thing that Hans did to execute his rights was buy a ticket to New York from Denmark for his girlfriend, Louise. Once Louise made it safely to America she and Hans got married on July 15, ~ 1898 and had five children Hedwig, Leopold, Alfred, Oscar, and (prow George soon-efter. Sore worked as a night clerk at a local grocery store to help support their fami Leopold, Hans and Louise's second child, was born on October 4, 1901 in Bronx County, New York. Leo grew up to become an exterminator and a contractor in-New-Y0Tk. According te~Ancestory-com-Leo made Lancestory com) approximately $750 a month in 1940. While working in the Bronx, Leo met a girl named Nora who he later married on June 12, 1925 and had three children, Mary Ann, Thomas, and Eleanor » didn’t know anything about Leo prior to finding all of the pictures and census information online, but from this information it seems as if Leo was a happy man who loved his friends and faniy[ontranatey, ‘on December 23, 1960, Leo’s time on earth came to an end. While working on the USS Constellation a tragic forklift accident occurred spilling five hundred and two gallons of fuel which became ignited by welders working below the boat. It took seventeenDamm 3 hhours to put out the blaze leaving three hundred and thirty injured and fifty dead-Leo being one of them, Leo was only fifty-eight ("Blog.") ‘Thomas Michael Damm is Leo’s son and my Grandfather. Although I never got the he’s AIWAYS been Aescribed as Me life OF he chance to meet him, ve heasd siovies wher -westitte-othowhesmsthe tear the party. 1 WPS distinctly remember being told that he would draw a smiley face on his beer belly and go flirt with girls shatawey—They said he had a very distinct outie which apparently was loved by the ladies. Thomas worked in construction building sky scrapers in New York City, but resided in ‘the Bronx. It was. had four kids, Thomas, Michael, New neANcr ran Deborah, and Timothy_ Alcohotistiis a Serious disease that runs through my family. I'm not ‘exactly sure if it started as far back as Denmark, but I am sure that Hans, Louise, Leo, Nora, Because of qicoholiser Mary Ann, Michael, Thomas, Deborah, and Timothy were all alcoholics. bad Ved pas 1 ajorty of men in my family navent ee mee me tng ery me My cr, tons Damen ‘was such a heavy drinker that he literally drank himself to death, Thomas was just fifty-six when nen od : a7 Hie heMesperiencad internal bleeding, After years of binge eae began to shut down ultimately resulting in his death. He died in Edison, New Jersey at JFK hospital in 1989, ‘The Damm family has @ lot in common with one another. Not only do they suffer from alcoholism, but they also lack a solid ‘ine ‘education and are buried together, Thomas James Damm (Thomas Michael's son) was the first person in my family since 1867 to ‘graduate from high school. Aseosding 1a Ancestory.cemMnost of the caence story. com) family didn’t make it past eighth grade- As a result of this and the— ener Alcohdl a ddichon, ra Jcoholies, most of my family had blue collar {jobs that didn’t pay very well. It disappoints me that my family didn’t prosper in New York,Damm 4 Hans sacrificed his life to come to America, I want to live upto his dreams and make i far in life. I stay away from alcohol and plan on avoiding it as much as possible throughout my life ‘because of my family’s history. In 1905 the Damm family bought a plot of land in Hawthorne, [New York that was intended for a family grave, Since 1916 tis plot of land has been bought out and is now a part ofthe Gate of Heaven Cemetery. Throughout time, many famous people were buried in this cemetery. Some of these famous people include Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, James Farley, and Dutch Schultz “Gate of Heaven Cemetery) In conclusion, am very happy that I was assigned this project. Being forced to take time out of my life to research my family is something that I will always be erateful for. When my children ask me questions about my family I will now have answers for them, unlike my parents when tasked THORS ‘questions-T am proud to say that lam Danish and that I finally found my roots,Damm 5 ‘Work Cited "Blog." BLDG 92 : Brooklyn Navy Yard Center : In Memoriam: The USS Constellation. Fire\ S > 3 Np.n.d. Web. 19 July 2015. "Damm Family." Join Ancestry. Ancestry, n.d, Web. 20 July 2015. "Google Maps." Google Maps. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 July 2015. "S/S Island, Thingvalla Line." Norway-heritage. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 July2015,