immigrant doll project

Jared had a project at school in which he had to learn about an ancestor that came to America, then make a presentation to his class and dress a paper doll like that ancestor might have dressed. He chose my grandfather, Frederick Peter Hansen, who came from Denmark. We have very little information about his life in Denmark, but we learned a few interesting facts and even listened to an old tape recording of him speaking. When he was a little boy he used to go to the docks and pick up coal that fell from the wagons. His family was poor and he had 11 brothers and sisters-- about 4 of them passed away as small children. He and a friend came to America when he was 17 years old. His passage cost $55. His uncle, who already lived here in America, sent him the money. Once here in America, he sent money home each month to his parents in Denmark -- they never came to America. He lived lots of places in the states, including Iowa, Montana, Idaho, Utah, and California. He spent many years working as a longshoreman in Los Angeles and then retired to St. George.

I think Jared enjoyed the project, but like most of these assignments, it really ends up being an assignment for the parents! However, I can say that this was a good one for us too.