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Geography and History. It is not as
frightening as it sounds! I think that it is necessary to realize
where the objects in this story were situated and to understand
why the two largest German Steamship lines were present at Hoboken
in 1900.
Sitting on a bench at Pier Park A in Hoboken
today and looking over to New York City, you could never imagine
what was happening at this spot at the beginning of the last century.
The largest ocean liner in the world docked regularly at the piers
of the largest passenger shipping company. Immigrants from Europe
were arriving in the area by the hundreds of thousands each year,
and there were many Germans in Hoboken.
Out of Hoboken's total population of 59,000
in 1900, more than 20% were German-born. Indeed, the Germans had
already been present in large numbers for almost 40 years, and
many had settled down to stay. The German shipping lines, the
North German Lloyd and the Hamburg America Line, had bought land
next to one another from the Hoboken Land and Improvement Company
in the early 1860s. Is of note that the Land and Improvement company
was formed by the Stevens family which had developed Hoboken from
a swampy marsh land, into an organized and flourishing city.
The local economy was very German,
driven primarily by the pier facilities of the North German Lloyd
and the Hamburg America Line. Hoboken was ideally situated near
Ellis Island, and had the necessary infrastructure to promote
immigration to and from the area. This was accomplished primarily
by the many rail facilities and companies that were all bundled
together near the ferry terminals on the Hudson River, ready to
spread out to points across the United States. In addition to
the shipping companies, many clubs, schools, churches, restaurants,
stores, and hotels, such as Meyer's Hotel, which was located not
too far from the two shipping lines, were German. There were also
Factories of various kinds, some known for their precision equipment
such as Keuffel and Esser, that contributed to the growth and
importance of the city. Just take a detailed look at a map of
the city from around 1900, and look at the names - it seemed like
a Teutonic outpost in the glorious days of the Kaiserzeit.
Okay, now for some geography:
The Map above is from 1900, and the area
in blue is Hoboken. The map scale on the bottom right of the map
is hard to read, but the total distance on that scale is one mile.
This measurement gives an idea of how close everything in the
New York City area is.
Above, we have a visual guide to some of
the places mentioned in the preceding text. The main subject of
this website would be the piers of the North German Lloyd shipping
line which are in blue. Please note that this map is from 1906,
and the piers that were rebuilt after the fire are shown. The
map was purchased from the Hoboken Historical Museum and it is
absolutely wonderful. You should get one yourself and help support
the museum by clicking here!
The places featured in color on this map are in the same positions
as they would have been in 1900, though the piers looked a little
different. The places are:
1. North German Lloyd Line = Blue
2. Hamburg America Line = Pink
3. Ferry Terminals = Yellow
4. Meyer's Hotel = Orange
5. Hoboken Land and Improvement Company = Green
6. Train Tracks and Sheds = Purple
Now, since you know some background history
about Hoboken, it is time to jump forward to that terrible day
of the fire, June 30th 1900.
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