Slide 11-b, Greek Immigration to America

The Orphans
Alexander Paspatis Among those who excelled was Alexander Paspatis, an orphan of the Chios massacre. His story is unique. Given up for lost, his surviving mother sought him out in the slave markets in the Ottoman capital city, Constantinople (Istanbul), found him, and bought him for whatever money she had. An American businessman leaning of this situation convinced the mother to let him bring her 8 year old son to America to be educated. The young man, along with others, obtained his education at Amherst. He furthered his education in medicine in Paris, France and Pisa, Italy, acquired knowledge of 16 and spoke 6 languages, and became a prominent physician as well as an authoritative Byzantine scholar. He authored books in Greek, French, and English including The Siege and Capture of Constantinople by the Ottoman in 1453, and was the founder of The Greek Philological Society and an Asylum for Epilepsy in Greece. He settled in Constantinople where he excelled as a medical practitioner serving the Greek Orthodox community and eventually retired to Athens where he died in 1891. [ Skip ] John Zachos John Zachos became a physician-scholar and avowed abolitionist. He was the son of one of the most distinguished Greek families of Constantinople. His father had been a member of the secretive organization, the Philike Hetairia and was killed fighting the Turks. The orphan John was discovered by Dr. Samuel Gridley Howe. Dr. Howe had him educated at Amherst. Then John went off to schools in Pennsylvania and Ohio and finally settled in Cincinnati where he completed his medical studies. Zachos became a professor of literature and a curator at the Cooper Union Institute. He developed techniques in teaching freed slaves and those less fortunate and he offered night classes for the working poor. [ Skip ] Lucas Miltiades Miller Lucas Miltiades Miller was the son of a Greek military figure killed in battle against the Turks in 1824. A two year old infant was left behind. Colonel Jonathan P. Miller, an American fighting along side with the Greeks, heard the story of the two year old orphan, and decided to adopt Lucas. He brought him to America raised him, and helped him to receive an education. Lucas M. Miller became a prominent lawyer-politician, military officer, and ended up as the first congressman to represent the state of Wisconsin in 1891. [ Skip ] Evangelismos Aspostolides Sophocles At age 14, the brilliant Evangelismos Aspostolides Sophocles was already recognized as far advanced in classical scholarship in his native land, when his studies were interrupted by the war effort. He was discovered by one of the philhellenes who in 1828 sponsored the rest of his education in America. He continued to write and study and joined the Harvard faculty in 1842 as a teacher of Greek studies. He was eccentric but had an exciting teaching style, and was loved by his students. He acquired a world-wide reputation for his scholarship and received particular praise for his greatest work, the 1187 page Greek Lexicon of Roman and Byzantine periods from B.C. 146 to A.D. 110. [ Skip ] Christodoulos Evangelides Another of the orphans was Christodoulos Evangelides. He became an educator, returned to Greece, and founded his own school on his native island of Syra. [ Skip ] George Pericardis There were others during this era as well, such as George Pericardis who became a successful entrepreneur. He came to America at age 23 during the Greek War of Independence. He was multi-lingual, taught in Amherst, settled in Trenton, New Jersey, and then acquired great wealth in real estate and a gas company, becoming quite influential in the process. [ Skip ] Rallis Brothers Prominent among those who succeeded in business were the Rallis brothers from Chios. They were survivors of the holocaust of Chios and teenagers on arrival in America. They too were educated at Amherst, and had furthered their studies at Yale University. They then left for Europe and India to begin their business in the cotton trade and develop other commercial enterprises. They were headquartered in London and had developed one of the largest world-wide companies of the 19th century.

References: [ Skip references ] Jones, Jayne Clark, The Greeks in America (Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1969), pp. 28-32. Koken, Paul, Theodore N. Constant and Seraphim G. Canoutas, A History of the Greeks in the Americas, 1453-1938 (Livonia, Michigan, 1995 [2004]), pp. 44-54. Moskos, Charles C., Jr., Greek Americans, Struggle and Success, 2nd ed. (New Brunswick, New Jersey, 1989), pp. 5-7. Papaioannou, George, The Odyssey of Hellenism in America, Patriarchal Institute for Patristic Studies (Thessaloniki, 1985), pp. 39-46.

The Orphans

Alexander Paspatis

Among those who excelled was Alexander Paspatis, an orphan of the Chios massacre. His story is unique.

Given up for lost, his surviving mother sought him out in the slave markets in the Ottoman capital city, Constantinople (Istanbul), found him, and bought him for whatever money she had.
An American businessman leaning of this situation convinced the mother to let him bring her 8 year old son to America to be educated.
The young man, along with others, obtained his education at Amherst. He furthered his education in medicine in Paris, France and Pisa, Italy, acquired knowledge of 16 and spoke 6 languages, and became a prominent physician as well as an authoritative Byzantine scholar.
He authored books in Greek, French, and English including The Siege and Capture of Constantinople by the Ottoman in 1453, and was the founder of The Greek Philological Society and an Asylum for Epilepsy in Greece.
He settled in Constantinople where he excelled as a medical practitioner serving the Greek Orthodox community and eventually retired to Athens where he died in 1891.

[ Skip ]

John Zachos

John Zachos became a physician-scholar and avowed abolitionist.
He was the son of one of the most distinguished Greek families of Constantinople. His father had been a member of the secretive organization, the Philike Hetairia and was killed fighting the Turks. The orphan John was discovered by Dr. Samuel Gridley Howe.
Dr. Howe had him educated at Amherst. Then John went off to schools in Pennsylvania and Ohio and finally settled in Cincinnati where he completed his medical studies.
Zachos became a professor of literature and a curator at the Cooper Union Institute. He developed techniques in teaching freed slaves and those less fortunate and he offered night classes for the working poor.

[ Skip ]

Lucas Miltiades Miller

Lucas Miltiades Miller was the son of a Greek military figure killed in battle against the Turks in 1824. A two year old infant was left behind.
Colonel Jonathan P. Miller, an American fighting along side with the Greeks, heard the story of the two year old orphan, and decided to adopt Lucas. He brought him to America raised him, and helped him to receive an education.
Lucas M. Miller became a prominent lawyer-politician, military officer, and ended up as the first congressman to represent the state of Wisconsin in 1891.

[ Skip ]

Evangelismos Aspostolides Sophocles

At age 14, the brilliant Evangelismos Aspostolides Sophocles was already recognized as far advanced in classical scholarship in his native land, when his studies were interrupted by the war effort. He was discovered by one of the philhellenes who in 1828 sponsored the rest of his education in America.
He continued to write and study and joined the Harvard faculty in 1842 as a teacher of Greek studies. He was eccentric but had an exciting teaching style, and was loved by his students.
He acquired a world-wide reputation for his scholarship and received particular praise for his greatest work, the 1187 page Greek Lexicon of Roman and Byzantine periods from B.C. 146 to A.D. 110.

[ Skip ]

Christodoulos Evangelides

Another of the orphans was Christodoulos Evangelides.
He became an educator, returned to Greece, and founded his own school on his native island of Syra.

[ Skip ]

George Pericardis

There were others during this era as well, such as George Pericardis who became a successful entrepreneur. He came to America at age 23 during the Greek War of Independence.
He was multi-lingual, taught in Amherst, settled in Trenton, New Jersey, and then acquired great wealth in real estate and a gas company, becoming quite influential in the process.

[ Skip ]

Rallis Brothers

Prominent among those who succeeded in business were the Rallis brothers from Chios.
They were survivors of the holocaust of Chios and teenagers on arrival in America.
They too were educated at Amherst, and had furthered their studies at Yale University.
They then left for Europe and India to begin their business in the cotton trade and develop other commercial enterprises. They were headquartered in London and had developed one of the largest world-wide companies of the 19th century.

References:

[ Skip references ]

Jones, Jayne Clark, The Greeks in America (Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1969), pp. 28-32.
Koken, Paul, Theodore N. Constant and Seraphim G. Canoutas, A History of the Greeks in the Americas, 1453-1938 (Livonia, Michigan, 1995 [2004]), pp. 44-54.
Moskos, Charles C., Jr., Greek Americans, Struggle and Success, 2nd ed. (New Brunswick, New Jersey, 1989), pp. 5-7.
Papaioannou, George, The Odyssey of Hellenism in America, Patriarchal Institute for Patristic Studies (Thessaloniki, 1985), pp. 39-46.

The Orphans

Alexander Paspatis

John Zachos

Lucas Miltiades Miller

Evangelismos Aspostolides Sophocles

Christodoulos Evangelides

George Pericardis

Rallis Brothers

References:

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