Letter from Jacob Schiff to Henry Cohen commenting on the Galveston movement, 1914.

Galveston Movement

Jacob Schiff enlisted the support of a number of individuals, among them the Anglo-Jewish writer and activist Israel Zangwill, to support what became known as the Galveston Movement. The purpose of the Galveston Movement was to redirect Jewish immigrants away from New York to the Galveston, Texas port where they could then be dispersed to America's heartland. Immigrants were enticed to choose this route through promises of social and economic assistance, as well as assistance in finding suitable employment. Approximately 10,000 Jewish immigrants passed through Galveston between 1907 and 1914. Although a small number compared to the many thousands who continued to arrive at Ellis Island, the Galveston Movement nonetheless played a significant role in promoting the settlement of East European Jews in the central and western parts of the country. This letter from Jacob Schiff (1847-1920), the New York philanthropist and coordinator of the movement, to Rabbi Henry Cohen (1863-1952), a leader of the movement in Galveston, assures Cohen that while the movement is coming to an end, their efforts were influential and successful.