EVERY IMMIGRATION STORY MATTERS

TELL YOUR FAMILY’S IMMIGRATION STORY

At the Immigrant Hall of Honor, we celebrate immigrants whose journeys helped shape America and the world. Many of the individuals we honor, such as Albert Einstein, Hedy Lamarr, and Madeleine Albright, arrived in the United States as immigrants and went on to make extraordinary and lasting contributions.

But history isn’t only written by the famous. Here, it is written by families, communities, and individuals whose stories deserve to be remembered.

Whether you’re an immigrant sharing your own journey, a second-generation American honoring your parents, or a genealogist researching an immigrant ancestor’s life, we invite you to share your story.

How would you like to share your story?

Choose the path that fits your experience. We’ll help you get started.

shutterstock 2552573873 web
TELL A FAMILY MEMBER’S STORY

For children, grandchildren, and relatives documenting a living family member’s experiences.

shutterstock 2726907863
REMEMBER A LOVED ONE

For friends and family who want to preserve the immigration story of someone who has passed away.

FREE STORYTELLING resources

DON’T KNOW WHERE TO BEGIN?

Consider downloading our free guide, A Beginner’s Guide to Telling Your Family’s American Immigration Story.

This three-part guide offers practical storytelling resources for first-generation immigrants telling their own stories, children and grandchildren documenting a living relative’s story, and genealogists and family historians researching an ancestor’s immigration journey.

You’ll also receive our monthly e-newsletter featuring storytelling tips, historical context and immigration stories that inspire us.

Immigration Story Guidebook v2 cover 396
READY TO SHARE YOUR STORY?

GENERAL STORY SUBMISSION

First, gather everything together

We encourage you to take your time, gather meaningful photos, and tell the story in your own words. Your submission helps preserve the immigrant experience for generations to come.

Prefer to speak rather than write? You can record your story and use your recording to help prepare your submission. Whether you write, dictate, or record your memories, we want to hear your story in the way that feels most comfortable to you.

As part of the story submission process, you’ll be asked to confirm permission for us to showcase your story and photos across our digital platforms, in museum exhibits, and in educational materials. This allows us to responsibly honor and share these stories with a wider audience.

Friends and family might have some input

Before you submit, consider collaborating with other friends or family members who might have something to add about the story of your nominee. We encourage you to write your story first, and then copy and paste it into the form below. Your story can be up to 7,000 characters (including spaces), and you can do a free character count with this Grammerly character counter.

When you’re ready, complete the form below

When you have your story ready to submit, complete the form below, and don’t forget to collect and upload any photos you are willing to share.

COMPLETE THE FORM

Have a story to share? Submit your own immigration story or document the experiences of a family member. This open-ended form lets you share your narrative, photos, and family history in your own words.

Step 1 of 2

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
Name(Required)
What type of story are you submitting?(Required)
Is this a new story or a story addition?(Required)
First names only and pseudonyms are acceptable. If using a pseudonym, please write ‘(pseudonym)’ after the name. You may also enter ‘Anonymous.’
Please enter the name of the person who encouraged you to connect with us so we can thank them for the referral.
Signature(Required)
Share this