Early history immigrant on
Ellis Island,
New York City, late 19th century , New York State The first Greek to ever set foot in America was Johan Griego (), in 1492. He was a member of
Christopher Columbus's first expedition. At least two other Greeks followed soon after; they were brothers who sailed with Columbus in his second (1493) and third (1498) expeditions. Spanish and English historians mention three Greeks who sailed with
Ferdinand Magellan in 1520 on his voyage to
Patagonia. Their names are listed as:
Nikolao,
Ioanni, and
Mattheo. He was instrumental in building the rafts that the expedition survivors built and sailed from present-day St. Mark's River in Florida until they were shipwrecked near Galveston Island, Texas. Teodoro had been captured by natives as they sailed along the Gulf coast shoreline toward the west, and was never seen again. He was presumably killed by the natives. Don Doroteo Teodoro is regarded as the first Greek to have set foot on soil which is today part of the
United States. Records show that a Greek, Michael Dry (Youris), became a
naturalized citizen by act of the
General Assembly of Maryland in 1725. This makes Dry the first Greek positively known to reside permanently in what is today the United States. The first noted Greek American scholar was
John Paradise. From 1783 to 1791, he was in charge of all Russian trading operations in the
Aleutian Islands and in Alaska. Another Greek refugee named
George Marshall also came to the United States around this period. He was born in Rhodes in 1782. Marshall joined the United States Navy in 1809 and he wrote ''Marshall's Practical Marine Gunnery''. Marshall had a successful naval career and became master gunner. His son George J Marshall also served in the navy. His son-in-law was
George Sirian. Due to problems with the strait of Gibraltar, America was desperate for trade with Europe. Pirates ransomed Americans which led to two Barbary wars. America eventually formed the Mediterranean Squadron.
19th century Many American ships traveled to the Ottoman Empire, namely Ayvalık. The
Greek War of Independence began in 1821 and lasted until 1830. Americans established missionaries in Greece. The missionaries included
Jonas King. Prominent American abolitionists
Samuel Gridley Howe and
Jonathan Peckham Miller participated in the Greek War.
Jonathan Peckham Miller adopted Greek orphan
Lucas M. Miller.
Samuel Gridley Howe also collected a number of refugees and brought them back to Boston. Some of the refugees he brought included
John Celivergos Zachos and author
Christophorus Plato Castanis. Some of the young Greek refugees became abolitionists.
John Celivergos Zachos became a prominent educator. He was also a woman's rights activist and abolitionist.
Photius Fisk was another abolitionist who fought for the anti-slavery cause.
Gregory Anthony Perdicaris was a wealthy millionaire who created the framework for gas and electric companies.
George Colvocoresses was a captain in the United States Navy.
Colvos Passage is named after him.
George Sirian was another seaman in the United States Navy. The George Sirian Meritorious Service Award is named after him. Harvard created an entire department for
Evangelinos Apostolides Sophocles. Greek orphan
Lucas Miltiades Miller became a U.S. Congressman. In the
American Civil War, Greek Americans fought for both sides,
Union and
Confederate, with prominent Greeks such as
George Colvocoresses,
John Celivergos Zachos and
Photius Fisk taking part in the war on the side of the
Union. A Greek Company within the
Confederate Louisiana Militia was formed for Greeks who fought for the
Confederate States of America. After the Civil War, the Greek community continued to flourish in
New Orleans,
Louisiana. By 1866, the community was numerous and prosperous enough to have a Greek
consulate and the first official
Greek Orthodox Church in the United States. During that period, most Greek immigrants to the
New World came from
Asia Minor and those
Aegean Islands still under
Ottoman rule. By 1890, there were almost 15,000 Greeks living in the U.S. Immigration picked up again in the 1890s and early 20th century, due largely to economic opportunity in the U.S., displacement caused by the hardships of
Ottoman rule, the
Balkan Wars, and
World War I. Most of these immigrants had come from southern Greece, especially from the Peloponnesian provinces of Laconia and Arcadia. 450,000 Greeks arrived to the States between 1890 and 1917, most working in the cities of the
northeastern United States; others labored on railroad construction and in mines of the
western United States; another 70,000 arrived between 1918 and 1924. Each wave of immigration contributed to the growth of
Hellenism in the U.S. Greek immigration at this time was over 90% male, contrasted with most other European immigration to the U.S., such as
Italian and
Irish immigration, which averaged 50% to 60% male. Many Greek immigrants expected to work and return to their
homeland after earning capital and dowries for their families. However, the loss of their homeland due to the
Greek genocide and the 1923
population exchange between Greece and Turkey, which displaced 1,500,000 Greeks from
Anatolia,
Eastern Thrace, and
Pontus caused the initial economic immigrants to reside permanently in America. The Greeks were
de jure denaturalized from their homelands and lost the right to return, and their families were made refugees. Additionally, the first widely implemented
U.S. immigration limits against non Western European immigrants were made in 1924, creating an impetus for immigrants to apply for citizenship, bring their families and permanently settle in the U.S. Fewer than 30,000 Greek immigrants arrived in the U.S. between 1925 and 1945, most of whom were "
picture brides" for single Greek men and family members coming over to join relatives.
20th century , in 1947. The community has the highest percentage of Greek Americans of any city in the U.S. In 1909, there was a
pogrom against the Greek population in South
Omaha. The events of the early 1920s also provided the stimulus for the first permanent national Greek American religious and civic organizations. In 1922, as a response to the anti-Greek campaign and actions of the
Ku Klux Klan, the
American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association was founded. AHEPA aimed to counter the xenophobic sentiments directed at Greek immigrants by promoting non-violence, educational outreach and the full Americanization of the Greek community. Greeks again began to arrive in large numbers after 1945, fleeing the economic devastation caused by
World War II and the
Greek Civil War. From 1945 until 1982, approximately 211,000 Greeks immigrated to the United States. These later immigrants were less influenced by the powerful assimilation pressures of the 1920s and 1930s and revitalized Greek American identity, especially in areas such as Greek-language media. Greek immigrants founded more than 600
diners in the New York metropolitan area in the 1950s through the 1970s. Immigration to the United States from Greece peaked between the 1950s and 1970. After the 1981 admission of Greece to the
European Union, annual U.S. immigration numbers fell to less than 2,000. In recent years, Greek immigration to the United States has been minimal; in fact, net migration has been towards Greece. Over 72,000 U.S. citizens currently live in Greece (1999); most of them are Greek Americans. The predominant religion among Greeks and Greek Americans is
Greek Orthodox Christianity. There are also a number of Americans who descend from
Greece's smaller
Sephardic and
Romaniote Jewish communities.
21st century The
Greek financial crisis triggered a resurgence of
Greek immigration to New York City in 2010, which accelerated in 2015, centering on the traditional Greek enclave of
Astoria, Queens. According to
The New York Times, this new wave of Greek migration was driven less by opportunities in New York City by a lack of economic options in Greece itself. ==Demographics==