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This New York Times article dated August 4, 1873, preceded a wave of Greek immigration that began in the 1880s. It describes the Greek American community of a few hundred just before that community grew to 2,308 in 1890, and then to 15,979 in 1900, according to U.S. Census records. The Immigration Acts of 1921 and 1924 established quotas that greatly reduced the number of Greeks admitted to the United States. In spite of those restrictions, the 1990 census reported that 1,110,373 Americans claim Greek ancestry.

"Greeks in America" provides a valuable portrait of the lives of the single Greek men who immigrated to the United States with the hope of making enough money to provide for their families back in Greece. During the 1880s, Greek economic conditions were extremely poor, and many Greeks immigrated in search of work to support their families. Most of these immigrants were from Laconia, in southern Greece. Some...