This is a recording by Bessy Schiffenbaum, born in 1891.
Her father emigrated to England in about 1897 and the family followed later.
(Courtesy of Jerry White and Tower Hamlets Local History Library & Archives)

Transcript of Bessy Schiffenbaum's interview

"My father learnt his trade here in this country. When he came over here he didn't have a trade… he was what you would call today a white-collar worker in Austria…he came like most of the Jews from that part of Europe because there was no work, because he didn't want to be [in the Army] he was a reservist of the Austrian Army, and he didn't want to do anything like that - he had a wife and four children at the time. He left the wife and his family in Austria, came over here; and my three uncles, my mother's three brothers, were cabinet-makers from abroad - they were very good cabinet-makers. They taught him the trade."

"But I remember coming over and mother was with three children, there were two boys and myself - my sister was born in this country…the agent would meet you at every port or station or whatever. We went overland as far as Bremen where you were to meet the boat to come to England and my mother got lost in Bremen... My younger brother wasn't very strong, and she carried him on her arm - she was 26 my mother when she came to this country or 27... And I remember my mother just standing there waiting. Everybody ran to meet this [agent] and mother had two children and she couldn't run with the two children - and she was lost... This agent was just as anxious to find us as we were to find him..."

"I remember that she was so overjoyed at meeting this man that she took his hands and she kissed them. I remember that so clearly. And we went on to this cattle-boat - that's all I can describe it as! There were a lot of women girls from Hungary going to America on the same boat as myself ... and [they] took me under their wing as it were. And I remember they gave me chicken to eat. Mother, when she was a little better [from the sea-sickness] she said what is, what am I eating and I said I didn't know what it was, I said this lady gave it to me and mother said 'Throw it away, it's trefa [forbidden], it's not kosher'."