Coming to USA of Despina Konstandinos Kyriakoudis to marry Mixalis Sotitrios Kididis 1921

In 1912, at the age of 18, Michael Kididis went to Greece to avoid Turkish conscription of mandatory 7 years military service. There, he bought passage from Patras to America – no passports required, then. His ship, the Martha Washington, landed at Baltimore, MD, which did not keep good port-of-entry records. We’ve been unable to verify registry. In Baltimore, he boarded a train to Indianapolis, IN where his brother Harry (1884-1952) lived. Harry worked in a meat-packing plant many years and died of a heart attack in July 1952.

In Indianapolis, Michael got a job working for the railroad construction in Iowa for a few years, mostly as a water boy because of his slight build. It is not known what year Michael returned to Indianapolis and worked at the Van Damp Soup factory, where soups were cooked and canned. Sometime in those years in Indianapolis he met Hrisanthe Chripas and he wanted to pursue a more serious relationship but she told him she was engaged to Harry Alexander, and she gave him the address of a cousin in Tenedos, if he was interested. The cousin was Despina Kyriakoudis. Michael wrote to Despina’s father Konstantinos Kyriakoudis and asked for the hand of his daughter. In the meantime, Michael moved to Toledo. Konstantinos accepted Michael’s proposal, and sent Despina to America. Konstantinos had been in America in 1907 to earn money, and when he returned to Tenedos, he bought a trunk for his acquisitions, which he then used to ship his daughter Despina’s wardrobe to America. That trunk is still in the family. Thespina came to America aboard the “Megali Hellas” (Great Greece) in July 1921, but the monthly quota was filled, so the ship had to anchor beyond the 3 mile boundary for a few days for the August quota.

In the meantime, Michael and a friend Christofi Allimenos, who had fiancée’s on the ship, chartered a motorboat and went to sea with candy and flowers. The passengers all went to one side of the ship to see what was happening, when the flowers and candy were thrown-only to land in the water. On Aug. 1, 1921, the ship landed in New York, Ellis Island, and on Aug. 2, Despina’s 20th birthday, the two couples got their marriage licenses. On Aug. 3, the two couples – Michael and Despina Kididis and Christofi and Smaro Antonelli Allimenos – were married in “The Little Church Around the Corner”, known in New York for immigrant marriages. The best man was Ernest Vardianos, and the reception hosts were John Liatskas of Astoria and Fotini Ladas Liatskas (wife). They Kididis’ went back to Toledo, Ohio where they raised their family and continued to live until their deaths. (All xoriani from Tenedos).....

This story was passed onto to me by Denise Kididis who was born and raised in USA. I had contacted Denise a while requesting some family history about the Kididis family that were from Tenedos.

Sophie Arvanitou,

Melbourne Australia