Thank you to our historians Marcel Verdoeft and André Gebeurtenis who continue their research on the life of Germaine Slutte. Last news: it was on board the Belgenland that Germaine and her family left Belgium for New York in 1933 ...
According to the latest research by Marcel and André, it was on board the Belgenland that the Slutte family left the port of Antwerp in October 1933 to reach New York on November 3, as evidenced by the arrivals register of the immigration center settled on Ellis Island, a tiny island of ten hectares in the interior of New York Bay, not far from Manhattan. At the end of the 19th century and for decades, it also served as a port of entry for all immigrants who came to seek their fortune or simply a better life in the United States.
The Belgenland is an ocean liner built under the « Belgic » name in 1914 in the Harland & Wolff shipyards in Belfast. First used by the White Star Line as cargo and troop transport during the First World War, it then underwent a major overhaul and became the flagship of the Red Star Line under the name Belgenland. After twelve years of service for the company, it was sold to the Panama Pacific Line, which renamed it Columbia but failed to make it profitable. The following year, in 1936, the liner was scrapped.