extracted from "Report of the Select Committee to Examine into Frauds Upon Emigrants, 1847, by Thomas Smith, New York (State) Assembly, Legislature, Published 1847 by C. Van Benthuysen, public printer" | back to Fares index

Fare frauds upon emigrant passengers arriving at New York State, 1847

Find "Hints to Emigrants to the North American Provinces ca. 1847-1849" HERE, which tells of the cautions issued to new emigrants, including the need to avoid those persons who crowd on board ships and steam-boats, offering their services to get passages. &c. Although emigrants arriving via New York had been subject to frauds to a limited extent, for many years, because of the increase in emigration during the "famine years," there was a huge increase in such practise, prompting an investigation by committee.

" As soon as a ship loaded with these emigrants reaches our shores, it is boarded by a class of men called runners, either in the employment of boarding house keepers or forwarding establishments, soliciting custom for their employers. In order the more successfully to enable the later to gain the confidence of the emigrant, they usually employ those who can speak the same language with the emigrant. If they cannot succeed in any other way in getting possession and control over the object of their prey, they proceed to take charge of their luggage, and take it to some boarding house for safe keeping, and generally under the assurance that they will charge nothing for carriage hire or storage. In this way, they are induced to go to some emigrant boarding house, of which there are a great many in the city, and then too often under a pretence that they will charge but a small sum for meals or board, the keepers of these houses induce these people to stay a few days, and when they come to leave usually charge them three or four times as much as they agreed or expected to pay, and exorbitant prices for storing their luggage, and in case of their inability to pay, their luggage is detained as security."

..... Some runners worked on commission for each passenger they brought in, others were allowed to charge "all they can get over a certain sum ... " ..... and in many cases ignorant foreigners are duped by their own countrymen ..... Germans preying upon the German — the Irish upon the Irish — the English upon the English &c.

" Amongst the numerous frauds practised by these runners and forwarding houses, there is perhaps none greater that that which exists in the sale of passage tickets.
The emigrant is shown a neatly printed ticket, with a picture of a steamboat, railroad cars, and canal packet with three horses attached to it, and is given to understand that such a ticket will take him to a given place beyond Albany in a specified manner, and for a price to be agreed upon, and after disposing of the ticket for an exorbitant price, the emigrant is furnished with a steamboat ticket to take him to Albany, where he is to present his passage ticket to some person or company upon which it is drawn, where it is often either protested, or objections taken to the mode of conveyance, and the passenger, instead of going upon the railroad or packet boat, as agreed upon, is thrust into the steerage or hold of a line boat, where he is often known to complain—when the only evidence he can furnish of the fraud committed upon him is to exhibit his ticket with a picture of three horses, when the line boats are only drawn by two."

This table shows an example of some of the additional profits made at the expense of the emigrants:-

Cost by Steamboat by Railroad   by Lake Total Profit Price from New York to Buffalo $6.00 $0.50 $4.00     $4.50 $1.50 Price from New York to Cleveland 9.00 0.50 4.00   $1.00 5.50 3.50 Price from New York to Detroit 9.25 0.50 4.00   1.00 5.50 3.75 Price from New York to Chicago 12.00 0.50 4.00   2.00 6.50 5.50 Price from New York to Cincinnati 12.50 0.50 4.00 & Canal 3.50 8.00 4.50 Price from New York to Pittsburgh 10.50 0.50 4.00 " 3.00 7.50 3.00 Price from New York to St. Louis 14.50 0.50 4.00 " 5.00 9.50 5.00 Price from New York to Louisville 13.50 0.50 4.00 " 4.50 9.00 4.50

. . . below find tables showing correct 1847 fares to various US and Canadian destinations, shown in both dollars & cents and shillings and pence.

from New York to:
Chicago via Buffalo | Pittsburgh, St. Louis & Galena | Portsmouth & Cincinnati | LaFayette, Ind. | Cincinnati via Toledo Canal | via Buffalo, Erie & Beaver | Canada via Oswego | Montreal via Troy | Canada via Rochester

from New York to:
Chicago via Buffalo | Pittsburgh, St. Louis & Galena | Portsmouth & Cincinnati | LaFayette, Ind. | Cincinnati via Toledo Canal | via Buffalo, Erie & Beaver | Canada via Oswego | Montreal via Troy | Canada via Rochester

Report of the Select Committee to Examine into Frauds Upon Emigrants, 1847 (off-site link)
The full published report which examines the frauds being perpetrated upon emigrants and others by "runners" and river and canal boat operators. The emigrants were destined from New York to the US Western States and Territories, as well as Upper and Lower Canada, via the Hudson River to Albany, thence via Railroad or the Erie Canal. The report includes many affidavits and statements from emigrants, agents &c.

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