Regina Silverio used to Live at 540 West 165th Street

Contrary to popular belief, Dominican migration to the United States did not begin in the 1960s. Outside of the first immigrant (Dominican and otherwise) to ever arrive to New York, Juan Rodriguez, more than five thousand Dominicans entered through the famous immigration port of Ellis Island to live in the United States. These immigrants are a testament to the long-standing presence of Dominicans in New York City, and which in turns correlates with the long list of achievements Dominicans have forged living away from the Dominican Republic.
This building in particular was where the Ellis Island immigrant Regina Silverio lived in. Regina Silverio, who lived at 540 W 165th Street, arrived in the United States on August 30, 1924 from the Dominican Republic. She declared in her Manifest that she would stay for several months and intended to visit Mario Morera. A year prior, on April 2, 1923, Maria Larkeque Menier, who was a dressmaker, moved a few buildings up the block, to 657 W 165th Street.

Based on research by Vivian Guerrero Aquino, Research Associate at the CUNY Dominican Studies Institute, this story is part of the Institute’s Ellis Island Project, which documents the arrival of Dominican immigrants and preserves their personal histories. Its significance grew during an initiative led by CUNY DSI Research Assistant Waldemar Morety, which successfully resulted in the designation of a portion of Washington Heights as the Dominican Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places.

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