industries ( trade , catering , travel agencies ). Some became successful businessmen .
Most immigrants lived in ethnic settlements , i . e ., parts of towns or cities with a large enough concentration of Slovenians , and at least one of three ethnic organizational structures : a benefit society or fraternal organization , a national home or a Slovenian Catholic or Evangelical ethnic parish which organized Slovenian schools .
The largest Slovenian communities were formed in western Pennsylvania , northeast Ohio , Great Lakes region and upper Michigan , Great Lakes region of Wisconsin , central Illinois , Indiana , and central and northern Minnesota . Brockway ( today St . Stephen ’ s ) was one of the oldest Slovenian settlements in the States . In 1920 , Cleveland ( Ohio ) was claimed the third largest “ Slovenian city ”, second only to Ljubljana and Trieste .
Established before and during WWI , fraternal benefit organizations were a fundamental form of organization of Slovenian immigrants in the U . S . They provided insurance in the event of occupational accidents or illnesses and supported cultural activities . Composed of individual lodges across the States , some have been active to this day : American Slovenian Catholic Union ( ASCU ), Joliet , Illinois ( 1894 ), Slovene National Benefit Society ( SNBS ), Imperial , Pennsylvania ( 1904 ), and American Mutual Life Association ( AMLA ), Cleveland , Ohio ( 1910 ). In the early 20th century , these organizations started building recreation centers in the rural areas : SNBS in Kirkland ( Ohio ) and Enon Valley ( Pennsylvania ), which also has a Slovenian heritage center . Post- WWII immigrant community built Slovenska pristava ( Ohio ) and Triglav park ( Wisconsin ). Of some thirty-tree Cleveland Cultural Gardens , one is Slovenian .
Other important organizations include the Slovenian Union of America ( former Slovenian Women Union of America , Joliet ) and the Slo-
Slovenian immigrants visiting their former homeland , 1950s . Photo : Slovenian Emigration Association .
Before leaving for the USA from the Port of Trieste , 1950s . Photo : Slovenian Emigration Association .
venian Research Center of America ( Cleveland ) with an extensive archive of successful Slovenians in the U . S . ( in part , it was transferred to the Archives of the Republic of Slovenia ).
Slovenian National Homes ( narodni dom ) also had a significant role in the formation and organization of the Slovenian immigrant communities . They were built by volunteers who shared a concern for the fate of their old homeland . In Cleveland alone , four such homes were opened in 1919 , followed by the largest in the United States , built on St . Clair Avenue in 1924 , which has served the Slovenian community to this day . It has a main hall with 1,350 seats ( the stage curtain is a piece of art reproduced from 1924 painting Mother Slovenia by Maksim Gaspari ), a library with a reading room and a boules court . For years , the center housed eleven offices , seven shops , a Sokol gymnastic society ’ s hall , a Slovenian school , several choirs , a drama school , a travel agency , a photo studio , a Slove-
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