It used to be my belief that the name was changed — either accidentally or deliberately — at some point before entering the United States. My research pointed to France as a likely country of origin and the surname "Julian" was a name I focused on a lot.

However, since the Ellis Island Foundation placed their records online, I have tossed that theory aside. According to their data, twenty July's entered the United States via Ellis Island between 1892 and 1924. One passenger in particular, Johan Josef July — whose name bears a striking resemblance to a relative of mine — arrived in 1894 at the age of seventeen from Austria.