Distribution of Lithuanian-Americans according to the 2000 census

It is believed that Lithuanian emigration to the United States began in the 17th Century when Alexander Cursius arrived in New Amsterdam (present day New York) in 1659 and became the first Latin School teacher-administrator; he was also a physician. Persons with Lithuanian surnames served under George Washington, and even Thaddeus Kosciuszko wrote that he came “from Lithuania in Poland” and later became Brigadier General and a hero of the American Revolution. There is also evidence that Lithuanians fought in the American Civil War (1861-65) in both armies, the North and the South.