According to the Norway-Heritage website, the term "steerage" appears to only be used in English. Other European languages all come back to the general term "below decks". Many of the ships that carried early emigrants across the Atlantic were actually meant to be cargo bearing. With the demand for transporting humans on the rise, they would put up temporary partitions in one of the cargo areas below the main deck. Since this was a temporary arrangement, the furnishings were often inexpensive and there was no set standard for what was included. The ship might bring passengers to America, rearrange the area and carry cargo back to Europe.

In most cases, the ceiling of these areas were only 6 to 8 feet tall and double-deck bunks of rough sawn lumber would line each side of the room. Each bunk was meant to hold 3 or 4 people and were often called "family bunks". Travelers had to provide their own pillows and blankets. Food and drink were provided but the passengers had to eat sitting on their bunks.