Janie sent this to me and I thought it was very interesting!! Cher > CHER have you read this info before thought it was interesting janie > in tucson > ============================================================ > "THE PORT OF NEW YORK: GATEWAY TO AMERICA," by Juliana Smith > ============================================================ > The Port of New York has for centuries been the most used portal to the > United > States for immigrants from around the world. While there were many other > > important entries into the country, it is estimated that more than 100 > million > Americans are directly related to immigrants who passed through Ellis > Island > during its tenure as a federal immigration station. > > Prior to the opening of Ellis Island, immigrant processing was the > responsibility of the state, and before 1855, there was no official > center. In > 1855, the State of New York began processing immigrants through the > facilities > at Castle Garden (previously known as Castle Clinton) in response to a > massive > influx of immigrants, many escaping famine in Ireland. This did not > prove to be > the best possible site, though, because as the new immigrants left the > facilities, they were routinely exploited by con men, who sold them > phony > tickets to various destinations, took their money in exchange for > non-existent > jobs, or found other ways to part the unwary immigrant with his or her > money. > > Castle Garden processed its last immigrant in April 1890, and after > reviewing > several possible sites, the United States government selected Ellis > Island for > the establishment of a new federal immigration center for New York. On > the > island, it would be easier to screen and protect the new immigrants > before they > proceeded out onto the streets of New York. > > After the closing of Castle Garden, immigrants were processed at an old > barge > office in Manhattan until the opening of the Ellis Island Immigration > Center on > 1 January 1892. Thousands of immigrants passed through the doors of > Ellis Island > during its peak years of 1892 to around 1924, and the National Park > Services' > Ellis Island site says that in a single day in 1907, 11,747 immigrants > came > through. > > In 1897, a fire destroyed the original buildings on Ellis Island, and > once > again, the barge office was reopened as a temporary processing center. > In 1900, > the Ellis Island Immigration Center reopened in the building that still > exists > today. > > THE PROCESS > > As the immigrants arrived in the Ellis Island Great Hall, exhausted and > overwhelmed from their long journey, they were herded through > inspections. They > knew that in order to gain entry to the United States, they needed to be > > disease-free and prove the ability to earn their way in their new home. > > Inspectors examined them, looking for any sign of illness, and those > with > suspicious symptoms were marked and detained for further inspection. > They were > also asked a myriad of questions as to their origins, their past, how > much money > they had, where they were going, and their intentions in America. > > Many were detained for various reasons, and some had to have relatives > come to > claim them. About two percent were turned back. In these heartbreaking > cases, > families were often forced to decide on the spot whether to split up or > go back > with those that were denied access. > > Once they passed the inspections, immigrants collected their baggage and > > exchanged their money for U.S. currency. There was also a railroad agent > > available from whom they could purchase tickets for the next leg of > their > journey. > > It is important to note that no records are known to have been kept of > the > immigrant processing at either Castle Garden or Ellis Island. Passenger > lists > are typically the only actual records available of immigrant trips to > America. > > THE BEGINNING OF THE END > > The National Origins Act in 1924 served to drastically reduce the > immigration > flow to this country, and subsequently through Ellis Island. It set up > discriminatory quotas, and foreigners wishing to relocate permanently to > the > United States were required to go to U.S. consulates to apply for > immigrant > visas before they came over. Temporary non-immigrant visas were also > available > for those who only wished to travel to the country for a short time. > Visas had > to be presented on arrival, and immigrant visas were forwarded to the > INS > headquarters in Washington, DC. > > This and subsequent restrictions added by a revision to the National > Origins Act > in 1929, which further reduced the maximum number of admissions to the > country, > reduced the flow of immigrants to a trickle. > > In later years, parts of the island were used as a Coast Guard station > and as a > detention center for enemy aliens in WWII. The Ellis Island Immigration > Center > closed in 1954 after millions of immigrants had entered America through > its > doors. > > LOOKING TO THE FUTURE > > In 1982, the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation, Inc. was founded > to > raise funds to restore and preserve Ellis Island and the Statue of > Liberty, > which welcomed the millions of immigrants to America. In partnership > with the > National Park Service, the Foundation has "restored the Statue and > funded and > produced Liberty Weekend in 1986; restored the Main Building at Ellis > Island > (the largest historic restoration in this country's history) and created > the > Ellis Island Immigration Museum, which opened in September 1990; > restored > additional buildings on Ellis Island's north side; and established a $20 > million > endowment to sustain both monuments throughout the years. The > Foundation's > current projects are the reopening of registration for The American > Immigrant > Wall of Honor and the creation of The American Family Immigration > History > Center, both at Ellis Island."(1) > > The American Family Immigration History Center is scheduled to open in > the > spring of 2001. The facility will house a state-of-the-art technology > center > with access to a database containing the records 17 million immigrants > taken > from passenger manifests on microfilm at the National Archives and > Records > Administration. > > The works of the Foundation are funded entirely by the American people. > To learn > more about it, see the contact information below: > > The Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation, Inc. > Department W > 52 Vanderbilt Avenue > New York, NY 10017-3898 > Phone: 212-883-1986 > Fax: 212-883-1069 > http://www.ellisisland.org/ > > Much of the information above--and more--is explained in greater detail > in the > newly released Ancestry publication "Ellis Island: Tracing Your Family > History > Through America's Gateway," by Loretto Dennis Szucs. This book is on > sale today > for only $3.95; to order, call 1-800-ANCESTRY. > > Footnotes: > (1) From the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation, Inc. Web site > at: > http://www.ellisisland.org/ > > LINKS TO MORE INFORMATION > > Ellis Island Immigration Museum > http://www.ellisisland.com > > The Immigration Experience > http://members.tripod.com/~L_Alfano/immig.htm > > Castle Clinton/Castle Garden (NPS Site) > http://www.nps.gov/cacl/ >