Over 40% of all Americans can trace their roots to Ellis Island. ..more than 12 million immigrants passed through these doors. Opened in 1892 the first immigrant to arrive was a fifteen year old girl from Ireland called Annie Moore.
First stop was the luggage room, they left their trunks, suitcases etc., here and th
en climbed the stairs to the Great Hall for medical and legal examination.By 1917 complete medical examinations were required, the main purpose to find persons with contagious diseases or conditions that would make them unable to work.At best the entire process through Ellis Island took three to five hours.
By 1921, immigrants had to pass a literacy test and show a passport and visa.
Laws passed in 1909 required each immigrant to have at least 20
dollars before they were allowed to enter America.
Two thirds of the new Americans then boarded the ferry to New Jersey, where the next leg of their journey would begin. The remaining immigrants took the ferry to Manhattan to begin their new life in New York City, only one mile away!
Ellis Island re-opened as a Museum on September 10th 1990, dedicated to the history of immigration.
My Son Simon and Myself visited New York in March 2004,
and visited Ellis Island, all the pictures you see in this post
were taken by me. Some of the pictures depict various rooms
and there contents just as they were left in 1954.
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