1 / 43

Ellis Island

Ellis Island. From Europe to “The Golden Door”. America’s Premier Immigration Station. 1890 – Federal Government establishes Bureau of Immigration & selects Ellis Island as site of new immigration station for port of New York 1892 – Ellis Island opens it doors January 1

clydeholland
Download Presentation

Ellis Island

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Ellis Island From Europe to “The Golden Door”

  2. America’s Premier Immigration Station • 1890 – Federal Government establishes Bureau of Immigration & selects Ellis Island as site of new immigration station for port of New York • 1892 – Ellis Island opens it doors January 1 • 1897 – Fire destroys original wood buildings • 1900 – Ellis Island re-opens in its present Beaux-Art style

  3. 100 Million Americans Can Trace Ancestry to Ellis Island • 12 Million pass through from 1892 – 1954 • Peak years from 1892 – 1924 • 11,747 processed on one day 1907 • Quotas begin to restrict immigrants 1924 • Used as detention center for enemy aliens 1943 • Closes doors 1954

  4. Saving Ellis Island • 1965 – Taken over by National Park Service • 1974 – Restore Ellis Island committee formed • 1983 – Restoration begins • 1990 – Ellis Island Immigration Museum opens September 10 • 1992- Ellis Island Centennial

  5. First Wave of Immigration • 1830s / 1850s – Northwestern Europeans flee starvation, feudal governments & social upheaval from the Industrial Revolution. They came here from: • Ireland • Germany • Scandinavia • As well as China

  6. Second Wave of Immigration • A “Flood-Tide” from Eastern & Southern Europe • Fleeing burdens of high taxes, poverty & overpopulation, oppression & religious persecution

  7. Second Wave of Immigration • A Monumental Decision • Leaving Family & Friends • Maybe to Never See Them Again • & Begin a New Life in America

  8. The Ship’s Manifest • Before Boarding Ship, Each Passenger was Subjected to De-Lousing & Questioning • A Series of 29 Questions were Asked • Answers were Written on the Ship’s Manifest • In English • Documenting Information for Genealogists Today

  9. The Ship’s Manifest

  10. Leaving Europe for America • $12.00 Ticket • 10-14 Day Journey • 3rd Class Steerage • Crude Conditions

  11. Onboard Ship

  12. End of the Journey • “Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor. Your Huddled Masses Yearning to Breathe Free, The Wretched Refuse of Your Teeming Shore… “

  13. Arrival At Ellis Island • Transferred from Ship to the Island via Ferry • Sometimes Waiting for Hours to be Moved • And Reach the Golden Door to America

  14. Welcome to America!

  15. The Waiting Room

  16. The Great Hall

  17. Now began a series of tests that would determine your fate Only 2 % were sent back 2% of 12 Million The Waiting Is Over

  18. The Inspection Line

  19. The Medical Exam • Medical Inspectors watched the people & marked them with chalk • The exam was frightening & embarrassing • Many varied ailments could send you home

  20. X – Suspected Mental Defect Circled X- Definite Signs of Mental Defects B – Black C- Conjunctivitis CT – Trachoma E- Eyes F- Face Ft- Feet G- Goiter H- Heart K- Hernia N- Neck L- Lameness P- Physical & Lungs PG- Pregnancy SC- Scalp S- Senility SI- Special Inquiry Chalk Marks Used at Ellis Island

  21. The Eye Exam • Eyes were special treatment • Each person had their eyes examined, usually with a hook to flip them up. • They were looking for Trachoma

  22. Trachoma & Fauves • Trachoma & Fauves were the 2 main diseases that would send you home • Fauves is a skin fungus • Trachoma is a version of “Pink Eye”

  23. The Questions • Asked a Series of 29 Questions • The Same as Were Asked Before Leaving Europe • To See if Your Story Remained the Same

  24. The Mental Exam • Immigrants who Looked “Out of the Ordinary” Were Given Mental Exams • If You Failed the Exams (3 Chances), You Were Deported

  25. Making it • Once All the Testing Was Done, You Were Allowed to Leave the Island & Become an American • Or Become a “Bird of Passage”

  26. The Streets Are Paved with Gold • I came here believing the streets were paved with gold. • I found out the streets weren’t paved at all, • And I was expected to pave them!

  27. Nativist Resistance

  28. Too Many Undesirables • The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 effectively ends Chinese immigration • A growing Nativist movement grips the nation • WWI & the Russian Revolution promotes Xenophobia

  29. Limiting Immigration • Quota system instituted in 1922 • Limits immigrants to a percentage of ethnic group already in the U.S. • Favors “desirable” immigrants over others

  30. America, The Melting Pot • Our Unique Blend of Ethnicity has Resulted in a New & Distinct Culture Amongst the Nations of the World • Are We Really a Melting Pot?

  31. Ethnic Diversity Builds a Nation

  32. Every Culture Contributed

  33. To Make Us What We Are Today

  34. Tracing Your Family History • www.ellisisland.org • Search Passenger records • Add a Relative’s Name to the “Wall of Honor”

  35. The End

More Related