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ELLIS ISLAND (1892-1954)

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Title: ELLIS ISLAND (1892-1954)


1
ELLIS ISLAND (1892-1954)
2
Ellis Island LOCATION
3
What is Ellis Island?
  • US government building on Ellis Island, NY
    (Built 1892)
  • Processing station that regulated the massive
    flow of immigrants coming to the US from
    1892-1954
  • Station where immigrants were checked for
    disease, disability, etc before being allowed
    into the US (also helped US keep a record of who
    was entering the country).

4
Why Build Ellis Island?
  • Immigrants usually had a limited knowledge of
    English and American ways
  • Immigrants often fell prey to swindlers thieves
    that frequented major ports of immigrant entry.
  • To prevent that sort of criminal activity and
    regulate foreigners, US government built Ellis
    Island!

5
Obstacles
  • Ellis Island Original Building burned
    down-replaced by brick structures
  • Federal Government had difficult task of ridding
    Ellis Island of corruption and thievery.
  • President T. Roosevelt Very involved in removing
    immigrant officials/employees of Ellis Island who
    were found guilty of tricking immigrants out of
    their money and other crimes.

6
Immigrant Regulation
  • Federal Government did NOT want immigrants
    bringing contagious diseases into the country
  • Also did not want to admit anyone likely to
    become a ward of the state

7
Medical Examiners
  • E.I. Doctors denied anyone
  • Anyone having or suspected of having any of
    several defects or diseases of the body OR mind.
    (i.e. trachoma disease of eyes common in SE
    Europe)
  • Stair walk, health exam, interviews,
    mental/intelligence tests all were part of the
    process.

8
Medical Exams
9
Quote
  • The doctors and everybody else that were
    supposed to interrogate us were dressed in
    uniforms. That had terrible effect on me. We
    were scared of the uniforms. It took us back to
    the Russian uniforms that we were running away
    from.
  • -Katherine Beychok, Russian Jewish Immigrant in
    1910

10
Quote
  • They asked us questions. How much is two and
    one? How much is two and two? But the next young
    girl, also from our city, went and they asked
    her, How do you wash stairs, from the top or
    from the bottom? She says, I dont come to
    America to wash stairs.
  • -Pauline Notkoff, a Polish Jewish immigrant
    (1917)

11
Result of Ellis Island
  • A new beginning (US industry had created many
    jobs for foreign workers)
  • Families Split Up (trauma)
  • Many immigrants received new names
  • http//www.youtube.com/watch?vp2lJs-0swH8modere
    latedsearch (Hanson Family)

12
A New Beginning!
  • 6 Decades 71 of all immigrants in US
  • By 1954 20 million passed through E.I.
  • ½ of all Americans can trace their ancestry by
    way of E.I.!!

13
Quote
  • I remember my grandfather always telling me how
    he knew he could be rich in America because he
    saw riches in the architecture of Ellis Island.
    He felt that if they let the poor in such a
    gorgeous hall then life in this country was
    just.
  • -Rosanne Welch, granddaughter of Guiseppe
    Italiano (1904)

14
Can You Trace Your Ancestors To E.I.?
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