Ellis Island opened on January 1, 1892 and was closed in 1954, with twelve million immigrants processed there by the US Bureau of Immigration.    Today, over 100 million Americans – one third of the population – can trace their ancestry to the immigrants who first arrived in America at Ellis Island before dispersing to points all over the country.

In the 35 years before Ellis Island opened, over eight million immigrants had been processed by New York State officials at Castle Garden Immigration Depot in lower Manhattan, just across the bay.  The peak year for immigration at Ellis Island was 1907, with 1,004,756 immigrants processed. (more…)