Wanderlust World Wanderlust World Ellis Island served as the United States' primary federal immigration station from 1892 to 1954, processing over 12 million immigrants—ancestors of an estimated 40% of living Americans.
Ships docked; steerage passengers ferried to island. First- and second-class inspected aboard ship.
"Six-second physical": doctors scanned for trachoma, favus, lameness, mental disability. Chalk marks on clothing: "X" (mental), "H" (heart), "Pg" (pregnant), "Sc" (scalp). 2% rejected.
29 questions: name, origin, occupation, money, relatives, anarchist? polygamist? Contract laborer? Literacy test (1917+)—read 40 words in native language.
"Likely public charge" (LPC), medical, moral, or political grounds. Detained days to months. Hearings before Boards of Special Inquiry. Appeals to Secretary of Labor.
22-building hospital complex (Contagious Disease Hospital, Psychopathic Ward). Treated 1.2M patients; 3,500 died on island.
English classes, citizenship prep, job placement, Red Cross, YMCA, HIAS assistance.
Quota laws shifted processing to consulates abroad. Ellis became detention/deportation center. Closed 1954.
National Monument (1965), Immigration Museum (1990). Searchable passenger database (EllisIsland.org). Symbol of hope, anxiety, and the making of a nation.