Arriving at Ellis Island

Eu er y d.ay Life
: Irnrnigr otion.
Arriving at Ellis Island
Ellis lsland in
NewYork
har^bor; which
for 62 years
was the main
immigrantprocessing
center in the
United States.
nziaYezierska's anticipation was no different from other immigrants
on her ship when they arrived in New York in f901. She was giddy
with excitement. The sight of America and the Statue of Liberty in
the harbor must have brought tears to her eyes. The young Russian girl later
wrote that people hugged and danced when they first caught sight of their
adopted land. Old men and old women, she related, had "in their eyes a look
of young people in love."
Anzia Yezierska's description of how immigrants reacted upon seeing the
Statue of Liberty was true of every ship that arrived in the harbor. But the
elation and excitement were tempered (lessened) somewhat by what still lay
ahead: Ellis Island.
fu you learned in Chapter 5, Ellis Island replaced Casde Garden as the
main U.S. immigration center in L892. Before it closed in 1954, more than
16 million immigrants had passed tfuough
its gates. Each of these could probably relate
stories similar to the ones that follow.
Immigrants who arrived at the Ellis
Island receiving station were aware that it
often was a place of broken hearts and
dashed dreams. Many said later that they
were more frightened of what went on there
than they had been of the Adantic crossing.
They were aware that people were furned
back because of some disease or mental
problem. They had heard that sometimes
one member of a family failed to pass the medical examination and was
immediately put on a ship and sent home. Sometimes this famrly member was
a child. It made no difference. Children as young as ten were put on ships and
sent back to fend for themselves. Can you imagine the heartbreak of the
parentsl And can you imagine the desperation that would drive some
immigrants-turned back because of disease or disabiliry-ro jr*p into rhe
river and try to swim to the mainlandl Almost all of these poor souls
drowned.
The long process of gaining entry into America began with a ferryboat
ride from the ship to Ellis Island. When the immigrants left the ferry, they
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Cbapter 6
'Arriving at Ellis Island'
into a large room called the Reg:strr- Room'
or the Great Hall. Thev $'ere rushed to the pornt that therStat'
had iirtle time to take rn their surroundings. Hurrv.
in line. Move qtticher. Don't stand there, stan'd here' Don't
\\'ere
pok.e arottttrl tre don't have all d'ay'The commands
endless-and fri ghtenin g.
In the Reglstq, Room, immigrants were separated ilto
groups of thirw. The first ordeal they faced was the
t.ai.rf eramination' Although it probably seemed to
these $.orried ne\ycomers that this took a lifetime, the
The
examination \\-as usually over in less than five minutes.
immigrants formed a line and passed between two doctors'
One ]octor checked for signs of any physical or mental
d.isabiliw. The other was on the lookout for contagious
diseases. Anv immigrant suspected of having some
shortcoming \\'as marked with white chalk and detained for
$-ere hurried
further eramination.
The medical examiners particularly checked for
fiachon'ia. a contagious eye disease that can cause
on his or her
biindness. lnvo.rJthoogir, to have uachoma had Clchalked
;,ht;
llanv immigrJn* were denied admission because they were
uith this dread disease
detected
.
problems
There \\'as a chalked letter for everything. People with heart
received a K,
had -FI chall<ed on their coats or shirts. Those with a hernia
the letters Sr' People who
rr hjle anvone har-ing a scalp infection was given
.an\- \\rav rvere marked with an L'
n ere cripple d in
proit,tv rhe most dreaded mark was X. An Ximplied that the immigrant
deportadon'
had a mental disorder. a cond.ition that resulted in immediate
or frightened u'ere deemed
Sometime s immigr.ants u-ho u'ere simply nervous
one Young
mentall' unfit.and sent back to Europe. Such nearly happened to
\\'arts
gul. ri ho \\'as so ne n-ous upon arrival at Ellis Island that she developed
thought she
1., h., ha,rd,s. -\ ,loctor chall<ed an X on her coat, and her familr'
another
u'ou-l,l certeinir- b,e ,letained. But some kind gentieman) ri'hether
that she rurn
rmmigr'ant or perhaps e\-en an inspector is not knon'n, suggested
*'as allorved to pass
her .oat rnsi,Je orr, io hide the chalk mark. She did and
tluough.
ts
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I
An immtgratton
of;rciai prints an
rnrnigrant's
narne on the
bac< of her
neck- in
:nder,bie ink
Et er y d. ay Life : f rnrnigr at,io n
An inspector
at Ellis lsland
check an
immigrant's
eyes for
trachoma-
Anyone
detected with
trachoma
faced the
possibilrty of
being sent
back to
Europe.
Intelligence tests given to immigrants suspected of having mental
disorders consisted of a variety of questions and activities. With an interpreter
at hand, the examiner might ask a person to solve a number of math probl..r6
or u'ork a puzzle. Sometimes he or she would be asked to count backwards or
place x'ooden squares or circles in the appropriate place's on a board. At other
times the person being examined might be asked to interpret expressions on
the faces of pictures shown them.
Juurcurnes immigrants
Sometimes
lmfiugran$ ralled
failed mtelllgence
intelligence tests simply because
because they viewed
things differently from people in America. One part of a rest given immigrant
children offers a good example. The children were shown a picture of a boy
diggog a hole in the ground-a dead rabbit lvrng at his feer-and asked to
mtelpret its meaning. It was common for immigrant children from Europe to
replv that the boy had killed the rabbit to eat. But that was not the answer
immigrant officials were iooking for. The correct answer was that the dead
rabbit \\'as a familr. pet and that the boy gr4 dug a hole to bury it. Do you
q* man), immigrant children \r,ere senr back ro Europe because they gave
the *rong ans\r,er to such a foolish and unfair questionf
Once immigrants had cleared all medical examinations, they next faced a
list of questions from various immigration officiais. Where did you come from?
Hox'much money do you have? can y.ou lvorkf Do you have a skillf Do you
ha'e a job waiting for youl Do vou have family heref Is someone meeting
Do you already have a place to stayf rwenry or thirty questions were
'ou)
thrown at immigrants in a matter of a few minutes.
They all realized that a wrong answer to any of
them might result in their being senr back ro
Europe.
In spite of their fears, most immigrants were
only at Ellis Island for a few hours. Those who
passed all their examinations then boarded a ferry
for the twenry-five minute ride to the mainland.
About 30 percent of the new arrivals stayed in
New York City. The others bought rafuoad tickets
to other places. The vast majority stayed in the
industrial cities of the northeast, but some moved
on to destinations as far away as the states of
California and Washingron.
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Chapter 6
.Arriting at Ellis Islan.d.
What about those immigrants rvho were detained for
a fell, dale, or even rveeksl Ellis Island had been built to
meet most of their needs. There were two kitchens that
served hot meals in a large dining hail. One kitchen
prepared regular meals, while the other cooked special
foods required by people of the lewish faith. And what
meals they x.ere to these poor immigrants accustomed to
hunger and deprivation! Eggs with bread and butter for
breakfast, rvashed dorvn with either coffee or milk. And
for dinner) The immigrants could not believe their eyes!
Potatoes, vegetables, beef stew, soup, ffid perhaps a piece
of ftuit-and all at one sitting!
Immigrant children were in awe of the special treats
they sometimes received: fig bars, cookies, and ice cream) not to mention
glasses of cold milk. And bananas! Most children, as well as their parents, had
never seen a banana before they arrived at Ellis Island. At least one story
survives of an immigrant eating a whole banana-skin and all-before being
told he were supposed to peel it!
Horv did immigrants pass the time at Ellis Islandl In the early days adults
rvere limited to exercising on the roof of the main building. For children there
\vas a small playground on the roof with uicycles, carts)
and rocking horses. Beginning in 1914, however, many
impror,ements were added that made the immigrants'
stay on the island a litde more enjoyable. They were
allorved to use the larvns for exercise and play, and a
number of activities and programs were started. A
kindergarten kept youngsters occupied, while adults and
older children could enjoy movies, concerts, and athletic
One of the
dining halls at
Ellis lsland.
lmmigrants were
surprised at the
quality of food
they were
served at the
receiving station,
contests.
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made their
=b
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adjustment to
life in America
q
little
iul
!h
Atthough recreational activities went far to lessen
the fears and concerns of immigants at EIIis Island, they
A classroom for
did litde to erase the unhappy memories the new arrivals carried with them
the children of
immigrants
when they left. Fiorello La Guardia, who later became mayor of New York
temporarily
City and who worked as an interpreter at the receiving station for a number of detained at Ellis
years, said he never grew accustomed to the despair and disappointment he
lsland. Here
received
children
If
someone
who
saw daily.
worked there felt that way it is easy to imagine the
valuable
anguish felt by the immigrants themselves.
instruction that
C
easier:
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