March 5, 2021 ▸ History, Places

Episode 563: Ellis Island: The Golden Doorway or an Island of Tears?

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On this episode of the Sofa King Podcast, we look at the most important point of arrival to the United States for more than 60 years, Ellis Island. This small (mostly manmade) island near New York City is famous for admitting ancestors of roughly 40% of all Americans. It was where the mass influx of Irish came during the potato famine, where Jews escaped prosecution, and the Italian Mob became a New York City Import. What happened there, and why did some call it the Island of Tears?

Ellis Island started as, believe it or not, an island. Eventually, the Dutch bought it catch shellfish, and eventually it became known as Gibbet Island, named after the wooden posts where dead pirates were hung to death and displayed for incoming ships to see. Nice one.

Eventually, a man named Samuel Ellis bought it, and after another immigration center closed in 1890, Ellis Island became the go to destination for incoming immigrants from the East. It served as both a processing center for paperwork, a health and legal screening center, and a detainment center for those not free to enter the united states.

So, is it true that the workers there messed up everyone’s names and renamed entire families? How many people died on the island due to medical reasons (it might surprise you!)? How did the admission process differ between rich and poor? Who was kept out by default? Was Ellis Island a Golden Doorway or an Island of Tears? Listen, laugh, learn.

 

Visit Our Sources:

https://www.history.com/topics/immigration/ellis-island

https://time.com/5752116/ellis-island-immigration-detention-center/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellis_Island

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/goldman-immigration-and-deportation-ellis-island/

https://www.history.com/news/9-things-you-may-not-know-about-ellis-island