Ellis Island Immigration Station

While there are many times throughout history I would love to participate in, there is one event I would enjoy most. I would enjoy observing the official opening of the Ellis Island Immigration Station on January 1, 1892. Before the opening of Ellis Island, states had set their own criteria for immigrants. Ellis Island was a federal immigration station that all immigrants had to pass through to move to the United States. The arrival of 700 immigrants at Ellis Island on January 1,1982 was exciting yet stressful. Therefore, I would want to be on the ferry boat transporting processed immigrants from Ellis Island to New York. The process immigrants had to go through at Ellis Island was long and tedious. An immigrant who was able to pass through Ellis Island in one day was seen as lucky. The first hurdle at Ellis Island was the long lines immigrants had to wait in. Once an immigrant reached the front of the line, they would undergo a medical inspection. Doctors would look for any type of physical or mental health issues the immigrant possessed. Then, an immigrant would be questioned by an interpreter about job projects and potential living destinations. If an immigrant failed the medical inspection or the interview, they would be sent to …show more content…
To be able to talk to hundreds of people who were in the midst of reaching a life goal is something I would love to have seen in person. With language barriers being broken down, I believe that I could receive valuable advice from the immigrants’ stories. Many of these people had no way to converse with Americans, and they had no idea where they would end up. However, these immigrants were risk takers, and the fear of the unknown was far less than their desire to create a new life. It would be inspirational to have watched others experience a moment like this, leaving Ellis Island towards their new