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Immigration
Contents
Immigration > Processing
New Arrivals > The Administration
of Immigration > Immigration -- Current
U.S. and New York City
Processing New Arrivals
Before Castle Garden
Prior to 1882, when the federal government took
control, processing immigrants through the port of New York fell
under the jurisdiction of state and municipal governments, which
until 1847 did little to accommodate the newcomers. If arriving
with communicable diseases, newcomers were sent to the Marine Hospital
on Staten Island. Having made it ashore, immigrants who later became
sick had the option of checking themselves into the city's almshouse
or public and private hospital charity wards.
Having made it past the medical officers, newly arrived immigrants
encountered the "runners," agents of boardinghouse operators
and of companies that specialized in expediting an immigrant's journey
by boat or rail to the interior of the nation. Usually of the same
ethnicity and speaking the same language as the immigrants they
greeted, their goal was to win the newcomer's trust, misinform them
of employment opportunities in or beyond the city, and then swindle
them out of as much cash and/or property as possible, often in return
for overpriced travel tickets, baggage transport, and boardinghouse
accommodations.
Organizations such as the German Society, Irish Emigrant Society,
St. George's Society (English), and St. Andrew's Society (Scottish)
arose to address these conditions. Although their goal of encouraging
immigrants to migrate out of New York City was never fully realized,
their lobbying efforts resulted in a more active state presence
in the immigration process. In 1847, the legislature in Albany passed
a bill establishing the Board of Commissioners of Emigration. The
Board, comprised of six gubernatorial appointees, the mayors of
New York and Brooklyn, and the presidents of the German Society
and the Irish Emigrant Society, was given both the power and the
funds to inspect arriving ships and provide aid, information, and
employment assistance to immigrants. In addition, a state law was
enacted in 1848 regulating boardinghouse rates and practices.
Castle Garden
Despite the creation of The Board of Commissioners
of Emigration, the serious problem of the runners remained. With
immigrants disembarking at several different piers, it was impossible
to prevent this kind of extortion. As a result, in 1855 the Board
designated Castle Garden as the central disembarkation point for
all newly arrived immigrants. Located at the Battery, at the foot
of Manhattan, this former fort and amusement hall served as an
immigrant entrepot until it was replaced by Ellis Island in 1892.
At Castle Garden, newcomers received trustworthy aid, advice,
and services from honest brokers and agents, city employees, and
representatives of various immigrant aid societies.
Ellis Island
The federal government had assumed total control
of immigration during the 1880s, and in 1892 opened Ellis Island
as a reception center for newly arriving immigrants. The average
immigrant usually remained at Ellis Island for only a few hours
before moving along on their respective journeys. Unscrupulous
agents still waited to exploit innocent newcomers, but efficient
immigrant aid societies were now available to offer assistance.
The heart of the new immigrant processing center was the huge
registry room, where officials and health inspectors sought to
deny entry to paupers, polygamists, mental defectives, contract
laborers, criminals, and people suffering from debilitating and
contagious illnesses. More than 98 percent of the prospective
immigrants gained entry, and 80 percent did so within less than
eight hours.
After passing inspection at Ellis Island, the immigrants boarded
ferry boats for a short trip to New Jersey or Manhattan. Most
went on, seeking friends and families ready to receive them in
other cities, but hundreds of thousands remained in New York City.
When the offices of the Immigration and Naturalization Service
moved to Manhattan, Ellis Island was declared surplus property.
The federal government attempted to sell the island in the late
1950s, but lack of an adequate bid and public protest saved it
from passing into private hands. In 1965, President Lyndon B.
Johnson declared the island a national monument to be run in conjunction
with the Statue of Liberty by the National Park Service.
After Ellis Island
After the Johnson-Reed Act of 1924 curtailed
mass immigration, those seeking entry as immigrants to the United
States were screened in their countries of origin. Following World
War II, many new immigrants arrived by airplane. Puerto Ricans
were numerically the largest Hispanic group to migrate to New
York City between 1945 and 1970. Traveling largely by plane, inaugurating
the first massive air migration in history. In 1954, the Immigration
and Naturalization Service moved its offices to Manhattan. Unlike
many of their predecessors, contemporary immigrants must obtain
an immigrant visa from the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
Immigrant visas permit their holders to stay in the United States
permanently and to ultimately apply for citizenship. U.S. immigration
laws have strict requirements and annual limitations as to who
is eligible to obtain an immigrant visa or permanent resident
status. Generally, before you can apply for an immigrant visa
at the American consulate if you are outside the U.S., you must
have a family or employer sponsor.
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