New York Harbor that contains a museum and former

Leadership
There were fifteen commissioners assigned to oversee immigration procedures at the Port of New York, and thus, operations at Ellis Island. Until 1940, the commissioners were political appointees; the final three commissioners held a non-partisan position of "district director". One man, William Williams, served twice as commissioner.^{[68][347][348]}

1. 
   1890–1893 Colonel John B. Weber (Republican)^[349]
   
2. 
   1893–1897 Dr. Joseph H. Senner (Democrat)
   
3. 
   1898–1902 Thomas Fitchie (Republican)
   
4. 
   1902–1905 William Williams (Republican)
   
5. 
   1905–1909 Robert Watchorn (Republican)
   
6. 
   1909–1913 William Williams (Republican)
   
7. 
   1914–1919 Dr. Frederic C. Howe (Democrat)
   
8. 
   1920–1921 Frederick A. Wallis (Democrat)
   
9. 
   1921–1923 Robert E. Tod (Republican)
   
10. 
    1923–1926 Henry C. Curran (Republican)
    
11. 
    1926–1931 Benjamin M. Day (Republican)
    
12. 
    1931–1934 Edward Corsi (Republican)
    
13. 
    1934–1940 Rudolph Reimer (Democrat)
    
14. 
    1940–1942 Byron H. Uhl
    
15. 
    1942–1949 W. Frank Watkins
    
16. 
    1949–1954 Edward J. Shaughnessy
    

Name-change myth
Play media
Scenes at the Immigration Depot and a nearby dock on Ellis Island, 1906
See also: Ellis Island Special
According to a myth, immigrants were unwillingly forced to take new names, though there are no historical records of this.^[350][351] Rather, immigration officials simply used the names from the manifests of steamship companies, which served as the only immigration records for those entering the United States. Records show that immigration officials often actually corrected mistakes in immigrants' names, since inspectors knew three languages on average and each worker was usually assigned to process immigrants who spoke the same languages.^{[350][351][352]} However, since there were differences in the pronunciation of letters in English and other languages, surnames were often altered slightly.^[353]
Many immigrant families Americanized their surnames afterward, either immediately following the immigration process or gradually after assimilating into American culture.^[351] Because the average family changed their surname five years after immigration, the Naturalization Act of 1906 required documentation of name changes.^[351][352] The myth of name changes at Ellis Island still persists likely because of the perception of the immigration center as a formidable port of arrival.^[351]
Current use
The island is administered by the National Park Service,^[354] though fire protection and medical services are also provided by the Jersey City Fire Department.^[250] In extreme medical emergencies, there is also a helicopter for medical evacuations.^[355]