New York Harbor that contains a museum and former

Ellis Island is a federally owned island in New York Harbor that contains a museum and former immigration inspection station. As the United States' busiest immigrant inspection station from 1892 to 1954, it processed approximately 12 million immigrants to the country through the Port of New York and New Jersey. Today, it is part of the Statue of Liberty National Monument, accessible to the public only by ferry. The north side of the island hosts the museum of immigration while the south side, including the Ellis Island Immigrant Hospital, is only open to the public through guided tours.
In the 19th century, Ellis Island was the site of Fort Gibson, a component of the fortifications of New York Harbor. It later became a naval magazine for storing artillery. The first inspection station opened in 1892 and was destroyed by fire in 1897. The second station opened in 1900 and housed facilities for medical quarantines as well as processing immigrants. After 1924, Ellis Island was used primarily as a detention center. During both World War I and World War II its facilities were also used by the United States military to detain prisoners of war. Following the immigration station's closure, the buildings languished for several years until they partially reopened in 1976. The main building and adjacent structures were completely renovated in 1990.
The 27.5-acre (11.1 ha) island was greatly expanded by land reclamation between the late 1890s and the 1930s. Jurisdictional disputes between New Jersey and New York persisted until 1998, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in New Jersey v. New York that the 3.3 acres (1.3 ha) that comprise the original island and its environs are part of New York and that almost all of the reclaimed land is part of New Jersey.

Contents

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  1 Geography and access
  
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    1.1 Land expansion
    
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    1.2 State sovereignty dispute
    
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    1.3 Public access
    
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  2 History
  
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    2.1 Precolonial and colonial use
    
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    2.2 Military use and Fort Gibson
    
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    2.3 First immigration station
    
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    2.4 Second immigration station
    
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      2.4.1 Design and construction
      
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      2.4.2 Early expansions
      
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      2.4.3 Conversion to detention center
      
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    2.5 Post-closure
    
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      2.5.1 Initial redevelopment plans
      
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      2.5.2 Restoration and reopening of north side
      
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  3 Structures
  
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    3.1 North side
    
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      3.1.1 Main building
      
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      3.1.2 Kitchen and laundry
      
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      3.1.3 Bakery and carpentry shop
      
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      3.1.4 Baggage and dormitory
      
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      3.1.5 Powerhouse
      
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    3.2 South side
    
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      3.2.1 Island 2
      
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      3.2.2 Recreation hall
      
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      3.2.3 Island 3
      
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    3.3 Ferry building
    
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  4 Immigration procedures
  
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    4.1 Primary inspection
    
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      4.1.1 Medical inspections
      
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      4.1.2 Interviews
      
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    4.2 Mass detentions and deportations
    
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    4.3 Eugenic influence
    
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    4.4 Leadership
    
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    4.5 Name-change myth
    
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  5 Current use
  
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    5.1 Museum and Wall of Honor
    
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    5.2 South side
    
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  6 Cultural impact
  
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    6.1 Commemorations
    
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    6.2 Historical designations
    
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  7 See also
  
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  8 References
  
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    8.1 Notes
    
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    8.2 Citations
    
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    8.3 Sources
    
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  9 Further reading
  
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    9.1 Videos
    
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    9.2 Other archives
    
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    9.3 Children's books
    
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  10 External links
  
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    10.1 Images