1 Your Kindle book downloads while you read. 2  Shop the Kindle Store for over 1 million* Kindle books, including new releases and best sellers.  Customize your reading experience by choosing the background color, font size, and number of reading columns.
Ellis Island officially opened as an immigration station on January 1, 1892. Seventeen-year-old Annie Moore, from County Cork, Ireland was the first immigrant to be processed at the new federal immigration depot.
Deconstructing History: Ellis Island. For over 60 years, Ellis Island was the gateway for millions of Americans to the United States. Explore the legacy of this symbol of American immigration. On November 12, 1954, the once bustling immigration inspection port at Ellis Island was shut down after more than 62 years in operation. Opened in 1892, the small island in New York Harbor served as the processing center and point of entry for more than 12 million new arrivals to the United States.