Ellis Island Immigration

Ellis Island, a historical landmark, an iconic symbol, a national treasure. These are a few descriptions of what Ellis Island means to the American people. Taught to American children as early as elementary school, "For more than 60 years, Ellis Island was the gateway to the United States for millions of immigrants." Ellis Island is a centerpiece of United States immigration history. The history that revolves around Ellis Island is ingrained in our education, our culture, and our politics as Americans.
Ellis Island represented much of the immigration period of the first half of the 20th century. Ellis island’s initial purpose wasn’t to restrict immigration, the United States lacked widespread restrictive immigration policy up until the 1920s, but it was used as a quarantine of sorts. The Island’s medical officers would administer “detailed questioning and medical exams, and any signs of contagious disease, poor physique, feeble mindedness or insanity could see an immigrant denied admittance” (Andrews). If they passed this basic inspection, they could freely enter the United States, If they failed they would go through further inspections. However, only 2% of immigrants
The open door era is how most Americans think of Ellis Island, “The gateway to America” (Andrews). As told by Evan Andrews, Public perception of “The island has since become a storied and often controversial symbol of the plight of the immigrant, and it is estimated that more than one-third of all Americans can trace their lineage to someone who passed through its doors.” A representation of the effects Ellis Island still has on the American people today is that, on August 30th, 2017,“Dozens gathered at Ellis Island… for the debut of the "Island of Hope" coin, which depicts a family of immigrants arriving to the United