The Ellis Island Hard Hat Tour has been on my NYC Bucket list for years. In April with a few of my close friends, I was finally able to go and it did not disappoint.
Unfortunately, due to the fast pace nature of this tour and the need to always stay with the group I wasn’t able to shoot this experience in film. Below are some of the black and white digital photos I took while on this tour along with some interested things I learned while on the tour. You can view the rest of the collection by clicking here.
It is estimated that 40% of all current U.S citizens can trace at least one ancestor to Ellis Island.
During the peak period of Ellis Islands operations between 1900 and 1914, 5,000 to 10,00 passed through the immigration station each day. The ‘Passage of Immigrant Quota Act’ of 1921 ended the era of mass immigration to New York.
I highly recommend this tour to anyone slightly interested and able. It is a 3 hour tour that will take you to certain areas of the Ellis Island Hospital, including infectious and contagious disease wards, kitchen, autopsy room and the laundry building. Make sure to wear close toed shoes! The tour will provide the hard hats. Let me know what you think!
During the subway system construction the excess earth was placed at Ellis Island. The Island grew from 3.3 acres to 27.5 acres.
You can buy tickets to go on the Ellis Island Hard Hat Tour here. All proceeds from the tickets go toward saving Ellis Island (SaveEllisIsland.org)