IMMIGRATION TIPS

Here are Two Quick Tips for Tracing Immigrants Online:

Know the Ellis Island database dates. If you think your immigrant ancestor came through Ellis Island, but can't find him in the online database at ellisisland.org, double-check your date frame. Although that site covers 17 million people, it doesn't include every immigrant to New York City. Ellis Island operated from 1892 to 1954, but the online records go up only to 1924. If your family came earlier than 1892, they would've arrived through a different immigration station—such as Castle Garden, whose arrivals are indexed at castlegarden.org.


Try a shortcut to other ports' records. Besides Ellis Island's and Castle Garden's databases, the most significant online collection of passenger records is at Ancestry.com. Stephen P. Morse has created tools that make searching Ancestry.com's databases more flexible—making it a good route to try if you strike out on Ancestry.com itself. You still need a subscription to access the Ancestry.com records, or if your library subscribes to Ancestry Library Edition, you can search the records there for free.