EDUA 5219 Ellis Island and Immigration
ELLIS ISLAND AND IMMIGRATION IN THE 19th AND 20th CENTURIES
The story of Ellis Island is ultimately the story of what it means to be an American. For most of New York’s early history, Ellis Island was an indistinct little island in the Hudson River. Yet, today the island has become a symbol of American immigration, standing alongside other great monuments as part of our nation’s founding mythology. It was the place where many of our ancestors first touched American soil. For over 60 years Ellis Island was the gateway for millions of Americans to the United States.
This course focuses on a time and place of unparalleled immigration in American history from the late 1800’s to the early 1900’s, and the intense and bittersweet accounts of the immigrants, officials, interpreters, and social reformers who all played an important role.
Further, this course delves into the untold story of Ellis Island—the Ellis Island Hospital, where the germs of the world converged—a fateful crossroads for hundreds of thousands of hopeful immigrants, which had untold effects on public health. By the end of the course, the teacher will be equipped to teach this dynamic period in history that shaped the nation America would become.