• Immigrants awaiting inspection in front of Ellis Island's Main Building

    Ellis Island

    Part of Statue of Liberty National Monument NJ,NY

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  • Ellis Island Closed Until Further Notice

    As of May 2013: Due to the conditions caused by Hurricane Sandy, the Ellis Island Immigration Museum will be closed until further notice. A projected reopening date has not yet been established, follow our twitter account for updates. More »

After the Storm at Ellis Island

ellis island with debris

Ellis Island

National Park Service

Ellis Island is currently closed following Hurricane Sandy. While there is little damage to the museum collection in the Immigration Building at Ellis Island, there is significant damage to the infrastructure. Doors and windows in the Ferry Building were severely damaged, as were exhibits in the building. There is significant damage to mechanical systems and the fire suppression system has been threatened. There was also standing water in the basement of the Immigration Building where the concessioners' supplies are stored.

An Incident Management Team gathered the data that will be used to determine the full extent of the damage, the costs to repair it, and how long it is likely to take. There is a major cleanup of the flooded areas underway, as well as repairs to the power and communications, and a project to ensure the safety of the Museum Collection.

Although a projected reopening date has not been established, please keep visiting this web site where you can keep up to date about the status of Ellis Island.

 

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Did You Know?

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Many government agencies have administered the Ellis Island immigration depot.  The Bureau of Immigration, later called the Immigration & Naturalization Service (INS), inspected immigrants.  The agency was restructured in 2003 under the new Department of Homeland Security and is now 3 entities : U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Citizenship and Immigration Services.