Ellis Island was where immigrants first arrived in America and were processed. They came with all their belongings and families. Housing for immigrants was typically cramped tenement housing or shanty towns built from scraps. Work was difficult to find and dangerous, but provided much needed money, so many immigrants including children as young as 6 years old took any job available even for low wages. The documents show the hardships immigrants faced as they established new lives in America.

2. Ellis Island
• Arriving immigrants leave their ships at the city's wharves and are shuttled by ferry to the
island with their belongings, were there was a beautiful walk way leading to their
new American lives.
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3. Immigrants Being Tagged for a Railroad Trip, 1926
• The tags on the chests of the immigrants were to let people know where
they were suppose to be going.
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4. A woman sleeping on her bag because that was all
she had.
• Most immigrants came with everything they
owned, always keeping it by them so no
one could steal it from them.
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5. Immigrants enjoying a mid-morning lunch
• With fresh milk everyone is happy.
Immigrants were not treated poorly, they
were workers to people and that was it.
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6. Immigrants take the time to be
happy and dance
• Immigrants worked hard, laborious work.
They took the time to be thankful to be
working a celebrated with all they had.
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7. Tenement Apartment
• A typical immigrant housing set-up, many
had a little room for two people let alone
have room for a family.
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8. Bath-time
• The child bathing in the picture is actually bathing in the
sink.The sink held water and you may notice the child
in fully clothed.Well, the child is bathing a washing his
clothes.
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9. Homework
• Immigrants who did not finish a day’s work
would take it home a finish it that night.
This was considered homework.
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10. Lunch time
• Immigrant’s who had food had very little, ate it
during lunch. No breakfast nor no dinner.These
girls don’t seem to be eating a whole lot.
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11. Shanty Town in Patterson, NJ
• Houses built from whatever they could
find. Most was a place to go when there
was no where else to go.
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12. Accident in the Steel Mill
• This man looses his arm in a accident at the
steel mill and in many cases men lose their
lives.
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13. Tenement Rookeries, Washington, DC
• Immigrant homes were run down shacks
no matter where they lived.These homes
where just a place to stay.
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14. Boys and men of all ages
• Work was work, whether you were a boy
at the age of 6 or a man at the age of 66. A
job was money and money is what you
needed
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15. Working
• Children of all ages had jobs. Money to flow
in, any way possible. Low wages ment
everyone had a job to do.
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16. Quiz:
1. Where did immigrant go when first getting to the America's?
Answer: Ellis Island
2.What were the tags on the immigrants meant for?
Answer:Where they were to go
3.Why did people always keep their bags close?
Answer: It was all they had.
4.What did the immigrants do when they were thankful for something?
Answer: Enjoy life by dance+celebrating
5.What did immigrants consider homework?
Answer: work unfinished that day
6.What were most immigrant homes like?
Answer: Run-down and made of anything
7.Why do you think immigrants got jobs so quick?
Answer: Dangerous jobs for little pay
8.At what ages did many people start working?
Answer:Whenever they were hired
9.Were in some cases families split up?
Answer:Yes they were
10.What was a major sign that you were at Ellis Island?
Answer: the beautiful walk way