NERGC / Saturday, 28Apr2007 / S A Fresh Look at an Old Favorite. presented by. Daniel M. Lynch

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NERGC / Saturday, 28Apr2007 / S-325 www.ellisisland.

1 NERGC / Saturday, 28Apr2007 / S A Fresh Look at an Old Favorite presented by Daniel M. Lynch

2 Topics For Discussion Who arrived through the Port of NY? When did immigrants arrive through Castle Garden vs. Ellis Island What data is available and Where can it be found (online or offline)? Why can t I find my ancestors and How can I improve my search skills?

Since our time is limited Guide to Finding Your Ellis Island Ancestors Author Sharon DeBartolo Carmack Publisher Family Tree Books Available Amazon, Retail

3 Since our time is limited Guide to Finding Your Ellis Island Ancestors Author Sharon DeBartolo Carmack Publisher Family Tree Books Available Amazon, Retail Bookshops *Special* Fantastic overview, well sourced, great images/pictures Note: Castle Garden Web site wasn t yet launched when book was printed

100 years ago this month May 4, 1907. Steamers from all over Europe continue to unload new immigrants, with 5,335 passing through Ellis Island yesterday and as many due in the next two days.

4 100 years ago this month May 4, Steamers from all over Europe continue to unload new immigrants, with 5,335 passing through Ellis Island yesterday and as many due in the next two days. Those departing New York by railway for other parts of America include three-week-old Robert Ellis Natte, who was named for his birthplace. During the voyage, his Dutch parents lost three of their nine children to diphtheria, and a fourth right after their arrival.

9 Basics of U.S. Immigration Why are Immigration Laws important? Changes impacted immigrant volume & reporting requirements A general familiarity is helpful for family history research Recording of immigrants began in 1820 Details on Passenger Manifests were basic in early years Over 30 million arrivals to the U.S. from Port of NY was a hub of activity nearly 10 million (> ¾ from Germany, Ireland, Britain) over 22 million 21% Italian, 18% Austro-Hungarian, 15% Russian Empire, 13% German Over 3/4 of all arrivals were through Port of NY 1907 was peak year for arrivals (Over 1 million 11,747 on April 17 th alone) Source: The Peopling of America as detailed on by The Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation

10 Port of New York Timeline Largely unregulated Customs Lists (Cargo & Passengers) Required on Arrival 1855 Castle Garden Opens First official immigration station 1890 Castle Garden Closed NY Barge Office resumes receipt of immigrants 1892 Ellis Island Opens 15 Jun 1897 Fire destroys initial Georgia Pine structure Barge Office once again resumes processing role 17 Dec 1900 New Ellis Island reopens 1954 Ellis Island Closed From 1924 to 1954, role had changed substantially Source: by The Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation and by The Battery Conservancy

11 Why Passenger Lists? Historical source documents Created at time of departure (not upon arrival) Can be a rich source of family information Depending upon year of arrival Requires patience, a careful eye, and creative thinking Immigrants often traveled with others Multiple voyages can help establish detailed timeline Source document links old world with new Name of village/town of last residence Name of nearest relative in country of origin Name of final destination in the U.S. Name of friend/relative in the U.S.

additional text Ellis Island Don t arrivals Forget index

Ships Transcribers Guild various transcribed manifests,

S. immigration collection (nearly every port 1890-1960 and

12 What Records Are Available? Internet Castle Garden arrivals index only + some additional text Ellis Island Don t arrivals Forget index Departure and digital Records manifest images Immigrant Ships Transcribers Guild various transcribed manifests, AncestorsOnBoard.com but no images Ancestry.com complete U.S. immigration collection (nearly every port and every time UK Departures period) (subscription required) Microfilm by 1837online.com Available for (now Port called of NY FindMyPast.com) and other ports at NARA Some are indexed, all film is printable List of ship arrivals by date

13 Where are the records online? Free: Index and Images ( ) Free: Index, but no images (basic search only) Free: 1step search tools for ellisisland.org and castlegarden.org Free: Good description of holdings at NARA and related information Requires Subscription: Extensive immigration collection Free: See especially the Search ISTG Link

14 .

15 Launched August Free Basic Search Only Allows use of asterisk as wildcard Arrivals from Primary period is Electronic transcribed data only, no ship or manifest images 10 million Port of NY arrivals Some records pre-date and post-date actual Castle Garden Other site features Timeline from 1800, a historical perspective of Castle Garden

16 Castle Garden Screen

17 Typical Search Results

19 Launched April Free Basic & Advanced Search Arrivals from Electronic Index of names and selected data fields Scanned images of original manifests & ships 24+ million immigrants, travelers, ship crew Genealogy Learning Center Free Downloadable Charts/Forms Tips on Getting Started Historic Timeline, Famous Arrivals, & other useful info

20 Ellis Island Screen

21 Typical Search Results

22 Stevemorse.org

23 Preparing for your Search Start OFFLINE, not online Collect what information you can about the person Surname (Last Name) include spelling variations Try maiden names for women, even if married Given name (First / Middle Name) Try original ethnic name and Americanized name Year of birth (plus/minus) Year of arrival Name of ship Age at arrival Name of town or village Names of others who may have been traveling with them

24 Select a Strategy Common Names Your ancestor is hiding among thousands of look alikes Primary need is to FILTER OUT, but not too quickly Critical to use additional data as filters Note that original errors or transcription errors are possible even with basic filters such as gender Uncommon Names / Unique spellings Your ancestor is simply invisible Primary need is to INCLUDE or EXPAND possible matches Familiarize yourself with advanced search options

25 Example: Common Names Looking for Grandpa Tony Esposito Last Name is Esposito yields 10,056 results 1 st filter using Gender is Male yields 7,364 results 2 nd filter using First Name is Antonio yields 609 results 3 rd filter using Village is Palermo yields 3 records Carefully add one filter at a time Don t want to exclude your ancestor too quickly by accident Example Patrick Lynch, Gender=F yields 3 results Goal is to reduce results to a reasonable number for close inspection of each manifest

Example: Difficult Names Looking for Grandpa Joseph Zmijewski Last Name is Zmijewski yields 39 results 3 show First Name Josef, but none seem to match after closer inspection Use Advanced Search

26 Example: Difficult Names Looking for Grandpa Joseph Zmijewski Last Name is Zmijewski yields 39 results 3 show First Name Josef, but none seem to match after closer inspection Use Advanced Search features to carefully expand results First Name STARTS WITH J Last Name SOUNDS LIKE Zmijewski Yields 258 which require careful inspection, but it goes quickly We find JOSEK ZMIJEWSKY... and family!

27 My Name is Simple, really! Looking for Lasorda? Ellis Island Last Name is Lasorda yields 7 results Last Name is La Sorda yields 8 results (note the space) Last Name SOUNDS LIKE Lasorda, First Name Starts with S Last Name is Sorda yields 12 results Last Name is Sardo yields 398 results Castle Garden Last Name is Lasorda yields 4 results Last Name is La Sorda yields 3 results (note the space) Last Name is Losardo yields 6 results Last Name is Lo Sardo yields 5 results Last Name is Sorda yields 6 results Last Name is Sardo yields 62 results

28 Looking for Patrick Lynch? OK 313 arrived through Ellis, now what? Expands to 556 if you specify First Name Start With P Don t Assume Anything Patrick was also written as P, P., Pat, Pat., Patk, Patk., and? What else do you know? Date of Birth even if just an approximation (plus/minus 5 years) Don t know DOB? What about an obituary or Date of Death? Can you estimate a Date of Birth from that? Have you checked Census data?

29 Play with advanced search Name starts with Pat will pull up Pat, Patrick, Patricia, Patk, Patr, Patkr., etc Name contains Contains liam will find William, Liam, Name sounds like Approximate Years (Birth / Arrival) Plus or Minus 1, 2, 5, 10 years

30 Questions Dan Lynch Website:

Things to Know: Passenger Lists

10 Things to Know: Passenger Lists Ready to see where it all started? Passenger arrival lists can provide clues and answers about your family s arrival in America. Searching Passenger Lists at Ancestry.com.