Vito Palese arrived aboard the Trojan Prince of the White Star Line (small picture on the left).

If the weather was good, people would try and stay on the deck to get as much fresh air as possible. The children would pass the time by playing games such as marbles and dominoes. Passengers also spent time with people from many different places and learned words from other languages.  Mothers would take advantage of the situation and wash their children's hair on the deck.  Some would even help out by doing chores on the ship with the sailors.  

The voyage from the west coast of Europe across the Atlantic Ocean to America usually took about 40 days. However, sometimes it could take as long as six months or longer. 

Besides dangerous storms they also had the possibilities of becoming seriously ill and dying. Some newly arrived immigrants could view ship hands carrying off white sacks. Little did they know that those were passengers now deceased.

Before being designated the site of the first Federal immigration station by President Benjamin Harrison in 1890, Ellis Island enjoyed a storied history. The local Indian tribes named the small island "Kioshk" or Gull Island.

Due to its rich and abundant oyster beds, plentiful and profitable shad runs, it was known as Oyster Island for many generations during the Dutch and English colonial periods.

By the time Samuel Ellis became the island's private owner in the 1770's, the island had been called Kioshk, Oyster, Dyre, Bucking and Anderson's Island.

Ellis Island developed from a sandy island that barely rose above the high tide mark, into a hanging site for pirates, a harbor fort, ammunition and ordinance depot named Fort Gibson, and finally into an immigration station. 

The center photograph is not a photograph at all. It is a part of a very early motion picture (pre 1900) produced by Thomas Edison.

Views of the short ferry or barge rides from the ship to the Island.

Exhausted, this short trip would be the final leg in their journey to their new home.

Left: Families making their way to the Processing Center from the ferries.

Right: the Processing begins for these immigrants as interpretors shuttle back and forth enabling the Processors to "accuratley process each individual. In some cases, this was the point many ethnic surnames where butchered by the Processors. Some immigrants, wanting to make a new start, took the names of the towns from where they lived. 

This was a Certificate or Inspection Card used by the U.S. Immigration Service for Immigrants which indicated that they were vaccinated, disinfested and passed daily health inspections during the voyage across the Atlantic.

The immigrant was instructed to "Keep this Card to avoid detention at Quarantine and on Railroads in the United States."

This is the rear of the inspection card. As seen the message is written on the back side in 7 languages (English, German, French, Dutch, Spanish, Polish, and ??)

A garment tag designating denoting they passed all inspections and are ready to leave Ellis Island. These are not those of the persons in the novel, but examples of the process.

The rear of the garment tag.

From 1892 to 1954, over twelve million immigrants entered the United States through the port of Ellis Island, the once small island in New York Harbor. 

On the right is the dining room where many immigrants were introduced to provisions unseen in their native land, like plain white bread.

Ellis Island is located in the upper bay just off the New Jersey coast, within the shadow of the Statue of Liberty.

Through the years, this gateway to the new world was enlarged from its original 3.3 acres to 27.5 acres mostly by landfill obtained from ship ballast and excess earth from the construction of the New York City subway system. 

Many immigrants' first view of the United States was at Ellis Island in New York.  After leaving the ship they were examined by doctors and other specialists.  If they were healthy they were allowed to leave Ellis Island and start their new lives.  Some immigrants were returned to their homeland. 

Many just sat and waited to meet friends or to re-unite with loved ones.

This photo was taken many years after its heyday as the country's main entry point.

Ellis Island as it stands today.