The history of Ellis island
Today most visitors to Ellis island find it hard to imagine that over twelve million people came to America through those very gates. This indeed was the first stop that most immigrants from Europe came to on their way to the Land of unlimited opportunities. Of course, in those days that had no green cards, but when the waves of immigration subsided, it was found that a green card was a good way to lower the number of immigrants entering the shore of the United States.
During its peak years Ellis Island welcomed thousands of immigrants a day which were led through the well oiled machinery of the immigration customs machine. These were led through lice checks and tested for diseases. These people came in search of a new life and an end to oppression, and they found it in the United States of America. However, as the industrial revolution ended, and the Americans had less need for cheap labor, the idea of a work permit, or Green card was developed.
This enabled the American authorities to further limit the flow of immigration. During the middle of the 20th century, Ellis Island was closed down and dismantled. It can be speculated that this was because of the war and because of the introduction of the airplane, and that people no longer landed at Ellis Island but at their own destinations. This was also because of the Green Card, that stopped the influx of immigration.
