New York Immigration Records

Most American family stories begin with an immigrant. Who are your immigrants? When did they arrive? Where did they come from? Luckily, immigrants created a wealth of information, whether it is from their immigration voyage or trying to become an American citizen.

FamilySearch has the complete New York immigration records online. These records document 63.7 million people who arrived in the United States between 1820 and 1957. These records have become available through a partnership with FamilySearch and the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation.

FamilySearch has divided this collection into three parts.

· New York Passenger Lists (Castle Garden) 1820-1891

· New York Passenger Arrival Lists (Ellis Island) 1892-1924

· New York, New York Passenger and Crew Lists 1925-1957

The first part covers Castle Garden that was in operation before Elis Island. More than 100 million Americans arrived during this time. Each arriving ship had a passenger list and filed it with customs officials.

The federal government then took control of all ports of entry and the processing of immigrants into the United States. The government closed Castle Garden and moved the processing of immigrants to Ellis Island. Ellis Island was an isolated island to protect U.S. citizens from exposure to diseases that many of the immigrants carried with them.

The third part includes immigrants arriving at New York airports. Many immigrants during this time were from Italy, Russia, Hungary, Austria, Germany, England, Ireland, Sweden, and Greece.

The ship records list passenger names, age, last place of residence, American sponsor, port of departure, and date of arrival in New York. They may even include a photograph. By studying every detail in these records, you may find clues to further your research. You may find the names and addresses of family members in the U.S. and the old country.

Search for your ancestor by name, age, date of arrival, and country of origin. Your ancestor may not have used their Americanized version of their name, and so it is essential to know the ethnic equivalents. Also, watch for other passengers from the same locality. They may be relatives. If your ancestor was alive after 1900, look for them in 1900, 1910, 1920, or 1930 census that includes immigration and naturalization details that may help in your search.

What is your immigrant’s story? Search these records and learn more about them, why they immigrated and the sacrifices they made to become an American. Their story is your story.