America's Open Gate: Castle Garden May Cease To Be The Immigrant's Landing

Introduction

The article "Castle Garden May Cease to Be Immigrants' Landing - February 1, 1890" discusses the impending closure of Castle Garden as New York’s primary immigrant processing station. By 1890, Castle Garden had served as the gateway to America for millions of immigrants over several decades, but concerns about the facility's capacity, efficiency, and conditions led to calls for its closure. The article explores the reasons behind this decision, the criticisms leveled against Castle Garden, and the broader implications for the future of immigration processing in the United States.

Exterior View of Castle Garden from the Battery. Harper's New Monthly Magazine, March 1871. GGA Image ID # 14b44093f9

Something About the History of the Old Building -- Real Life Comedies and Tragedies Enacted on Its Big Floor -- Interesting Statistics.

WASHINGTON, February 1, 1890 — Governor's Island will replace Castle Garden, New York, as the landing place of immigrants arriving in this country at the port of New York.

It may take several days to determine the legal status of Governor's Island. The Secretary Proctor is entirely willing to permit a portion of Governor's Inland to be used as an immigrant station, and if he possesses the power under the law to transfer the control of the Island or a part of it to the secretary of the treasury, he is prepared to do so as soon as the necessary papers can be made out.

Some quarters believe that action by Congress may be required before the transfer can be made, and some quarters state that the president possesses the power to direct the transfer. These potential avenues for the transfer highlight the complexity of the situation and the various factors at play.

All those questions are now under consideration, and until the deeds carefully examined, under which the government acquired the title to the island and the lawn under which it was transferred to the war department, no final and conclusive step will be taken, leaving the situation in a state of uncertainty.

At the lower end of Broadway in New York City is Battery Park, and the most interesting and picturesque place in Battery Park is Castle Garden. A new interest attaches to the old building just now, for it has lately been considered not impossible that before many months have gone it will have been torn down or permanently closed, at least as a landing depot for immigrants to the United States, potentially leading to the loss of a historical site due to a disagreement between the New York state and federal governments.

History of Castle Garden

Castle Garden was originally a fort and the chief defense of New York City. The massive masonry of its first walls and deep port holes still stand. However, for many years, no dark-brided cannon has frowned through them; they still gaze sinisterly, like great square eyes, over New York Bay.

However, the building's historical interest is not wholly centered on its connection with military matters. After it ceased to be occupied as a fort, it was turned into a place of amusement, and under its roof, Jenny Lind's voice was first heard in America.

The building was utilized as a landing depot for immigrants in 1855, eight years after the establishment of the Emigration Commission. In that year, 136,233 alien foreigners round through it an entrance to the new country for which they had deserted their own.

Since its opening as a landing depot, there has been hardly a break in the stream of human beings flowing from it to all parts of America.

According to the reports of the commissioners of emigration, the total number of foreigners who had passed before its registry desks before Dec. 31, 1889, was 9,639,635, or almost a seventh as many people as the nation is supposed to contain today.

There is not a civilized country on the globe that has not had its representatives on this vast horde. 3,425,208 were from Germany; 2,541,148 from Ireland; 1,178,157 from England; 317,193 from Italy; 234,559 from Russia, and so on down. Only 3,151 Chinamen have landed at Castle Garden.

The Destinations of the Immigrants

Although the proposed destinations of all immigrants have not been recorded, the books tell of 24,574 who started in Illinois, 46,612 in Pennsylvania, 12,107 in Michigan, 10,667 in Minnesota, 11,049 in Massachusetts, and 5,029 in Nebraska.

The smallest number with which any state is credited is North Carolina, 50, and the largest is New York, 96,901. Three hundred and thirty of those recorded declared their intention of going to the District of Columbia. In 1889, 185,483 pieces of baggage landed at Castle Garden, of which 182,315 were delivered.

Of course, a place that has marked the beginning of practically new lives for so many people is full of romance for anyone who cares to search for it. Tragedy and comedy have each had their share in the thousands of dramas of real life that have been enacted under its old dome.

The sparrows which fly chirping and chattering about among its rafters have seen many a bright face and heard a deal of hearty laughter and cheery talk, but, alas, the tears and the grief-dried eyes, the sobs and the hoarse chuckle of despair have not been wanting.

Since the building was deserted as a fort, it has been besieged by howling mobs several times. But their cries have told of woe, not of war. The ships that were to spring their loved ones—their mothers and fathers, their sons and daughters, their wives and sweethearts—from former homes in faraway lands had gone down, with their precious freight.

Waiting for the Ship to Come In

At first, the ship had failed to arrive on the specified day. It has been delayed, they thought. We will come again tomorrow. And on the morrow, they were there, and on the next day and the next, the ship did not come in. It had been delayed indeed—and forever!

Several of the present Garden attaches remember all too vividly the fifteen or sixteen years ago when the White Star line steamer Atlantic was lost off Nova Scotia.

Even now, they speak with a shudder of the disappointment, anxiety, and quick-successing despair of the friends and relatives who appeared day after day, hoping against hope, to meet her passengers.

The meetings were to take place on a shore other than America's and in a land other than the United States.

When I visited the Garden recently, the steamships delayed by the great Atlantic storms were slowly arriving, several of them many days overdue.

The immigrants from the Servia and other ships arrived while I was there. The severest weather had occurred during the last portion of the voyage, and the immigrants had been tightly cooped up in the steerage. At the same time, the waves buffeted and tossed the ship, plainly showing the unpleasant effects of the experience. Many of the faces looked wan and pinched, and the fact that most of them were not over-clean added to their appearance of distress.

The Steerage Passengers Come In

But the throbbing life of Castle Garden also has its bright side. When ships spared by the fierce storms of the ocean, or which have battled successfully with them, come into port, and their passengers pour into the great building, the scene is gay and enlivening. Steerage passengers are transferred from the steamers, after they have gone up the bay, to barges, and on them are carried to Castle Garden.

Name, Rank and Serial Number

Before they are allowed in the main part of the building, the immigrants must pass in a single file before the officials, who register their names, nationality, age, occupation, starting point, and destination and ask whether they have any money.

If they lack funds or means of earning a living, they are detained at the Garden for a reasonable length of time. If no one appears to care for them, they are eventually sent back across the sea.

Two thousand four hundred and forty-seven have been prohibited from proceeding on their journey for this and other causes, and 3,699 have been returned at charity rates. At the same time, 1,618 passages have been paid wholly or in part since the act of Aug. 3, 1883, became a law.

Trains to the Destinations, Boarding House for those Who Remain in New York

After the immigrants have been registered, they are allowed to do as they please. Those who have railroad tickets to go to the country's interior are sorted out by the agents of the different railroad lines and soon start on their way.

Others who decide to stay in New York to look for work or wait for lagging friends are left to the not altogether tender mercies of the boarding house "runners," who are admitted to the floor of the garden after the registration has been finished. At this period of the proceedings, the spectacle to an onlooker is an interesting one.

The queer costumes, many of them brightly colored, and the faces made doubly expressive by the hopes and fears of their owners, give this crowd an aspect of almost feverish gayety.

As soon as the first excitement of arrival is over, those who, for any reason, find it necessary to remain at the Garden gather in groups around the kettle-topped stoves and discuss the incidents of the voyage or prospects for the future. Sometimes, they camp in the Garden for days before starting out, sitting by day on their bags and bundles and sleeping on the hard benches at night.

Love, Romance and Marriage at Castle Garden

Many marriages occur in the Garden every year between immigrants who have come over together or between lovers who have sailed to America to earn money and prepare homes. Lave afterward sent for their sweethearts to join them.

Western farmers of foreign birth, too, have a way of regarding the Garden as a vast matrimonial agency and writing to Superintendent Jackson to find them wives. He receives an average of two hundred such letters a year but pays no attention to them.

As may be imagined, Castle Garden offers an excellent field for missionaries. Seventeen people are connected to the place in various ways. S. Goldstein, representing the American Tract Society, and Ernest Jackson, representing the New York Bible Society, deserve special mention.

Mr. Jackson has testaments in twenty-one different languages, distributed free among the immigrants, and Bibles sold at cost to those who have money or given to the impoverished.

Mr. Goldstein is the only man in the Garden who can speak Armenian, Arabic, and Greek. He adds to his work by distributing Bibles and tracts that give clothes to people in need.

He has devoted his life to this labor of love, and while many cost of his garments are furnished to him by charitable people (and they could not be sent to a better place), he does not hesitate to spend his own money as well as his time when occasion requires.

Edward Marshall, "America's Open Gate," in The Winnipeg Free Press Newspaper, 3 February 1890, p. 5.

Key Points

• Concerns Over Facilities: Castle Garden, which had processed millions of immigrants since 1855, was increasingly criticized for its overcrowded conditions, inadequate facilities, and inefficient operations.
• Calls for Reform: Public officials, reformers, and immigrant advocates voiced concerns about the conditions at Castle Garden, arguing that the facility could no longer adequately serve the growing number of immigrants arriving in New York.
• Shift to Federal Control: The article highlights the ongoing discussions about transferring immigration processing from state to federal control, which would lead to the establishment of a new, more modern immigration station.
• Ellis Island as the Successor: The article touches on the proposal to close Castle Garden and replace it with a new immigration station on Ellis Island, which would offer improved facilities and a more efficient processing system.
• Impact on Immigrants: The potential closure of Castle Garden raised concerns about how the transition would affect immigrants, particularly those who might face delays or new challenges during the changeover.

Summary

The article "Castle Garden May Cease to Be Immigrants' Landing - February 1, 1890" examines the factors leading to the proposed closure of Castle Garden, New York’s long-standing immigration processing station. The facility, which had processed millions of immigrants since the mid-19th century, was criticized for its overcrowded and outdated conditions. As calls for reform grew louder, discussions about transferring immigration processing to federal control and relocating operations to Ellis Island gained momentum. The article underscores the significance of this transition in shaping the future of American immigration policy and the immigrant experience.

Conclusion

The impending closure of Castle Garden in 1890 marked the end of an era in American immigration history. As the facility struggled to keep pace with the growing number of immigrants and the increasing demands for efficiency and humane conditions, the need for a new, federally controlled immigration station became clear. The establishment of Ellis Island as the successor to Castle Garden reflected broader trends in immigration policy and management, setting the stage for a new chapter in the history of immigration to the United States.