1886 Passenger Lists – Castle Garden Era
📜 Abstract
Passenger lists from 1886 highlight a transitional era in transatlantic steamship travel, when the largest liners of the age were competing for speed and prestige. These records, whether decorative souvenir lists or official manifests, preserve the names, occupations, and social profiles of travelers who passed through Castle Garden, New York, the nation’s first immigration station. For genealogists, historians, and collectors, they are invaluable sources of both family history and maritime heritage.
📌 Featured 1886 Passenger List
23 October 1886 – RMS Etruria (Cunard Line)
- Class: Saloon
- Route: Liverpool → New York
- Commander: Capt. Theodore Cook
- Note: A prestigious Cunard liner, famed for luxury and speed, with a rich history tied to both immigrant and elite travel.
1886-10-23 RMS Etruria Passenger List
- Steamship Line: Cunard Line
- Class of Passengers: Saloon
- Date of Departure: 23 October 1886
- Route: Liverpool to New York
- Commander: Captain Theodore Cook
📅 Passenger Lists by Voyage – 1886
| Date | Vessel & Line | Route |
|---|---|---|
| 23 Oct 1886 | RMS Etruria Cunard Line · Saloon · Capt. T. Cook |
Liverpool → New York |
🛳️ Spotlight Note: RMS Etruria (1886)
The RMS Etruria, launched in 1884, was one of Cunard’s two celebrated “express liners” alongside her sister ship Umbria. Designed for both speed and elegance, she carried Saloon passengers in luxury while also transporting large numbers of emigrants.
The Etruria was noted for her record-breaking Atlantic crossings, at times holding the Blue Riband for fastest passage. She also carried significant historical figures, including future U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt.
Passenger lists from 1886 are especially valuable, capturing travelers aboard a ship that symbolized Cunard’s prestige in the Castle Garden era. For collectors, her lists are prized for their association with one of the most famous Cunarders of the late 19th century.
🌍 Historical Relevance
Immigration: While known for her Saloon class, the Etruria also carried emigrants whose details survive in manifests.
Competition: Cunard built her to rival White Star’s Britannic and Inman’s liners, intensifying the Atlantic race.
Research Value:
🏫 Teachers & Students – Example of technological rivalry and social history.
🧑🤝🧑 Genealogists – Lists include elite travelers and immigrants alike.
📖 Historians – A key ship in the transatlantic prestige race.
🗂️ Collectors – Passenger lists linked to the Etruria are highly collectible.
✨ Related GG Archives Links
📬 Help Us Grow the Collection
If you have a souvenir passenger list from 1886, we would be grateful for a digital copy to help expand and preserve this record set. Please email us at history@ggarchives.com.
⚠️ About Accuracy in Historical Records Research Tip
Context. The GG Archives presents passenger lists as faithfully as possible to the original documents. While OCR is generally accurate, portions of these collections—especially image captions and some transcriptions—are typed by hand and may include typographical or spelling variations. The original manifests themselves also contained clerical inconsistencies (names recorded phonetically, mid-voyage corrections, etc.).
What this means for your research:
- Search variant spellings of names (e.g., “Schmidt/Schmitt/Smith,” “Giuseppe/Joseph”).
- Cross-reference with immigration cards, passport applications, naturalization files, city directories, and newspapers.
- Treat manifests as primary sources with historical quirks—use them alongside corroborating records.
- For place names, consider historical borders and language variants (e.g., Danzig/Gdańsk, Trieste/Trst).
How to cite. When quoting a name from a manifest, consider adding [sic] for obvious misspellings and include a note such as “spelling as printed in original passenger list.”
Need help? If you spot a likely transcription error in captions, feel free to contact us with the page URL and a brief note—we love community input. 🙏
Curator’s Note
For over 25 years, I've been dedicated to a unique mission: tracking down, curating, preserving, scanning, and transcribing historical materials. These materials, carefully researched, organized, and enriched with context, live on here at the GG Archives. Each passenger list isn't just posted — it's a testament to our commitment to helping you see the people and stories behind the names.
It hasn't always been easy. In the early years, I wasn't sure the site would survive, and I often paid the hosting bills out of my own pocket. But I never built this site for the money — I built it because I love history and believe it's worth preserving. It's a labor of love that I've dedicated myself to, and I'm committed to keeping it going.
If you've found something here that helped your research, sparked a family story, or just made you smile, I'd love to hear about it. Your experiences and stories are the real reward for me. And if you'd like to help keep this labor of love going, there's a "Contribute to the Website" link tucked away on our About page.
📜 History is worth keeping. Thanks for visiting and keeping it alive with me.
