Ellis Island, the gateway to America, shut its doors after processing more
than 12 million immigrants since opening in 1892. Today, an estimated 40
percent of all Americans can trace their roots through Ellis Island, located
in New York Harbor off the New Jersey coast and named for merchant
Samuel Ellis (1733-1794), who owned the land in the 1770s. Ellis’s heirs
sold the island to the State of New York in 1808. Today, Ellis Island is one
of the most popular destinations in the National Park system, with over 3
million visitors each year.    

  
   
Ellis and Liberty Island today.