When many think about the American immigration experience, they automatically think of “Ellis Island” in New York City. The fact is there was another immigration processing center which preceded Ellis Island: Castle Garden.
Prior to the opening of the Ellis Island center in 1892 Castle Garden was the primary immigration processing center in New York City. Prior to its opening on August 3, 1855, there was no central processing center for immigrants who arrived in New York. In fact, it was only around 1820 when ship passenger lists were recorded for ships that arrived.
In 1890, the federal government took over immigration processing from local New York authorities, and the original Castle Garden records were transferred to the Commissioner of Immigration in Washington, D.C. However, many of the early Castle Garden records were destroyed in a fire in 1897. Fortunately, some records survived and are available for public access.
Why Castle Garden? It was originally built as a fort in 1808 and was used to defend the harbor from the British during the War of 1812. After being decommissioned in 1821, Castle Garden became an “entertainment venue” until its conversion to an immigration center in 1855.
During the period 1855-1892, Castle Garden processed over 8 million immigrants, the majority arriving from Germany, Ireland, and Italy:
- Germany (2.2 million)
- Ireland (1.9 million)
- Italy (1.7 million)
- England (1.5 million)
- Canada (1 million)
- China (500,000)
- Russia (400,000)
- Poland (300,000)
- Sweden (200,000)
Castle Garden was associated with the immigration process that immigrants often used a slang term to describe it: “kostigari” for Greek immigrants and “kesselgarden” for Yiddish speakers.
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What’s included in Castle Garden records
Castle Garden immigration records are a valuable resource for genealogy research.
Castle Garden records include the following information:
- Name of the immigrant
- Age
- Sex/Gender
- Occupation
- Place of birth
- Last permanent residence
- Ship of arrival
- Date of arrival
- Port of entry
- Whether the immigrant was detained
New York Castle Garden Immigrants
The New York Castle Garden Immigrants database at MyHeritage contains over 11 million indexed records that can be searched by:
- First Name
- Last Name
- Birth Year
- Birth Place
- Departure/Arrival Date and Place
- Destination Place
- Ship name
- Father
- Mother
- Spouse
- Gender
The Castle Garden Emigrant Landing Depot was the first immigrant processing station in New York State. Most of the immigrants were from Germany, Italy, the British Isles, Russia, Switzerland, Austria, Netherlands, and Sweden. Records typically include the name of the immigrant, year and place of birth, information concerning occupation, port of departure, residence in the country of origin, date and place of arrival, the name of the ship, and relatives who were left behind and in the United States.
Tips and tricks for researching Castle Garden records
- Start by gathering as much information as you can about your ancestor, such as their name, date of arrival, and ship of arrival.
- Use the search fields on the New York Castle Garden Immigrants database at MyHeritage to search for your ancestor.
- If you don't find your ancestor's name, you can try searching by other criteria, such as the ship of arrival or the port of entry.
- Once you find your ancestor's record, be sure to read all of the information carefully. The records may include additional information, such as the names of other family members who were traveling with the immigrant.
- Check US Census records for an ancestor’s year of arrival. In addition, check other records such as obituaries, church or synagogue records, and other records that might list a birthplace.
- Don’t forget naturalization records. Records such as Declaration of Intent and Citizenship will often list the birth place of your ancestor.
- Use the F.A.N. club methodology (“friends, associates, and neighbors”) and look for others who arrived from the same location or birth place for additional clues.
- Leverage the power of name variations since spelling of names was often inconsistent during the 19th century.
- Don’t assume that your immigrant ancestor arrived in New York City. Check other ports such as Boston and Philadelphia.
Conclusion
If you think your ancestor arrived in New York City between 1855 and 1892, make sure you search the available records and resources for the Castle Garden Immigration Center.
Once Ellis Island became the central immigration center for immigrant arrivals in New York City, Castle Garden served as the New York City Aquarium until 1941.
See also
Explore more about Castle Garden immigration records
- New York Castle Garden Immigrants records collection at MyHeritage
- MyHeritage: Ellis Island and Other New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 records collection at MyHeritage
- Coming to America: The Legacy of Castle Garden and Ellis Island on the MyHeritage Blog
- Access to Archival Databases: Immigration on the National Archives and Records Administration
- Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection on the National Archives and Records Administration
- Castle Clinton on the United States National Park Service
- Castle Garden: Where Immigrants Came Before Ellis Island at the New York Historical Society
- A Guide to Interpreting Passenger List Annotations on JewishGen
- Passenger Search - on the The Statue of Liberty―Ellis Island Foundation, Inc
- The 1890 Census Fires and Other Burned Genealogy Records on the Family Tree Magazine
- Which One-Step Ellis Island Search Form Should I Use? - One Step Webpages by Steve Morse
References