October 27, 2024
Tag: Ellis Island
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Castle Garden, the Gateway to Ellis Island
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America’s welcome mat at Ellis Island in New York was for refugees — from hunger, political unrest, or poverty. While before 1890 the states controlled immigration, in 1890 the federal government took control through the Departments of Commerce, Labor, and (in 1940) Justice. Ellis Island wasn’t the only federal immigration center, but it was the…
Past Article
June 3, 2021 3 Comments
Safe and dependable matches were not commonly available until the second decade of the 20th century. Before that, people who needed fire had to use the flint and steel method of making fire or they had to find a way to “borrow” fire from a neighbor. “Striking a fire” was time-consuming and difficult. “Borrowing” was at best unreliable; what would you do it your “borrowed” fire went-out on your way home?