Join the Discussion "Have you had luck with the new Ellis Island database?" --KIMBERLY     Related Resources • Ellis Island Unveiled • EllisIslandRecords.org - A Virtual Tour • Online Passenger Lists • Naturalization Records • How to Locate Your  Immigrant Ancestor • Where to Locate Passenger Lists • Ports of Entry & Departure Around the World  From Other Guides •  Ellis Island, NJ in Pictures • History of Ellis Island • Immigration History • Latter-day Saints • More NYC Attractions  Elsewhere on the Web • New Jersey Wins Claim to Ellis Island • Ellis Island Records

By Kimberly Powell

When the American Family Immigration History Center debuted its long-awaited Web site of Ellis Island immigration records on April 17, 2001, it was immediately overwhelmed by millions of users. The site began operation with 10 servers and three backups which the site's developers thought would be more than enough. So many people overwhelmed the system in its first week of operation, however, that only one in seven people were able to access the site. Many more servers have since been added to handle the load, resulting in much improved access.

Tips for Successful Searching

Once you have signed in as a new user, be sure to bookmark the sign-in page. This will save you a few clicks when you want to get back on the next time. 

Don't let your curiosity get the better of you and try searching based on surname only. You will find your searches taking minutes and possibly even timing out. This will only add to your frustration. You will get better results and save yourself time by adding a first name to your search, if known.

Take advantage of the Ellis Island site's nifty 'save feature'. You can save your searches in progress, as well as passenger records which you find. This will save you a lot of time, especially if you get booted off the site and need to go back.

Use the advanced search options which allow you to narrow your initial search by selecting alternate surname spellings, the approximate year of arrival, ethnicity, approximate age on arrival, port of departure and name of ship. These options are available on the left-hand side of the Matching Passenger Records page under the heading "Passenger Search Profile." The alternate surnames are available from the link which says "Name & Gender."

Yes, you can access a scanned version of the original passenger manifest online for free. You do not have to sign up as a member. You can find the link to the original manifest at the top, left corner of the typed manifest. If the link is not there, then your search has probably brought you to one of the 15% of manifests which have not yet been scanned into the database.

Don't miss the ships photos and histories which are also on the site. These are a great way to put the history in your family history and are also available for free! 

Frustrated with having to click from page to page to narrow down search options, several alternative search programs are springing up around the Web to provide alternative search features for the Ellis Island Web site. One such program is the Ellis Island One-Step Search by Stephen P. Morse. This page allows you to specify surname, boat name, year and/or age of arrival, port, ethnicity, etc. in just one step. Another useful program is the Ellis Island Database Name Permutations written by Edward Rosenbaum. This program prompts you to enter the surname you are researching, and a list of possible alternate spellings will appear. These alternate spellings are derived from the Daitch-Mokotoff soundex system, the American soundex system and letters are commonly misinterpreted and may have been entered incorrectly into the Ellis Island database (i.e.  the letter 'i' for the letter 'j'). The only drawback to this site is that the program will cost you ($19.99 US), but there is a free limited trial version available.

Have you had any luck with the Ellis Island Web site? Do you have questions or possibly a tip to share? Come join us in our genealogy forum and share your thoughts!

URL: http://genealogy.about.com/library/blellis.htm
© 2001 Kimberly Powell and About.com.  All Rights Reserved.

Photo courtesy of the Statue of Liberty - Ellis Island Foundation
Used with Permission.