American Immigrant Wall of Honor - Names by the Water
A stop on Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, a free self-guided tour.
Step outside the main building and walk around to the water side facing Manhattan, where long rows of stainless steel panels follow the edge of the island. This is the American Immigrant Wall of Honor, unveiled in 1990, the same year the museum opened, and it now carries nearly one million individual and family names.
The wall is less a government record than a family album. Relatives pay to add a name, so it mixes people who came through Ellis Island with others who arrived some other way, through Castle Garden, an airport or a border crossing, centuries ago or just recently. The names and details come from donors, so the wall honors family memories rather than proving who passed through.
Walk slowly along the panels and read a few columns: names from all over the world sit side by side. If you are looking for a particular family, search the wall's online directory before you come to find the right panel.
Getting here: Leave the main building and follow the path around to the east side of the island, facing Lower Manhattan.
Did you know?: New names are added once a year: donations made during one calendar year go onto the wall the following summer.
Photo op: Line up a row of the steel panels in the foreground with the Lower Manhattan skyline across the water.
Nearby: The Ellis Island Cafe is close by in the main building.
More on Wikipedia: Ellis Island · Castle Clinton
Stops on this tour
- Castle Clinton - The Fort Before Ellis Island
- Statue City Cruises - Through Security and Aboard
- Statue of Liberty Museum - The Torch at Eye Level
- Liberty Island Promenade - Walking Around the Star
- Statue of Liberty Pedestal - Inside the Base
- Ellis Island - The Nation's Front Door
- Registry Room - Inside the Great Hall
- Stairs of Separation - Three Ways Down
- American Immigrant Wall of Honor - Names by the Water
- Return Ferry - Lower Manhattan Up Close