Ellis Island Records Now Available Online
This is my great-great-grandfather, Jens Nielsen Skousen. On May 20, 1862, with the Civil War raging to the south, he, his wife and several hundred other Danish immigrants sailed into New York harbor and disembarked at Castle Garden in Manhattan, following their sea journey of about six weeks. They had joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and were obeying their prophet’s direction to “gather to Zion.” Castle Garden was operated by New York State, and was eventually the point of entry for more than eight million immigrants. However, with growing numbers of immigrants [...]
