Angel Island Immigration Station is Restored as Museum
Posted Feb 03, 2006
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President Bush has signed a law providing up to $15 million in federal money to restore the Angel Island Immigration Station in the San Francisco Bay as a museum and national historic landmark. Though the station has been called the Ellis Island of the West, it was not a particularly welcoming place to those who were victims of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and other immigration laws that restricted Asian immigration.
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Between 1910 and 1940, Angel Island processed more than 1,000,000 immigrants from around the world. Some Chinese detainees carved poems into the walls of the detention barracks, and more than 140 of the poems are still there today. This renovation funding will ensure that these poems and the station are preserved so that schoolchildren and tourists can continue to visit and learn more about this chapter in U.S. history. It is also a testament to the contributions of immigrants to our nation. Visit the Angel Island WebSite for more information about the museum and its interesting history.