Ellis Island National Museum of Immigration

From the late 19th century until the 1950s, Ellis Island was the port of entry to the United States for tens of millions of passengers. In the shadow of the Statue of Liberty, it remains a powerful symbol of the nation's immigrant tradition. These days, it's a museum where you can see artifacts relating to immigrant history—including, in the Peopling of America Center, the years before station’s opening and after its closure—and even search the records for your own relatives.