Family history is a fascinating and personal way for everyone to better understand who they are and how our past has shaped us. Genealogy also helps reveal and strengthen connections between individuals and communities.
Alice Austen’s relationship with the art of photography was groundbreaking for its methodology and content. We are fortunate that she turned her lens toward an underexplored aspect of the Ellis Island experience: the quarantine station at Hoffman and Swinburne islands. Knowing that her photographs show an often-overlooked part of the immigrants’ journey, what else can we learn about what happened on Hoffman and Swinburne islands? This program explores the history of these two slivers of land that played a pivotal role in thousands of lives during the Ellis Island era of immigration.
This event is part of the NYG&B’s Preserving Your New York Story series, which offers free sessions for people to digitally preserve their own family history records as well as programming for tracing their family history and connecting with their past.
About the Speaker
Grace Felder – Assistant Manager, American Family Immigration History Center, Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island Foundation.
Since earning her B.A. in History from Kenyon College, Grace has developed her passion for public history at historic sites including George Washington’s Mount Vernon and Ellis Island. In 2025, she was invited back to Kenyon to speak to students about pursuing a career in museums and public history. She has been helping people discover their personal connections to the immigrant experience on Ellis Island since June of 2023.
About Alice Austen House
The Alice Austen House fosters creative expression, explores personal identity, and educates and inspires the public through the interpretation of the photographs, life and historic home of American photographer, Alice Austen (1866–1952). Austen documented her life on Staten Island and boldly ventured onto the streets of Manhattan to photograph the activities of immigrants and the working class.
This series is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
