What Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty Means to Me

I have no family stories of Ellis Island, no family memories of coming to the United States and seeing freedom for the first time in the lady who guards the New York Harbor. Most of my ancestors on both sides came early on in U. S. history. As far back as the Rev?? War, parts of my family were already here and fighting for the freedoms we all now have. Therefore, that makes my family an old American family I guess.

But even back then, we were a nation of immigrants making a life for ourselves here, in America, to become American's. In my journey into my own genealogy, my family came from across the sea, from Europe. Many peoples, many languages merging into a single people and language. ...American.

My family was one of many families who opened the door to a new land, a new beginning long before Ellis Island ever was. But even though my family was here long before the Lady of Freedom was, she still holds great meaning to me.

She welcomes those who are willing to work hard for what they get. She welcomes those who are yearning for the taste of being free. She welcomes those who want a 'do-over', to start over in this land of freedoms and opportunity.

In this age of flight, Ellis Island is no longer open to take in the immigrant, they fly in now, though customs with passports in hand and maybe still...with just a few dollars in their pockets. But even for me Lady Liberty still stands for the freedoms here, a sign of a new life. The Lady stands for the strong country that America was, and is. The Lady stands for all we went through in the course of our history, to get where we are today. The Lady stands for the fight for freedom that is never-ending.

The Lady Liberty is the mother of Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, Sam Bowie and Davy Crockett. She is the Mother of us all. Can you hear her whispering? Remember the date, 1776....Remember the Alamo.....Sink the Bismark.....tear down those walls that suppress my freedom.

Today marked the ending of another fight, the crown of the Statue of Liberty opened today. There is a limit of only 10 people that can go up into the crown at any one time. It was closed after the 9-11 attacks in 2001. It still shows that Lady Liberty is still standing strong for the country in which she guards.