Around the beginning of the 20th century, the greatest mass-migration in human history occurred as people fled tyranny and poverty in Europe and elsewhere in the world. The immigrants made a conscious decision to start over in the Unites States, choosing to break with their old national identities and adopt a new American identity. For 62 years, from 1892 to 1954, over 12 million passed through the doors of Ellis Island in New York harbor; it served as the primary immigration station into the United States. Four out of every 10 Americans can trace their ancestry to someone who came through Ellis Island. The story of Ellis Island’s creation, operation, decline, and restoration as a national park is now told by historians and the immigrants themselves.