EXPLORING THE QUARANTINE ISLANDS
Presented by Pat Salmon
September 24, 2023 @ 10:00 am - 11:00 am
After the famous burning of the Quarantine Hospital at Tompkinsville, Staten Island on September 1 and 2, 1858, something had to be done to accommodate the thousands of arriving immigrants with contagious diseases. The historic Quarantine Islands, Hoffman and Swinburne, played a key role in our immigration history for decades. They were the first and sometimes the only stop for immigrants entering the United States.
On Sunday, September 24, 2023, WSS-PONY Branch members and friends enjoyed a presentation on the Quarantine Islands of New York by historian Pat Salmon at the National Lighthouse Museum on Staten Island. Following the program refreshments were served and those attending in-person had an opportunity to tour the museum. A planned post-meeting boat cruise to the Quarantine Islands and circumnavigation of Staten Island unfortunately had to be cancelled as a required Coast Guard inspection of the vessel could not be scheduled in time.
(Image: www.nytimes.com)