5. The Immigrants

The Immigrants sculpture in The Battery honors the memory and struggle of the almost 14 million immigrants who traversed oceans in search of a better life in New York City. The sculpture by Luis Sanguino stands at the south end of the Eisenhower Mall in The Battery near Castle Clinton. In addition to the more well known Ellis Island Immigration Center, Castle Clinton also served as a processing facility for newly arrived immigrants from 1855 to 1890, while the center at Ellis Island was being built.

The memorial depicts a diverse group of immigrants from an Eastern European Jew, to a freed African slave, a priest, and a worker. It is crafted out of bronze and stands atop a base of Minnesota Rideau Red granite. The statue was originally dedicated in May of 1983.

Learn more about the immigrant history of New York City Behind-the-Scenes Hard Hat tour of Ellis Island’s Abandoned Hospital Complex.

Behind-the-Scenes Hard Hat Tour of the Abandoned Ellis Island Hospital