What was the policy of Ellis Island and the Nation prior to 1920 towards Immigrants?

Answer 1

Immigrants were processed legally and in an orderly fashion. I believe some were rejected and sent back because of various diseases and other reasons. Most immigrants back then assimilated into the American way of life quite successfully including learning English.
UNLIKE TODAY WITH ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS FLOODING INTO OUR COUNTRY, PUTTING A HUGE BURDEN ON OUR SOCIETY AND NOT LEARNING ENGLISH AND MAKING NO ATTEMPT AT ASSIMILATION!

Answer 2

I'm just guessing here but I think it was if you could buy passage and didn't have a disease or lice you got to get off the boat and walk into America. If you had parasites they cleaned you and if you were ill they kept you until you were better.

America prior to 1920 is MUCH different. NOW its not so easy to say come one come all.

Answer 3

'Back in the day', there were only 90 million american citizens, and there were only about 1.5 billion people throughout the world.
Immigration policy was more liberal back then, the main concern was about disease etc., and trying to get skilled people to do different jobs. Expansion was still in full swing back then.

Now, though, a lot of things have changed, US population has more than tripled, global population has gotten easily 5 times larger, suffice it to say it's starting to get a little crowded in some places, and economic duress etc.

As Bob Dylan sang it, 'the times, they are a-changin'....

Answer 4

They accepted people unless they had a horrible disease or some other political problems