Dentention and Discharge Camps

During the Spanish-American War and the following Philippine Insurrection, activity increased on the island due to the post processing of men on their way to and from overseas duty.  A Detention Camp was established on the east side of the Island, in 1899 to house returning troops who had been stricken with, or exposed to, contagious diseases (which was practically a quarantine camp). The 31st Volunteer Infantry used to camp for some of its soldiers with smallpox. In May of 1901 the Detention Camp was moved to Point Simpton and a Discharge Camp was set up by the quarry. All needed facilities were available to the returning soldiers, including a railroad ticket office and Wells Fargo Express Company office.

Fort Mcdowell

http://angelisland.org/history/ft-mcdowell-aka-east-garrison/

Fort Mcdowell Battery Emplacement

Battery Ledyard housed two 5" guns with Barbette carriages


http://usforting.com/2009/09/04/fort-mcdowell-on-angel-island/

Bird's Eye view of the Island

http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2010/01/20/tomorrow-is-national-angel-island-day/

Access to Angel Island

The only way to access angel island is by private boat or a public ferry from the following locations: San Francisco, Tiburon, or Vallejo. Public ferry hours are reduced during the winter. Bicycles may be brought to the island or rented along with Segways to be used along the island's main roads. While bicycles and segways are allowed, rollerskates and skateboards are prohibited from use on the island for public safety. There are also public areas on the park designated for barbecues and picnics. Night travel is also prohibited on some parts of the island due to security and safety concerns.

http://angelisland.org/visitor-information/

Flames

In 1940, there was a fire that causes the Angel Island administration building to be burned, losing all of the files that could be used to hold against the Chinese. The United States then abandoned the immigration station. The Chinese Exclusion Act was then later repealed, allowing the Chinese to continue to settle in America. Because of that fire, the Chinese could state that they were a U.S. citizen. Soon, “paper sons” began to enter the U.S. They were given a small strip of paper to memorize, as well as a photo to look at. This contained all the information they needed to enter the U.S.

-Patrick Li

http://www.marinij.com/marinnews/ci_10713017?source=pkg

The Chinese Exclusion Act

Because of the Chinese Exclusion Act, many of the Chinese who now immigrated to China were forced to answer difficult questions. They had to prove that they had a father or husband in America in order to enter. They also had to answer difficult questions, some consisting of Chinese villages and family history, that most Chinese were unable to answer. Men and women were housed separately, spending much of their time in the barracks. This caused many of the Chinese to start carving on the walls, writing poems and messages to express their fear and anger. Immigrants were held for weeks, months and sometimes even years.

-Patrick Li

http://www.parks.ca.gov/default.asp?page_id=468

The Chinese People

Many people of different ethnicities immigrated to America. The Chinese immigrated to the United States for better lives. Before the 1900s, most of their work consisted of farming, mining and railroads. The Chinese men would send money back home for their families. The Americans hated the Chinese because the Chinese worked for low wages and took the jobs from Americans. The Americans accused the Chinese of monopolizing all the jobs. This caused the Americans to pass the Chinese Exclusion Act.

-Patrick Li

http://angelisland.org/

Current Uses

Nowadays, Angel Island is no longer used as a fort for military purposes. It now serves two purposes both to the general public. It acts as a tourist attraction. Where tourists can take a ferry from the SF Bay to the island and can explore the island. The island has locations set open for tourists where they can have picnics, barbeques, and camping. Furthermore the island also has a museum where tourists can enter and explore. Also, there are many baracks in the island from its Fort Mcdowell days, and for a fee, a guided tour of them are offered. The Island's more important purpose however, is its immigration station. Now called the Immigration Station, after it was decommissioned as a fort, immigration was its most important purpose. In the past, it was used to detain the Chinese immigrants for, days , weeks, months, and sometimes even years at a time.

-Andrew Yu

Sources:

http://angelisland.org/history/united-states-immigration-station-usis/tours/
http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/ca/

Fort McDowell

Angel Island wasn't just used as a tourist zone for an island for agrarian purposes. It was in the 19th century that the US army renamed Angel Island, "Fort McDowell" and developed further facilities there used for the current situation including what is now called the East Garrison or Camp McDowell. There was a quarantine station that was opened in Ayala Cove in 1891. Furthermore it was during the Spanish-American War that the island served as a discharge depot for returning troops. The island served as a transit station throughout the first half of the twentieth century, with troops in World War I embarking and returning there. During World War II the necessity for troops in the Pacific far exceeded prior needs. The facilities on Angel Island were expanded and further processing was done at Fort Mason in San Francisco. Prior to the war the infrastructure had been expanded including building the Army ferry General Coxe, which transported troops to and from Angel Island on a regular schedule. Finally the island was decommissioned in 1962.

-Andrew Yu

Sources:
http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/a_f/angel/angel.htm
http://www.onscenicroutes.com/angelislandmain.html

General Information and Stats on Angel Island

Location: San Francisco Bay

Coordinates: 37.86*N 122.43

Area: 1.2 sq mi (3.1 km²)

Highest elevation: 788 ft (240.2 m)

Highest point: Mount Caroline Livermore

Country: United States

State: California

County: Marin County, San Francisco County

Population: 57

Density 18.35 /km² (47.53 /sq mi)

Designated as a National Historic Landmark

Named Angel Island because Angels were rumored to flock the island in the past

Previously named Fort McDowell

-Andrew Yu

Photo: Angel Island Immigration Station

Source: http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.siliconvalleyimmigrationlawyer.com/Angel_Island_Immigration_Station_b.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.siliconvalleyimmigrationlawyer.com/2010/01/&usg=

-Abbygail Talao

FACTS

• largest island in the San Francisco Bay
• nicknamed as the “Ellis Island of the West”
• Area: 1.2 square miles
• Highest point: Mt. Caroline Livermore
• Population: 57
• earliest known inhabitants: Miwok Indians
  
• explored by the Spanish in 1775
• came under US control in 1851
• US army base from 1863-1946
• radar missile site from 1955-1962
• immigration center from 1910-1940
• confined military prisoners during World War II

Source: http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/a_f/angel/natale.htm

-Abbygail Talao

Photo: Angel Island as an Immigration Center

A Chinese immigrant is inhumanely inspected by an American official.

Source: http://rpp.english.ucsb.edu/classroom/ucsb-courses/english-104a/angel-island-poems

-Abbygail Talao

History

Approximately 10,000 years ago, Angel Island broke off from the mainland due to the rising sea levels from the last Ice Age. The island’s first known inhabitants were the Miwok Indians, who used the land for hunting and gathering. In 1769, it was sighted by Spanish explorers, and was later formally named Isla de los Angeles by Juan de Ayala in 1775. Until 1848, Angel Island stood as a cattle ranch and a notorious meeting place for smugglers and pirates. President Fillmore declared the island as a military reserve in 1850, and the outbreak of the Spanish-American War led to Angel Island’s first use as a detention camp. By 1892, the island was converted to a quarantine station to keep certain epidemics from reaching the United States.

The Angel Island Immigration Station was opened in 1910 and lasted until 1940, and was the main entry point for immigrants arriving from the Pacific. More than one million people were processed at the station. Many immigrants, specifically the Chinese, were not allowed or welcomed into the country. This was due to the Chinese Exclusion Laws, which was first passed in 1882, and updated until 1943 to keep Chinese and other Asian ethnic groups from entering the United States. The arrival of World War II brought an end to the Chinese Exclusion Laws after China allied with the United States. In 1954, the Angel Island Immigration Station was turned over to the state of California. Because of the Cold War, a radar and missile site was built on the island from 1955 to 1962. In 2009, Angel Island was renovated and reopened as a state park.

Sources:
http://www.aiisf.org/history
http://angelisland.org/history/

-Abbygail Talao