FamilySearch Wiki has valuable helps for finding and searching this type of records. Search using "immigration", "emigration" or "migration" and the locality you are working in.
Basic Facts:
Other Popular Ports of Immigration:
Immigration Records:
Images of Immigrant Ships
Immigrant Ships Transcribers Guild-- http://immigrantships.net/newcompass/ships/ship_files/shipimages.html
Migration Records:
Homestead Lands:
Historical Helps:
Basic Facts:
- Pre 1820--No records kept
- Pre 1855--No processing
- Castle Garden Years: 1855-1890--Castle Garden
- 1890-1891--Barge Office
- Ellis Island Years: 1892-1897--Ellis Island (fire in 1897)
- 1897-1900--Barge Office
- 1900-1924--Ellis Island
- After 1924: Only special cases; Get VISA before coming to the US
Other Popular Ports of Immigration:
- Baltimore
- Boston
- Galveston
- New Orleans
- Philadelphia
- San Francisco
- There were hundreds of other locations that immigrants entered the United States through.
Immigration Records:
- Steve Morse-- http://www.stevemorse.org/
- Castle Garden-- http://www.castlegarden.org/
- Ellis Island Records-- http://www.ellisisland.org/
- Immigrant Ships Transcriber's Guild-- http://www.immigrantships.net/
- The Ships List-- http://www.theshipslist.com/
Images of Immigrant Ships
Immigrant Ships Transcribers Guild-- http://immigrantships.net/newcompass/ships/ship_files/shipimages.html
Migration Records:
- Migrations-- http://migrations.org/
Homestead Lands:
- 20 Eastern states were not part of it--30 States Ohio and west
- www.glorecords.blm.gov/
- 5 years living on the land
- 21 years old to get a homestead
- 36 sections to a township
Historical Helps:
- History of Ellis Island-- libertycruise.nyc/packages/history-of-ellis-island Brief history of Ellis Island with links to more information