Untitled, Ellis Island

© Estate of Shirley Burden

Untitled, Ellis Island

Currently not on view

Untitled, Ellis Island,

1956

Shirley Burden, American, 1908–1989
x1991-300

Soon after Ellis Island closed in 1954, Burden became intrigued by the abandoned site and resolved to investigate it. After hitching a ride there on a small boat, he was promptly abandoned by the captain. Luckily, he encountered the superintendent of the island, "Mr. Jones," who gave him permission to photograph and promised him a ride back to the city. For days on end, Burden met Mr. Jones in the morning and traveled to the island to take pictures inside the numerous dilapidated structures. Burden’s story of misfortune and unexpected comradery, recounted in his book Presence, rests alongside images that trace the lives of immigrants who had earlier been documented in Lewis Hine’s photographs.

Information

Title
Untitled, Ellis Island
Dates

1956

Maker
Shirley Burden
Medium
Gelatin silver print
Dimensions
34.3 x 26.7 cm. (13 1/2 x 10 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Ruth Bernhard
Object Number
x1991-300
Culture
American
Type
black-and-white photographs, photographs
Subject
tables (support furniture), fans (equipment), walls, portraits

Given to the Princeton University Art Museum by Ruth Bernhard (1905–2006).

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