…from FamilySearch.org and Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island foundation, Inc.: The entire body of New York Passenger Arrival Lists, 1820-1957 are available online!
The 9.3 million microfilm images have been prepared and indexed by more than 165,000 volumte4ers throughout the English-speaking world.The database is free and searchable:
__1820-1891, lists of arrivals at New York including Castle Garden
__1892-1924, arrivals processed through Ellis Island
__1925-1957, New York passenger arrivals and crew lists
More than 63.7 million names are in that database–Put it at the top of your to do list. If you know that your ancestors came to America through New York, you now have a good chance of finding their origins. If you have no idea whether or not your ancestors arrived in New York, you owe it to them to look. Your favorite genealogist, Arlene Eakle
PS You get two shots–the images are available on both websites.