thumb|Hoffman (left) and Swinburne (right) Islands, seen from South Beach, Staten Island

Swinburne Island is a
artificial island in
Lower New York Bay, east of
Staten Island in New York City. It was used for
quarantine of
immigrants. Swinburne Island is the smaller of two nearby islands, the other being
Hoffman Island to the north.
History
After several
cholera pandemics in the nineteenth century, the federal government built Swinburne Island and
Hoffman Island to serve as areas of quarantine for immigrants arriving by ship and carrying contagious diseases.
Along with Hoffman Island, which was constructed in 1873, Swinburne was used through the early 20th century to
quarantine immigrants to the
United States who were found to be suffering dangerous
contagious diseases upon arrival at the
Port of New York. Immigrants suspected of having such diseases were taken to the quarantine hospital and were not allowed to go to
Ellis Island for entry until they were shown to be well or were cured of the disease. The island was used to quarantine patients during the last
cholera outbreak in the United States in 1910–1911, which started with a passenger from Naples on the ''
Moltke,'' a ship of the Hamburg-American line. Swinburne was the second built, about a mile south of the earlier island, and it has a crematorium. The island was originally called Dix Island, but was renamed in honor of Dr.
John Swinburne (1820–1899), a military surgeon during the
American Civil War.
During World War I, immigration was reduced. Later, the United States passed the Immigration Act of 1923, which sharply lessened immigration from southern and eastern Europe. By this time, the city and state had learned other means of controlling infectious diseases, so the quarantine facilities were little used.
By the start of
World War II, the
United States Merchant Marine had adapted both islands as a training station, which had opened in 1938.
[Kenneth T. Jackson: ''The Encyclopedia of New York City'': The New York Historical Society; Yale University Press; 1995. P. 149.] It built additional
quonset huts, which still stand.
Current use
Both Hoffman Island (11 acres) and Swinburne Island (4 acres) are now managed by the
National Park Service as part of the Staten Island Unit of
Gateway National Recreation Area. They are not open to the public.
Within the past decade, Swinburne Island has become a popular haul out site for Lower New York Harbor's population of
harbor seals and
grey seals. The populations of both species have been increasing every year.
References
External links Harbor Herons Project NYC Audubon
Harbor Herons Nesting Survey-recent reports on wading bird, cormorant, and gull nesting activity at Swinburne Island
A Satellite Photo of the two islands Google Maps
The Forgotten Of Ellis Island: Deaths in Quarantine, 1909–1911
{{authority control
Category:Islands of New York City
Category:Artificial islands of New York (state)
Category:History of immigration to the United States
Category:History of New York City
Category:Protected areas of Staten Island
Category:Islands of Staten Island
Category:Gateway National Recreation Area
Category:Nature reserves in New York (state)
Category:Islands of New York (state)
Category:Quarantine facilities in the United States