10 Places to See Before You're 10

At least 40 percent of Americans have ancestors who first entered the United States through Ellis Island. Today, ferry across from Manhattan or New Jersey to the national monument and its three-story museum, housed in one of the site’s original buildings. Hear dramatized accounts of passengers’ voyages, check out the life-size photos of early-20th-century immigrants, and marvel at the precious cargo that they lugged with them: samovars, teddy bears, musical instruments. Then look for your family’s name on the Wall of Honor, or search through digitized ship manifests to track individual passengers and dig your roots.

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