Ellis Island of the north

Fort Scammel in 1900 www.mainememory.net photo - click

  House Island sits out in Casco Bay, a short distance from Portland and South Portland, it's been inhabited since the 1600's.
  The Army built Fort Scammel in 1808 and it just sat there, it was re-furbished during the U S Civil War and again during World War Two for coastal defence.
  The most important use of Fort Scammel may have been in the 1920's when some of the buildings were used as a quarantine station by the Immigration folks, the island was considered ideal.  New arrivals weren't allowed off the island until quarantine was completed along with other tests and interviews, a ferry boat ride to Portland and a direct link to Grand Trunk Station for railroad passage to their destination.
  All of those buildings have been destroyed, with the exception of the "fort" itself, which just sits in ruins.  The Island is privately owned and not open to the public, people still live there too.

Fort Scammel in June of 2005 www.wikipedia.org  photo

House Island location google maps