BallinStadt - Port of Dreams, Hamburg

BallinStadt - Port of Dreams, Hamburg

From 1850 to 1934, Hamburg was the ‘Gateway to the World’, the place from where 5 million European emigrants from the Deutsche Reich and other states set sail to the New World to pursue their destiny.

From 1850 to 1934, Hamburg was the ‘Gateway to the World’, the place from where 5 million European emigrants from the Deutsche Reich and other states set sail to the New World to pursue their destiny. The BallinStadt emigration halls where the migrants lived and waited prior to departure are now part of the Emigration Museum, also known as Port of Dreams.

See the dorms where the migrants waited and hoped for a berth on a ship to a promising future. Learn about the stories of these immigrants, their journey and arrival at Ellis Island, and on to their final destinations. You can even look up the passenger lists to trace family lineages from Europe.