<P> Originally much of the west shore of Upper New York Bay consisted of large tidal flats which hosted vast oyster banks , a major source of food for the Lenape population who lived in the area prior to the arrival of Dutch settlers . There were several islands which were not completely submerged at high tide . Three of them ( later to be known as Liberty Island , Black Tom Island and Ellis Island ) were given the name Oyster Islands by the settlers of New Netherland , the first European colony in the region . The oyster beds remained a major source of food for nearly three centuries . Landfilling to build the railyards of the Lehigh Valley Railroad and the Central Railroad of New Jersey eventually obliterated the oyster beds , engulfed one island , and brought the shoreline much closer to the others . During the colonial period , Little Oyster Island was known as Dyre 's , then Bucking Island . In the 1760s , after some pirates were hanged from one of the island 's scrubby trees , it became known as Gibbet Island . It was acquired by Samuel Ellis , a colonial New Yorker and merchant possibly from Wales , around the time of the American Revolution . In 1785 , he unsuccessfully attempted to sell the island : </P>
<P> Originally much of the west shore of Upper New York Bay consisted of large tidal flats which hosted vast oyster banks , a major source of food for the Lenape population who lived in the area prior to the arrival of Dutch settlers . There were several islands which were not completely submerged at high tide . Three of them ( later to be known as Liberty Island , Black Tom Island and Ellis Island ) were given the name Oyster Islands by the settlers of New Netherland , the first European colony in the region . The oyster beds remained a major source of food for nearly three centuries . Landfilling to build the railyards of the Lehigh Valley Railroad and the Central Railroad of New Jersey eventually obliterated the oyster beds , engulfed one island , and brought the shoreline much closer to the others . During the colonial period , Little Oyster Island was known as Dyre 's , then Bucking Island . In the 1760s , after some pirates were hanged from one of the island 's scrubby trees , it became known as Gibbet Island . It was acquired by Samuel Ellis , a colonial New Yorker and merchant possibly from Wales , around the time of the American Revolution . In 1785 , he unsuccessfully attempted to sell the island : </P>
where did the name ellis island come from
where did the name ellis island come from
Samuel Ellis
Samuel Ellis