Story
Arriving in the Port of New York
Imagine it is ca. 1950. You’ve just arrived in New York City onboard one of the sleek, modern ocean liners of the era after a five-day voyage across the Atlantic ocean. Your ship has passed the lightship marking the entrance to the Ambrose Channel, sailed past the Statue of Liberty, and brought the Manhattan skyline into view as your vessel approaches its West Side pier. Similar to international travelers in the 21st century, you now have a true test of patience as you disembark: you and your 2,000 or so fellow passengers have to try to locate your baggage and undergo a US Customs inspection.
This story explores how the Customs staff prepared for the arrival of a mid-century ocean liner.
New York Harbor
On the day of the ocean liner’s arrival several Customs inspectors, along with Public Health and Immigration officers, would board a small US Customs cutter, and meet the passenger ship at the entrance to New York Harbor. This gave the inspectors about two hours to go over the passengers’ customs declaration forms before arriving at the pier.
1
Pier 60, Hudson River
The inspectors would look through the forms to flag items or persons they deemed suspicious. US Customs worked with other government agencies like the FBI on lists of suspected smugglers or people of interest. It was not unusual for a large ocean liner like RMS Queen Elizabeth to have 3 to 4 suspected smugglers amongst the listed passengers.
2
Pier 60, Hudson River
Non-celebrities may not have had people greeting them from the US Customs cutter, but they often wanted a friend or family member to meet them at the pier. Getting onto the pier required a permit from Customs and only one person would be allowed per arrival.
3
Pier 86
In the weeks before a liner arrived in New York, the clerks at the Custom House would be handling long lines of people hoping to secure access to the pier to greet their loved ones. On the day the ship arrived, hundreds of people who didn’t get permits would be waiting outside the pier building, on Manhattan’s West Side streets.
4
French Line, Pier #88
The moment the gangway connected the ship to the pier, passengers would disembark into a warehouse-like structure. Simultaneously, baggage would be unloaded from the ship, and taken to the Customs examination area by a fleet of baggage handlers and stevedores.
5
Pier 59, Hudson River
Along the length of the pier were large metal signs with the letters of the alphabet. A passenger’s luggage would be deposited beneath the first letter of their last name for them to collect.
6
Pier 60, Hudson River
There were separate sections for First Class and Tourist Class, and the steamship companies usually chose to prioritize unloading First Class luggage. Since the Customs inspectors on the pier examined on a first-come-first-serve basis, passengers in other classes were often frustrated by the apparent preferential treatment by the inspectors.
7
Pier 90, Hudson River
Once a passenger located their bags it was time to wait in line for a Customs inspector. The inspector would check the passengers’ form and ask them a few questions to determine if they had anything additional to declare. Since even a straightforward inspection would take at least 10 minutes, the very last passengers from a large ship like RMS Queen Elizabeth could be waiting up to 2 hours in the pier building.
8
Pier 60, Hudson River
At the end of the inspection, the Customs staff would stamp the passenger’s form and luggage tags so that they could depart the pier building. If the passenger needed to pay additional duties or charges they could do so at a cashier station in the middle of the pier.
9
Pier 60, Hudson River
The pier building would gradually empty out, with the Customs collecting unclaimed baggage to bring to their warehouses. The following day the extra inspectors pulled from the Cargo Division would return to their regular posts throughout New York Harbor until the next megaliner was due.
10