Annie Moore

Irish émigré Anna "Annie" Moore, who died on December 6, 1924, was the first person to enter the country legally after passing a federal immigration inspection at the Ellis Island station in New York Harbor. Moore was born in Ireland on April 24, 1874. Irish sculptor Jeanne Rynhart erected bronze monuments of Moore in Ellis Island and Cobh in Ireland, the latter serving as Moore's departure point (point of arrival). For a long time, it was believed that "Annie Moore," whose death occurred close to Fort Worth, Texas, in 1924, was the immigrant whose arrival signaled the founding of Ellis Island. However, more investigation revealed that Annie Moore in Texas was actually born in Illinois.

Two monuments created by Jeanne Rynhart memorialize Annie Moore. One is located close to her port of departure, Cobh Heritage Center (formerly Queenstown), and the other is located at her port of arrival, Ellis Island. A utility vessel used by the National Park Service, the Annie Moore Award given annually by the Irish American Cultural Institute, a software program created at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts, Lund University in Sweden, and the University of Oxford in Britain are all things named in Moore's honor. The latter software assigns refugees who have no connections to the host country to their new homes using a "matching algorithm."