Ellis Island public and the museum partially re-opened on October 28, 2013, after major renovations. 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
Destruction Island de Dolores when the river was given its Indian name, the Hoh River. Three shipwrecks occurred at the island in 1889: "Cassanora Adams", "Port Gordon", and "Wide West". The Destruction Island Lighthouse was built on Destruction Island in 1888-91. A US Coast Guard detachment operated the lighthouse from 1939 to the early 1970s. The light was automated in 1968, before it was shut off for good in April 2008. The island itself is accessible only by boat. Destruction Island Destruction Island (also known historically as Green Island) is a island located approximately off the Washington coast. Home to seabirds, shorebirds,