In the late 1880s, three passenger railroad terminals opened in Jersey City next to the Hudson River (Pavonia Terminal, Exchange Place and Communipaw). Tens of millions of immigrants passed through these stations as they made their way westward from Ellis Island into the United States. The railroads transformed the geography of the city by building the Erie Cut as well as several large freight rail yards. The railroads became and would remain the largest employers in Jersey City into and during the early 20th century.