In 1907, a record number of immigrants flocked to the United States of America, with more than a million becoming new Americans. On some days, officials had to process nearly 5000 arrivals, refusing entrance to only 2 per cent of the arrivers, mainly those with contagious diseases.

Immigrants who arrived as steerage (or third class) passengers had to pass through the special immigration centre at Ellis Island to process their admissions.

Since 1840, more than 16 million immigrants, mostly Irish, Scandinavian, German and Italian, answered the call inscribed on the Statue of Liberty in New York harbour - "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breath free" - and in doing so, doubled America's population.

On the 15th of March, Finnish women got their first taste of political power, by winning their first seats in the Finnish Diet (parliament). As a result of a strong women's movement, backed by the Social Democratic party.

Finland stood out among the whole of Europe as being the first to elect women to parliament. The previous year, Finland had been the first country in Europe to grant women the vote as part of a complete reform. It was only third country in the world to do so - following New Zealand in 1893, and Australia, in 1902. Women elsewhere in Europe and North America continued to press for the right to vote, and hoped that the Finnish decision would boost their campaigns.

Related Article: 1905 - Campaign for Women's Suffrage continues; 1913 - Woman Matyred for Vote Campaign

New York City finally solved a medical mystery that had haunted it since 1900. At least 51 people in the city had been down with typhoid fever, which was spread through contaminated food and water.

The source of the epidemic, which killed three people, puzzled the authorities. However, it was eventually traced to Mary Mallon, an Irish cook being the USA's first known carrier of typhoid. All the sufferers had eaten food she had prepared in households across New York State.

"Typhoid Mary" as Mallon has been dubbed, was apprehended in Manhattan, New York, after meticulous detective work by the health authorities. She has been detained to protect public health, and isolated on North Brother Island off the Bronx to prevent further spread of the infection.