Proper Names

Q. I have a place nickname question. When referring to Ellis Island as the “Golden Door,” would you cap the term and place it within quotation marks, as you suggest for people names? Also, would you use this same style throughout a paper for multiple usages? Say, for instance, if you indicate that the “Golden Door” swung open for certain groups of people but not others?

A. “Golden Door” looks fine styled with caps and quotation marks. As for multiple usages, you might get away with the phrase twice, three hundred pages apart. After that, no.