| Naturalization
Records
Valued Records for Family Historians
By Juliana Smith
Naturalization
records are among the most valued records for family historians.
In many cases, this is not so much due to the information that
they contain, as for what they represent. Before 1906, there was
often very little data in these records, but these documents remain
an important piece in the story of our ancestors' lives.
However,
these records can be difficult to locate and understand. To gain
a better insight into these records, it is helpful to understand
the procedures involved in gaining U.S. citizenship.
There
were three steps to the naturalization process:
1.
Declarations of Intention (or First Papers)
Normally the first papers were completed soon after arrival
in the U.S., depending on the laws in effect at the time. Certain
groups, such as women and children, were exempt in early years.
After 1862, those who were honorably discharged from U.S. military
service were excused from this first step.
Until 1906, the content of forms for declaration of intention
varied dramatically from one county to another and from one
court to another. A large percentage of the first papers created
before 1906 contain very little biographical information. Declarations
of intention produced after 15 September 1906 generally contain
the following information: name, address, occupation, birthplace,
nationality, country from which emigrated, birth date or age,
personal description, date of intention, marital status, last
foreign residence, port of entry, name of ship, date of entry,
and date of document.
2. Petition (Second or Final Papers)
Naturalization petitions were formal applications submitted
to the court by individuals who had met the residency requirements
and who had declared their intention to become citizens. As
with the declarations of intention, their information content
varied dramatically from one court to another. Most petitions
created before 1906 offer little in terms of personal information.
After 1906, petitions contain generally the same information
as the Declaration of Intention.
3.
Certificates of Naturalization
Most certificates of naturalization contain only the name of
the individual, the name of the court, and the date of issue.
Certificates were issued to naturalized citizens upon completion
of all citizenship requirements. As in the cases of declarations
of intention and the petitions, the amount of information provided
on the certificate may vary greatly from one year to another.
In some cases, the certificate will provide: name, address,
birthplace or nationality, country from which emigrated, birth
date or age, personal description, marital status, name of spouse,
names, ages, and addresses of children, and date of document.
Pre-1906
Naturalization records may be found at the local county courthouse,
county or State archives, or in the National Archives if the
immigrant was naturalized in a Federal Court.
For
naturalizations that took place after 27 September 1906, request
form G-639 from the INS by downloading
Form G-639 .
Or, to have the forms mailed to you, fill
out this form.
Important
Points to Keep in Mind:
Many
times the immigrant may have filed in one court, possibly near
his port of entry, and completed the process in an entirely different
location, so the declaration of intention may be in one place
and the petition in another.
Not
all immigrants completed the process.
Many
of these old records are not going to give us precise answers,
and if they do, the information may be less than reliable. Sometimes,
incorrect answers were given quite innocently and only because
the immigrant had honestly forgotten, particularly in later papers.
Others may have provided the wrong dates of arrival in hopes that
officials would not know the difference and that the wait to be
eligible for naturalization would not be so long.
"Derivative"
citizenship was granted to wives and minor children of naturalized
men. From 1790 to 1922, wives of naturalized men automatically
became citizens. This also meant that an alien woman who married
a U.S. citizen automatically became a citizen. (Conversely, an
American woman who married an alien lost her U.S. citizenship,
even if she never left the United States.)
From
1790 to 1940, children under the age of twenty-one automatically
became naturalized citizens upon the naturalization of their father.
Unfortunately, however, names and biographical information about
wives and children are rarely included in declarations or petitions
filed before September 1906.
For
more information on Naturalization records, see the following
sites:
Bibliography
"They
Became Americans: Finding Naturalization Records and Ethnic
Origins," by Loretto D. Szucs
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