United States Naturalization and Citizenship: Difference between revisions

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==Online Resources==

*''See [[United States Naturalization and Citizenship Online Genealogy Records|'''U.S. Naturalization and Citizenship Online Genealogy Records''']] for online databases.''

*[[Beginning Research in United States Naturalization Records#What are naturalization records?|What are naturalization records?]]<br>

*[[Beginning Research in United States Naturalization Records#What time periods do they cover?|What time periods do they cover?]]<br>

*[[Beginning Research in United States Naturalization Records#What can I find in them?|What can I find in them?]]<br>

*[[Beginning Research in United States Naturalization Records#How do I access them?|How do I access them?]]<br>

*[[Beginning Research in United States Naturalization Records#Search strategies|Search strategies]]<br>

*For a more complete beginning introduction, see [[media:Why Didn't My Ancestor Naturalize Navigating US Naturalization Records.pdf|Navigating U.S. Naturalization Records]] class handout

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Naturalization is a voluntary process through which foreign-born residents can become American citizens. By becoming naturalized citizens, immigrants are granted the same rights, privileges, and protections as natural born citizens. The naturalization process in the United States creates records about the immigrant seeking to become a citizen. These records including a declaration of intent, petitions, oaths, etc. can contain information about the immigrant but the content varies depending on the time and from court to court. <br>

 

Immigrants to the United States have never been required to apply for citizenship. An immigrant could become a citizen any time after they arrived in the United States as long as they were residents in the United States for the required period of time. Of those who applied, some did not complete the requirements to become a citizen. <br>  

Individual States handled naturalizations until 1906 when the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization standardized immigration laws and procedures on the federal level. These later records are located in U.S. District or Circuit Courts. Naturalization to become a U.S. citizen is a two-part process: The Declaration of Intent to Naturalize, or First Papers, and the Naturalization Record (including the Naturalization Petition), or Final Papers. The general requirements for citizenship include residency in one U.S. state for one year and in the United States for five years The First Papers were normally filed five years before the Final Papers because of the five-year residency requirement to become a citizen. Naturalization papers are an important source of information about an immigrant's nation of origin, his foreign and “Americanized” names, residence, and date of arrival. Naturalization records were created to process naturalizations and keep track of immigrants in the United States. Naturalization records are generally reliable but may occasionally be subject to error or falsification. Be sure to search all possible spellings for the surname of the person for whom you are looking. Immigrants or their families often changed or “Americanized” the spelling and pronunciation of their names especially their surname, thus the surname may be spelled differently in records that were closer to your ancestor's immigration date. Also, because immigrants were allowed to naturalize in any court before1906 they often selected the most convenient court. The Year of Immigration and naturalization status has been reported in federal census records starting with the 1900 census. <br>  

| style="padding-right:0px; width:50%"| [[Image:Naturalization.jpg|thumb|left|200px|<center>New citizens being sworn in, 1910</center>|alt= New U.S. Citizens being sworn in]]

#'''[https://www.archives.gov/research/immigration/naturalization/history-dec-of-intent Declaration of Intention.]''' The immigrant filed a declaration of intention (also called first papers) to renounce allegiance to foreign governments and to later prove he or she had resided in the country long enough to apply for citizenship. However, generally speaking, an immigrant filed a declaration of intention up to two years after he immigrated to the United States. The immigrant could declare any time after he arrived after fulfilling the residency requirement. Some immigrants waited as late as 20 years after coming to the United States to begin the process to become a citizen. There are some [[United_States_Naturalization_and_Citizenship#Exceptions_to_the_Process|exceptions]] to the naturalization process where the immigrant was not required to file a declaration.  

#'''Petition.''' The immigrant had to wait anywhere between two to three years after he filed his declaration to file his petition for citizenship (also called second or final papers). Most often the petition was filed in a court nearest to the town where the immigrant settled. An Oath of Allegiance was also signed to pledge the immigrants allegiance to the United States and sign a written oath.  

#'''Certificate.''' After all requirements were completed, the immigrant was sworn in as a citizen and issued his or her certificate. The certificate is given from the same court the petition is filed in. It is called the Certificate of Citizenship or Certificate of Naturalization.

{{Block indent|1=An alien registration form contains the following information:}}

*Name  

*Name at time of entry to the US  

*Other names used  

*Address  

*Date of Birth  

*Citizenship/Nationality  

*Gender  

*Marital Status  

*Race  

*Height and Weight  

*Hair and Eye Color  

*Port, date, ship, and class of admission at last arrival in US  

*Date of first arrival in US  

*Years lived in US  

*Intended stay in US  

*Usual occupation  

*Present occupation  

*Present employer, including address  

*Club, organization, or society memberships  

*Military service (Country, branch, dates)  

*Date and number of Declaration of Intention (if filed), and city and State where filed  

*Date of Petition for Naturalization (if filed), and city and State where filed  

*Arrest history  

*Fingerprint  

*Signature  

*Date and place of registration<ref>United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, :Alien Registration Forms on Microfilm, 1940-1944</ref>

Naturalization records before 1790 differ vastly from later naturalization records. Colonial naturalizations consist mostly of lists of those that took the oath of allegiance. The colony where the immigrant was living had jurisdiction over naturalizations.  

*Filby, P. William. ''Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 1500s- 1900s. ''This source has indexed published passenger lists as well as early published naturalization records. ''Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 1500s- 1900s'' identifies the original sources where the information came from. {{FSC|291926|item|disp=FS Library 973 W32p, numerous supplements}}; '''Online at:''' [http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=7486 Ancestry.com] - ($), Supplements published after 2012 are not included.

=== Locating the Correct District Court  ===

*{{FSC|477392|item|disp=''Directory of courts having jurisdiction in naturalization proceedings.''}}

{{Block indent|1=1) Ancestry Database Card Catalog--type the word naturalization in the Database Title Box. This will give you a listing of naturalization records.}}

{{Block indent|1=2) Immigration &amp; Emigration--click on the Search tab at the top of the page, then scroll down to Immigration &amp; Emigration and click on that link. Search by first and last name. Note that the search results include naturalization and many other immigration records.}}

{{Block indent|1=[STATE] - NATURALIZATION AND CITIZENSHIP|2=2}}

{{Block indent|1=[STATE], [COUNTY] - NATURALIZATION AND CITIZENSHIP|2=2}}

{{Block indent|1=[STATE], [COUNTY], [TOWN] - NATURALIZATION AND CITIZENSHIP|2=2}}

*{{FSC|788457|item|disp=Schaefer, Christina K. ''Guide to Naturalization Records in the United States''. Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1997. (FS Library book 973 P4s.)}} It identifies records at both the National Archives and the FamilySearch Library. It also describes many state and county courthouse collections. This book was published in 1997 and has not been updated. The FamilySearch Library has added naturalization records to their collection since the publication.<br>  

*{{FSC|736837|item|disp=John J Newman, ''American Naturalization Records, 1790-1990: what they are and how to use them'' Bountiful, Utah: Heritage Quest, 1998. FS Library 973 P47na}}

*{{FSC|719682|item|disp=Loretto Dennis Szucs, ''They became Americans: finding naturalization records and ethnic origins.'' Salt Lake City, Utah: Ancestry Publishing, c1998 FS Library 973 P47t}}

*[http://www.uscis.gov/history-and-genealogy/genealogy/files-numbered-below-8-million Alien Files (A-files)] numbered below 8 million] (A8000000) and documents therein dated prior to May 1, 1951; Search the Index: [https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/62493/ U.S., Index to Alien Case Files,1944-2003]

{{Block indent|1='''PA:''' The individual began the naturalized process and has submitted a declaration of intention.}}

{{Block indent|1='''NA:''' The individual has completed the naturalization process and is a US Citizen.}}

{{Block indent|1='''AL:''' The immigrant had not yet naturalized or even begun the process. Not every immigrant naturalized.}}

{{Block indent|1='''NR:''' The census taker did not report the citizenship information.}}

For success in finding naturalization records and obtaining the information desired, remember that there are limitations in naturalization records, exceptions to the naturalization process and search strategies that should be used such as checking spelling variations.<br>  

Most researchers hope to find the town of origin in naturalization records. This information usually is listed in naturalization records after 1906 when the forms were standardized. Before 1906, often the country of origin is only listed and the town not normally given. However, because each court recorded different information prior to 1906, it is important to search the earlier naturalization records.  

Prior to 1906, each court created their own naturalization forms. Each form was different, so information recorded on the form differed. You may find substantial information in one court (date and place of immigration, age of applicant, place of birth) and very little information (name of applicant, country of origin) in another court. Thus, it is important to always obtain the naturalization records of an immigrant even if they naturalized before 1906.  

Names of parents are not regularly found associated with naturalization records. Late 19th and 20th century passenger list immigration records may reveal the name of a parent if they are shown as the closest relative left behind in the old country or the person to whom the immigrant was destined. Immigrants admitted from July 1, 1924 to March 31, 1944 will have their parent's names shown in their [https://www.uscis.gov/history-and-genealogy/genealogy/historical-record-series/visa-files-july-1-1924-march-31-1944 Visa file]. Copies of  visa files can only be obtained from the [http://www.uscis.gov/ USCIS.] Immigrants who arrived prior to 1924 but who underwent Registry proceedings between 1929 and 1944 usually name their parents in their [https://www.uscis.gov/history-and-genealogy/genealogy/historical-record-series/registry-files-march-2-1929-march-31-1944 Registry File], also available from [http://www.uscis.gov/genealogy USCIS]. Only if the immigrant naturalized after March 31, 1944, will the Visa File or [https://www.uscis.gov/history-and-genealogy/genealogy/historical-record-series/registry-files-march-2-1929-march-31-1944 Registry File] be found in the [http://www.uscis.gov/genealogy USCIS] naturalization Certificate File.

There are exceptions to the naturalization process that can determine whether you find a declaration of intention and a petition for your ancestor, or not.  

The Act of May 26, 1824 allowed immigrants who arrived before their 18th birthday to, upon reaching age 21, petition for naturalization without filing a prior declaration of intention. Petitions filed under this provision are usually called "'''Minor Naturalizations'''" because they relate to individuals who arrived as a minor (but who were an adult, age 21 or older, when actually naturalized). They are also examples of "one paper naturalizations" because no declaration was required. Many courts combined the declaration and petition documents into a form for this document which may or may not include the word "minor" in the title. Regular forms will cite the 1824 Act. The minor naturalization provision was often abused and was repealed in 1906.<ref>Newman, John J. ''American Naturalization Records 1790-1990.'' (Bountiful, UT: Heritage Quest, 1998).</ref>

There are over 150 [[United States Naturalization Laws|U.S. naturalization laws]] that have been enacted since 1790. These laws change the residency requirements and other stipulations for naturalizing. ; A summary of some of the major naturalization acts passed by congress can be found [[United States Naturalization Laws|here]].