Massachusetts Genealogy Guide: Difference between revisions

==== Naturalization Records  ====

<center>'''Introduction'''</center>  

The first uniform laws to govern the naturalization process were enacted in 1790. The purpose was to give rights to the foreign-born man (and woman after 1922) as if he was a native-born man. Depending on the period, this would include owning land and voting. Any court in the land could naturalize a man, but all that was consolidated under a federal system in 1906. The declaration of intent, with some exceptions, was the first step in the process (sometimes called first papers). This often was files within the first couple years of residency. The second and third steps were to petition for citizenship and to receive a certificate of citizenship from the court petitioned. This could be filed as soon as one to three years after the declaration, though it may not be in the same court or state as the declaration. These were sometimes called the final or second papers). This guide is to the records covering the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and is broken down into those records held by the federal government and those held by the state. Index cards usually include the name of the immigrant, age, birth date, place and date of certificate of admission, petition number, and occasionally the spouse's name. Read the [[United States Naturalization and Citizenship|Naturalization and Citizenship]] section for the United States to learn more about the whole process.<br>  

| [https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2064580 Petitions for Naturalization, 1787-1931] (browsable by county, then court, as of July 2013 - no Dukes, Essex, Franklin, Hampden, or Hampshire county records).<br>Index to New England Naturalization Petitions, 1791-1906, [http://www.archives.gov/research/microfilm/m1299.pdf M1299].<br>ONLINE at [https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1840474 New England Naturalization Index, 1791-1906].

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| 1886-1906  

| [http://www.archives.gov/boston/ National Archives - Waltham]  

| {{FHL|2173410|item|disp=FHL Digital Capture 7469512-7469514}} (part of above)

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| 1895-1906  

| [http://www.archives.gov/boston/ National Archives - Waltham]  

| {{FHL|2173407|item|disp=FHL Digital Capture 7469515-7469519}} (part of above)

|-

| 1900-1906  

| [http://www.archives.gov/boston/ National Archives - Waltham]  

| {{FHL|2173411|item|disp=FHL Digital Capture 7469519}} (part of above)

|-

| 1891-1906  

| [http://www.archives.gov/boston/ National Archives - Waltham]  

| {{FHL|2173414|item|disp=FHL Digital Capture 7469497-7469511}} (part of above)

|-

| 1787-1860  

| [http://www.archives.gov/boston/ National Archives - Waltham]  

| {{FHL|2173415|item|disp=FHL Digital Capture 7469486-7469496}} (part of above)

|-

| 1885-1906  

| [http://www.archives.gov/boston/ National Archives - Waltham]  

| {{FHL|2173416|item|disp=FHL Digital Capture 7485672-7485676}} (part of above)

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| 1787-1876  

| [http://www.archives.gov/boston/ National Archives - Waltham]  

| {{FHL|2173418|item|disp=FHL Digital Capture 7485685-7485695}} (part of above)

|}

The information regarding the state naturalization records comes from a flyer created in 2008 and an inventory conducted by the author in 2012 for microfilms. The "Judicial Archives" in the state table is the [[#Archives|Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Archives]] located in Boston. Note that some material may be stored off-site, so call in advance to schedule an appointment. The location of "Mass. Arch. RR" is the [[#Archives|Massachusetts Archives Reading Room]] located in the same building.<br>  

<center>'''Massachusetts Naturalization Records'''</center>  

! width="350" scope="col" | Microfilm/Online

|-

|  

|  

| [[#Archives|Judicial Archives]]  

| Card index at Judicial Archives that includes declaration of intention  

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| Superior Court<br>Court of Common Pleas  

| {{FHL|595176|item|disp=FHL films 1450634-1450636, 1450663-1450664}}.

|}

<center>'''Bibliography'''</center>  

*Frank G. Franklin, ''The Legislative History of Naturalization in the United States from the Revolutionary War to 1861'' (PhD Thesis, 1900; Chicago, 1906; rep. New York, 1969+), ix, 308 pp.<br>Digital version at [http://archive.org/details/legislativehisto00fran Internet Archive] and [http://books.google.com/books?id=4JiHAAAAMAAJ Google Books].<br>[http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/60732161 WorldCat (Other Libraries)]; Not at FHL.<br>  

*Marian L. Smith, ''An Immigrant Nation: United States Regulation of Immigration, 1798-1991'' (Washington, D.C., 1991), v, 41 pp.<br>[http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/25505090 WorldCat (Other Libraries)]; Not at FHL.<br>  

*U.S. Department of Justice, ''Directory of Courts Having Jurisdiction in Naturalization Proceedings'' (Washington, D.C., 1908; rep. many times through 1979), 252 pp.<br>Digital versions at [http://archive.org/details/directorycourts00natugoog Internet Archive], [http://books.google.com/books?id=eKoGAAAAMAAJ Google Books], and [http://pds.lib.harvard.edu/pds/view/6466350 Harvard University].<br>[http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/12593620 WorldCat (Other Libraries)]; {{FHL|477392|item|disp=FHL film 1730286}} (1963 ed.).<br>

==== Other Records  ====