California, San Francisco, Register of Chinese Immigrant Court Cases and Foreign Seamen Tax Cards - FamilySearch Historical Records
United States 
CaliforniaSan Francisco County
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| Record Description | |
| Record Type | Immigrant Court Cases and Head Tax Cards |
| Record Group | RG 85: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service |
| Collection years | 1883-1924 |
| Microfilm Publication | A3381. Register of Federal Court Cases Related to Chinese Americans and Chinese Immigrants Arriving at or Departing from San Francisco, ca. 1916-and Head Tax Cards of Alien Seamen Examined at San Francisco, California,1921-1924.. 1 rolls. |
| Arrangement | By Court Cases and by Head Tax |
| National Archives Identifier | 4477273414 |
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What is in the Collection?[edit | edit source]
This collection contains a register of court cases related to Chinese immigrants arriving at or departing from San Francisco, California for the years 1883 to 1916. It also contains tax cards of foreign crew members examined at San Francisco, California for the years 1921 to 1924.
The court case index cards are arranged numerically by court case number. The tax cards are arranged numerically by ship arrival number. These records correspond with NARA publication A3381 part of Records Group 85 Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
| You can browse through images in this collection using the waypoints on the Collection Browse Page for California, San Francisco, Register of Chinese Immigrant Court Cases and Foreign Seamen Tax Cards, 1883-1924. |
Collection Content[edit | edit source]
Samples Images[edit | edit source]
- California, San Francisco, Register of Chinese Immigrant Court Cases and Crew Member Tax Cards
Federal Court Case Card (sample 1)
Federal Court Case Card (sample 2)
Tax Card
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_Tax_Card_DGS_100671129_585.jpg&filetimestamp=20141125161922&)
The court case index cards usually list the name of the petitioner, claimant, or defendant.
The tax cards may contain any of the following:
- Name
- Sex
- Age
- Marital status
- Head tax status
- Citizenship
- Race
- Place of last permanent residence
- Destination
- Port and date of arrival
- Purpose for entering the U.S.
How Do I Search the Collection?[edit | edit source]
To begin your search, it is helpful to know
- The full name of your ancestor
- The approximate date of immigration
If you do not know this information, check the census records after 1900.
View images in this collection by visiting the Browse Page:
To search the collection you will need to follow this series of links:
⇒ Select "Browse through images" on the initial collection page
⇒ Select the "NARA Roll Number - Contents" which takes you to the images.
Look at each image comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine if the image relates to them. You may need to look at several images and compare the information about the individuals listed in those images to your ancestors to make this determination. Keep in mind:
- There may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
- You may not be sure of your own ancestor’s name.
- Your ancestor may have used different names or variations of their name throughout their life.
I Found Who I was Looking for, What Now?[edit | edit source]
When you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors. Add this new information to your records of each family. For example, you can use passenger lists to:
- Learn an immigrant’s place of origin
- Confirm their date of arrival
- Learn foreign and “Americanized” names
- Find records in his or her country of origin such as emigrations, port records, or ship’s manifests.
Tips to Keep in Mind[edit | edit source]
- If your ancestor had a common name, be sure to look at all the entries for a name before you decide which is correct.
- Continue to search the passenger lists to identify siblings, parents, and other relatives in the same or other generations who may have immigrated at the same time.
- If your ancestor has an uncommon surname, you may want to obtain the passenger list of every person who shares your ancestor’s surname if they lived in the same county or nearby. You may not know how or if they are related, but the information could lead you to more information about your own ancestors.
I Can’t Find Who I’m Looking for, What Now?[edit | edit source]
- Check for variant spellings of the name.
- Look for an index. Records are often indexed by local historical and genealogical societies.
- Search the passenger lists year by year.
- Search the indexes of other port cities.
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Don't overlook FHL Keyword California, San Francisco items in the FamilySearch Library Catalog. For other libraries (local and national) or to gain access to items of interest, see the wiki article California Archives and Libraries. |
Citing this Collection[edit | edit source]
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image.
Collection Citation:
| Collection Citation: The citation for this collection can be found on the Collection Details Page in the section Cite This Collection. |
Image Citation:
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