American Samoa, Passenger Lists and Travel Documents - FamilySearch Historical Records

Record Description
This collection will include indexes and images from the years 1918-1965. The records will include passenger lists, passports, travel permits, letters of identity, affidavits of birth, visas and visa requests, and naturalization petitions from American Samoa. The were acquire from the San Francisco Federal Records Center in San Bruno, California.

American Samoa is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of Samoa, west of the Cook Islands, north of Tonga, and south of Tokelau. American Samoa is the southernmost territory of the U.S. and one of two U.S. territories south of the equator.

Record Content
Visas: documents proving legal permission given by the authority of a country for a person who is not a citizen of that country to enter and to remain there for a specified length of time.

Visas may include the following information:
 * Name of petitioner
 * Residence of petitioner
 * Date of birth
 * Month and year of visit
 * Intended length of stay in the country
 * Areas authorized to visit

Petitions for naturalization: formal applications submitted during the process of becoming a citizen of the country to which an individual has immigrated.

Petitions for naturalization may contain the following information:
 * Name of petitioner
 * Residence of petitioner
 * Date of birth
 * Month and year of immigration
 * Court where petition is filed

Passports: travel documents, usually issued by the government of a nation, that certify the identity and nationality of the holder for the purpose of international travel.

Passports may contain the following information:
 * Name of petitioner
 * Residence of petitioner
 * Date of birth
 * Nationality
 * Physical description of petitioner

Passenger Lists: documentation of ship passengers.

Passenger lists may contain the following information:
 * Name of petitioner
 * Residence of petitioner
 * Month and year of immigration
 * Name of ship
 * Date of departure and arrival
 * Ports of departure and arrival
 * Occupation
 * Names of family members
 * Purpose of travel

Other records my include:

Travel permits: documents allowing passengers to travel when they have not purchased a ticket in advance and the ticket office of the station they are traveling from is closed.

Affidavits: written, sworn statements of fact voluntarily made under an oath to a person authorized to do so by law.

How to Use the Record
This section includes tips and suggestions on how to search the record and use the information you find.

Search the Collection
To search by name: Fill in the requested information in the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the individuals in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to find your ancestor.

To search by image: To search the collection you will need to follow this series of links: ⇒Select the "Browse" link on the initial search page ⇒Select the "Record type" category ⇒Select "Year or year range" category which takes you to the images

Search the collection by image and compare the information you find with what you already know about your ancestors to determine if the image relates to them. You may need to compare several images in order to make this determination.

When searching: As you are searching it is helpful to know such information as your ancestor's given name and surname, as well as some identifying information such as residence, age, and family relationships.

Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name as your ancestor and that your ancestor may have used nicknames or different names at different times.

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
 * Continue to search the index and records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives.
 * Don’t overlook the possibility of finding ancestors who were visiting relatives, traveling for business, or traveling for pleasure.

Related Websites

 * American Samoa Birth Certificates, Death Records and Marriage Licenses.
 * American Samoa Vital Records.
 * American Samoa Death Records.
 * American Samoa Kindred Trails.

Related Wiki Articles

 * American Samoa
 * American Samoa Census
 * American Samoa Vital Records
 * American Samoa Archives and Libraries

Citations for This Collection
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:

Image Citation: