Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Passenger Lists Index Cards - FamilySearch Historical Records

United States Pennsylvania  Philadelphia County

What is in the Collection?
The collection consists of a name index and images from a Soundex card index to Philadelphia passenger lists from 1 Jan 1883 through 28 Jun 1948. Each card contains the given name, family name, place of birth, age, gender, occupation, nationality, last permanent residence, destination, name &amp; address of relative or friend, port &amp; date of entry, name of ship, and the volume, page, and line number in the passenger lists. The cards are field according to the Soundex number associated with each family name and then by given names. This collection corresponds to NARA publication T526: Index (Soundex) Cards, Ship Arrivals at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1883-1948. Passenger arrival lists do not exist from July 1, 1948 to November 30, 1954.

The soundex index is a phonetic index that groups together names that sound alike but are spelled differently, for example, Stewart and Stuart. The index cards are filed according to the soundex number associated with each family name and then by given names. For more information on soundex indexes and help with coding names and using the index, see the wiki article: Soundex This collection will index passenger lists on NARA publication T840 Passenger Lists of vessels Arriving at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1883-1945.

Passenger arrival lists known as customs manifests date back to 1820. Congressional action in 1891 resulted in federal immigration officials recording the immigrants’ arrival. Arrival lists were used by legal authorities to gather personal information about immigrants prior to the person being allowed to live in the United States. The information was supplied by the immigrant or a traveling companion (usually a family member). Incorrect information was occasionally given, or mistakes may have been made when the clerk guessed at the spelling of foreign names.

What Can these Records Tell Me?
Soundex index cards generally include the following information:


 * Full name of passenger
 * Number of persons accompanying passenger
 * Birth place
 * Age, gender, marital status and occupation
 * Place of nativity
 * Whether passenger is able to read and write
 * Last permanent residence
 * Name and address of relative or friend in former country
 * What is final destination
 * Physical description
 * Arrival date and port of entry
 * Name of ship
 * Volume and page number

How Do I Search the Collection?
You can search the index or view the images or both. To begin your search it is helpful to know:
 * The name of your ancestor
 * At least one other piece of information

Search the Index
Search by name by visiting the Collection Page.
 * 1) Fill in the search boxes on the Collection Page with the information you have
 * 2) Click Search to show possible matches

View the Images
View images in this collection by visiting the Browse Page.
 * 1) Select Description

How Do I Analyze the Results?
Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images.

For more tips about searching on-line collections see the on-line article FamilySearch Search Tips and Tricks.

What Do I Do Next?
Whenever possible, view the original records to verify the information and to find additional information that might not be reported. These pieces of information can lead you to additional records and family members.

I Found Who I was Looking for, What Now?

 * Use the information to find other records such as emigrations, port records, ship’s manifests, birth, christening, census, and land records.
 * Learn foreign and “Americanized” names
 * Use the information to find additional family members.
 * Repeat this process with additional family members found, to find more generations of the family.
 * Church Records often were kept years before government records were required and are a good source for finding ancestors before 1900.

I Can’t Find Who I’m Looking for, What Now?

 * Try viewing the original record to see if there were errors in the transcription of the name, age, residence, etc. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * Collect entries for every person who has the same surname. This list can help you identify possible relations that can be verified by records.
 * If you cannot locate your ancestor in the locality in which you believe they lived, then try searching records of a nearby locality in an area search.
 * Standard spelling of names typically did not exist during the periods our ancestors lived in. Try variations of your ancestor’s name while searching the index or browsing through images.
 * Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names. Try searching for these names as well.
 * Search the indexes and records of Pennsylvania, United States Genealogy.
 * Search in the Pennsylvania Archives and Libraries.
 * Search in the FamilySearch Library Catalog

Known Issues with This Collection
For a full list of all known issues associated with this collection see the attached Wiki article. If you encounter additional problems, please email them to [mailto:support@familysearch.org support@familysearch.org]. Please include the full path to the link and a description of the problem in your e-mail. Your assistance will help ensure that future reworks will be considered.

Citing 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:

Record citation (or citation for the index entry):

Image citation:

Top of Page