Pennsylvania - Landing Reports of Aliens - FamilySearch Historical Records

Record Description
This collection consists of reports of aliens arriving in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania for the years 1798 to 1828. The records correspond to NARA Publication M1639. The passenger lists are digital copies of the original records. Earlier records are handwritten pages; later records are usually handwritten on pre-printed pages. The records are arranged by the date of entry into port.

Record Content
Information in these records typically includes the following:
 * Name of immigrant
 * Place of birth
 * Date of birth
 * Age
 * Date of arrival
 * Port of departure
 * Port of arrival

How to Use the Record
To begin your search, it is helpful to know the full name of your ancestor and the approximate date of immigration. If you do not know this information, check the census records after 1900.

Search the Collection
To search the collection: ⇒Select "Browse through images" on the initial collection page ⇒Select the appropriate "Year" 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.

Using the Information
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

 * 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.
 * Indexes may contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings and misinterpretations.
 * When you select an image to view, sometimes the manifest includes more than one page, and when you use the "click to enlarge manifest" link, the image that appears is not always the first page of the record. You may need to click on the "previous" or "next" links to view the remaining pages of the full manifest.

Unable to Find Your Ancestor?

 * Look for variant spellings of the names. You should also look for alias names, nicknames and abbreviated names.
 * Try a different index if there is one for the years needed. You may also need to search the passenger lists year by year.
 * Search the indexes of other port cities.

Related Websites
National Archives and Records Center

Related Wiki Articles
Pennsylvania Emigration and Immigration

Citations for This Collection
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information; that is, cite your sources. This will help people find the record again and evaluate the reliability of the source. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records. Citations are available for the collection as a whole and each record or image individually.

Collection Citation:

Image citation: