Ohio Naturalization and Citizenship

Online Resources

 * 1795-1925 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1800-1977 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1800-1977 Find my Past, index
 * 1800-1977 Ohio, County Naturalization Records, 1800-1977 ($)
 * 1800-1977 My Heritage, ($), index
 * 1800-1977 Ohio: County Naturalization Records, 1800-1977 at American Ancestors - index & images, ($)
 * 1852-1991 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1852-1991 Ohio, Southern District Naturalization Index, 1852-1991 at Ancestry - index ($)
 * 1855-1967 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1855-1967 U.S. Naturalization Records Indexes for Ohio, Northern District, Eastern Division, Cleveland 1855-1967 - U.S. District Court ($)
 * 1906-1943 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1907-1946 Naturalization Petition and Record Books for the US District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Eastern Division, Cleveland, 1907-1946 ($)
 * 1907-1946 Ohio, Naturalization Petition and Record Books, 1907-1946 ($)
 * 1944-2003 U.S., Index to Alien Case Files, 1944-2003 at Ancestry — index, ($)

Availability of Records
Naturalization records have been filed in the U.S. District and Circuit Courts and in the local courts in Ohio counties, especially in the courts of common pleas and the probate courts (after 1851). No centralized files exist before 1906.

Various types of records were created by the courts, including declarations, petitions, alien dockets, and military petitions for naturalization. Each record in the naturalization process may give different details about the person's travels, such as the date and port of arrival or the name of the ship. Not all counties recorded the same information.

Statewide List

 * Schaefer, Christina K. Guide to Naturalization Records in the United States. (Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publishing, 1997.) ; A statewide list of Ohio naturalization records.


 * For each county, this book describes the court; the years the records exist; where the originals are housed; and the FS Library film numbers, if they have been microfilmed. This book was published in 1997, so the FamilySearch Library has acquired additional records since then. Always search the FamilySearch Catalog for naturalization information in the county. The introduction discusses the naturalization process, the types of records created, and the usual genealogical content of each record.

U.S. District Court Records

 * United States. District Court (Ohio: Southern District), Naturalization Index, 1852-1991. (Salt Lake City, Utah: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1992.) An index to the records for the court at Cincinnati. There are three indexes in this set: 1852 to 1892; 1906 to 1986; and 1917 to 1991. The original records are at the U.S. District Court, Cincinnati.


 * The FamilySearch Library also has the U.S. District Court records which have been microfilmed for the Ohio Southern District Courts held at Dayton, Columbus and Cincinnati and the Ohio Northern District Courts, Eastern Division held in Cleveland. Mostly for the period 1916 to 1931, the records include petitions, declarations of intention, and military petitions for naturalization. They are listed in the Place Search of the FamilySearch Catalog under:




 * The National Archives at Chicago has many naturalization records that have not been microfilmed. These include:


 * U.S. District Court, Ohio Northern District, Eastern Division, Cleveland. Naturalizations, 1855-1943.
 * U.S. District Court, Ohio Southern District, Eastern Division, Columbus. Naturalizations, 1916-51.
 * U.S. District Court, Ohio Southern District, Western Division, Dayton. Naturalizations, 1906-30.


 * Available on microfilm at the National Archives at Chicago, but not at the FamilySearch Library, is:


 * U.S. Circuit Court, Ohio Southern District, Western Division. Naturalization Records, 1852-1905.

Locating the Correct District Court
To determine the district court your ancestor lived in, click on United States District Court Jurisdictions. You must know the county your ancestor resided in.

Post 1906 Records

 * Post 1906 - For naturalization records after September 1906, contact the National Archives at Chicago.
 * After 1917, records may also be found at the U.S. District Courts in Dayton, Columbus, Cincinnati, Toledo and Cleveland or use the Genealogy Program at www.uscis.gov.

The Ohio Historical Society in Columbus includes a listing of their holdings of naturalization records on their Internet site, which is mentioned in Ohio Archives and Libraries.

FamilySearch Library

 * The FamilySearch Library has microfilms of naturalization applications from most counties, generally covering the years 1850 to about 1906 or later. These are listed in the Place Search of the FamilySearch Catalog under:


 * OHIO, [COUNTY] - NATURALIZATION AND CITIZENSHIP

Records of larger cities may also be found under:


 * OHIO, [COUNTY], [TOWN] - NATURALIZATION AND CITIZENSHIP.


 * The FamilySearch Library has microfilm of a unique naturalization collection created by the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections at

Websites

 * From Naturalization Card File in Mansfield Probate Court
 * Immigration at Ancestry
 * Naturalization Records at Footnote
 * Indexes to Seamen's Protection Certificate Applications and Proofs of Citizenship at Ancestry
 * Naturalization Index - WWI Soldiers at Footnote
 * Ohio Naturalization
 * Ohio Naturalization Record Helps
 * Passport Applications, 1795-1905 at Footnote
 * U.S. Passport Applications, 1795-1925 At Ancestry