Indiana Naturalization Records and Indexes - FamilySearch Historical Records

United States Indiana

What is in the Collection?
This collection contains seven naturalization indexes of the Northern and Southern Districts of the U.S. District Court in the state of Indiana. The Indexes are part of Record Group 21 Records of District Courts of the United States and was acquired of the National Archives at Chicago.


 * Northern District
 * South Bend Division, Index to Petitions for Naturalization, 1955-1967 5682644
 * South Bend Division, Index to Petitions for Naturalization,1955-1991 5682646
 * Hammond Division, Index to Petitions for Naturalization,1907-1985 5890428
 * Fort Wayne Division, Index to Petitions for naturalization, 1930-1984 5674638
 * Hammond Division, Lafayette Term,Index to Petitions for Naturalization,1956-1984 5687052


 * Southern District
 * Indianapolis Division,Index to Declarations of Indention and Petitions for Naturalization,1927-1992 4481511
 * Indianapolis Division, Index to Declarations of Intentions and Petitions for Naturalization,1907-1962 4478178

What Can this Collection Tell Me?
These records usually include the following information:


 * Full name of citizen
 * Residence at the time of naturalization
 * Birth place
 * Admission date
 * Certificate date
 * Name of court
 * Petition number
 * Registration number
 * Signature

How Do I Search the Collection?
To begin your search it is helpful to know:


 * The name of your ancestor.
 * The approximate date of naturalization.
 * The place where the naturalization took place.

Search by Name by visiting the Collection Page: Fill in the requested information on the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about those in the list to what you already know about your own 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.

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 appropriate "Name Range" 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.

With either search 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.

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

What Do I Do Next?
When you have located your ancestor’s naturalization record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. Download a copy of the record, or extract the genealogical information needed. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details. Add this new information to your records of each family. The information may also lead you to other records about your ancestors.

I Found Who I was Looking for, What Now?

 * 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
 * Immigrants could naturalize in any court that performed naturalizations. That included city, county, state and federal courts. Begin by looking for naturalization records in the courts of the county or city where the immigrant lived.
 * Look first for the petition (second papers), because they are usually easier to find in courts near where the immigrant eventually settled.
 * After 1906, the declaration can be filed with the petition as the immigrant was required to submit a copy when he submitted the petition.
 * Because immigrants were allowed to naturalize in any court, they often selected the most convenient court. If they worked somewhere other than their residence, they may have gone to a court closer to work to naturalize.
 * Look for the Declaration of Intent soon after the immigrant arrived, and then look for the Naturalization Petition five years later, when the residency requirement would have been met. Look for naturalization records in federal courts and then in state, county, or city courts.
 * An individual may have filed the first and final papers in different courts and sometimes in a different state if the person moved. Immigrants who were younger than 18 when they arrived did not need to file a Declaration of Intent as part of the process.
 * 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 naturalization records to identify siblings, parents, and other relatives in the same or other generations who may have naturalized in the same area or nearby.
 * The witnesses named on naturalization records may have been older relatives of the person in the naturalization process. Search for their naturalizations.
 * You may want to obtain the naturalization records 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.
 * Realize that the indexes may contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings and misinterpretations.

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

 * Check for variant spellings of the names and for nicknames.
 * Try a different index if there is one for the years needed. You may also need to search the naturalization records year by year.
 * Search the indexes of nearby localities.

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