Tennessee, Gibson County Naturalization Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Record Description
This collection consists of images of naturalization records from Gibson County for the years 1825 to 1900.

Record Content
The information given for each petition includes the following:


 * Name of the petitioner
 * Residence
 * Country of birth
 * Place and date of arrival
 * Names of two witnesses
 * Petition number
 * Date of petition
 * Volume and page number of the petition

Declaration of Intent and Naturalization Petitions usually included the following:


 * Name of the immigrant
 * Country of birth
 * Arrival date
 * Date of Declaration of Intent or Naturalization
 * Names of witnesses
 * Signature of judge or court official
 * Birth date
 * Birthplace
 * Age
 * Race
 * Last foreign residence
 * Current residence
 * Arrival place
 * Marital status
 * Name of spouse
 * Maiden name of wife
 * Birth date of spouse
 * Residence of spouse

How to Use the Record
To begin your search it is helpful to know:


 * Full name of your ancestor
 * Other identifying information such as the approximate immigration and naturalization dates, birth date, age or residence

Search the Collection
To search the collection: ⇒Select "Browse through images" on the initial collection page ⇒ Select the "Record Category" ⇒ Select the appropriate "Record Type, Volume, and Year Range" which takes you to the images.

Many of these volumes have indexes at the beginning or end. You should search these first.


 * Check the index for the family name (surname) and then the given name. Indexes enable you to access records quickly by searching for the names of the primary individuals. Realize that some entries in earlier years may have been missed. Indexes may also contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings or misinterpretations.
 * Make a list of the volumes and page numbers for each deed you wish to check.
 * For each deed, search the noted volume and page number.

If you do not find your ancestor in the index, 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 naturalization records 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

 * 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.

Unable to Find Your Ancestor?

 * Look for variant spellings of the names. You should also look for alias names, nicknames and abbreviated names.
 * Look for an index. There are often indexes at the beginning of each volume. Local genealogical and historical societies often have indexes to local records.
 * Search the indexes and records of nearby localities.

Related Websites

 * Gibson County Tennessee Archives US GenWeb
 * Tennessee GenWeb
 * Gibson County, TN History, Records, Facts and Genealogy

Related Wiki Articles

 * Tennessee Naturalization and Citizenship
 * Gibson County, Tennessee Genealogy
 * Tennessee Online Genealogy Records
 * Tennessee Genealogy
 * United States Naturalization and Citizenship
 * United States Naturalization Online Genealogy Records
 * United States Immigration Online Genealogy Records
 * United States Naturalization Laws
 * United States Naturalization Types

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.

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