New York, Naturalization Indexes - FamilySearch Historical Records

What is in This Collection?
This collection includes records from 1865 to 1957.

These collections are card indexes to naturalization records in the circuit and district courts of New York. The cards are arranged alphabetically by surname.

The actual naturalization volumes vary in size and format. Prior to the late 1800s each document was usually handwritten on one page. From the late 1800s and on, printed forms were used. After 1906 many entries were typewritten.

While there were various types of naturalization records, the Declaration of Intent and Naturalization Petition usually had the most complete genealogical information.

The first naturalization act was passed in 1802. Immigrants to the United States were not required to apply for citizenship. Of those who did apply, many did not complete the requirements for citizenship.

Naturalization to become a U.S. citizen was a two-part process: the Declaration of Intent to Naturalize, or First Papers, and the Naturalization Record (including the Naturalization Petition), or Final Papers. The First Papers were normally filed five years before the Final Papers because of the five-year residency requirement to become a citizen.

No centralized files existed before 1906. In 1906 federal forms replaced the various formats that had been used by the various courts. Copies were sent to the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), creating a central file for naturalization papers. The INS is now known as the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

Naturalization records are generally well preserved, but some records may have been lost to fire or other disasters.

Naturalization is the process of granting citizenship privileges and responsibilities to foreign-born residents. New York’s counties recorded naturalization procedures in the court records as legal proof of citizenship. The courts handling naturalizations changed several times so the card index was created as a way to quickly access specific records.

The index is very accurate and the information that was current at the time of naturalization was usually reliable. However, there was always a chance for misinformation. Errors may have occurred because of the informant’s lack of knowledge or because of transcription errors or other circumstances.

What Can These Records Tell Me?
The index cards include the following: Some of the index cards also show:
 * Petition number
 * Date of petition
 * Volume and page number of the petition
 * Declaration number
 * Date of declaration
 * Volume and page number of the declaration
 * Certification number
 * Date of issuance

Declaration of Intent and Naturalization Petitions usually included the following:
 * Full name of the immigrant
 * Current residence
 * Country of birth
 * Arrival date and port of entry
 * Date of Declaration of Intent or Naturalization
 * Date and court of naturalization
 * Names of witnesses
 * Signature of judge or court official

In post-1906 records, you may also find:
 * Birth date and place of immigrant
 * Age, race, marital status and occupation
 * Last foreign residence
 * Name of spouse
 * Maiden name of wife
 * Birth date of spouse
 * Residence of spouse

Jurisdictions
The Eastern District had jurisdiction over the following counties: The Southern District had jurisdiction over the following counties:
 * Kings (Brooklyn)
 * Nassau
 * Queens
 * Richmond
 * Suffolk


 * Bronx
 * Columbia
 * Dutchess
 * Greene
 * New York (Manhattan)
 * Orange
 * Putnam
 * Rockland
 * Sullivan
 * Westchester
 * Ulster

The Western District had jurisdiction over the following counties


 * Allegany
 * Cattaraugus
 * Chautauqua
 * Chemung
 * Erie
 * Genesee
 * Livingston
 * Monroe
 * Niagara
 * Ontario
 * Orleans
 * Schuyler
 * Seneca
 * Steuben
 * Wayne
 * Wyoming
 * Yates

How Do I Search This Collection?
Before searching this collection, it is helpful to know: If you do not know this information, check the 1900 census and then calculate the possible year of naturalization based on the date of immigration. The 1920 census may tell you the exact year of immigration or naturalization.
 * The full name of your ancestor
 * The approximate immigration and naturalization dates
 * The ancestor’s residence

Search the Index
 For the New York, Eastern District Naturalization Petitions, Index, 1865-1957 Collection:

 For the New York, Southern District Naturalization Index, 1917-1950 Collection:

 For the New York, Southern District Index to Petitions for Naturalization, 1824-1941 Collection:

 For the New York, Western District, Naturalization Index, 1907-1966 Collection:

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. Keep track of your research in a research log.

What Do I Do Next?
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.

I Found the Person I Was Looking For, What Now?
Use naturalization records to:
 * Add any new information to your records
 * 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
 * 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

I Can’t Find the Person I’m Looking For, What Now?

 * Check for variant spellings. Realize that the indexes may contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings and misinterpretations
 * 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 counties
 * Consult the New York Record Finder to find other records

Research Helps
The following articles will help you research your family in the state of New York.
 * Beginning Research in United States Naturalization Records
 * New York Guided Research
 * New York Research Tips and Strategies
 * Step-by-Step New York Research, 1880-Present

Other FamilySearch Collections
These collections may have additional materials to help you with your research.

FamilySearch Catalog

 * New York State Council of Genealogical Organizations. Naturalization records of New York State : a New York State Council of Genealogical Organizations publication. Hilton, New York : The Leaded Pane, 1996 FHL 974.7 P47n
 * Index to naturalization petitions of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, 1865-1957: M1164
 * Eastern District. Declarations of intention, 1865-1941
 * Eastern District. Final Petitions and Citizenship Papers, 1865-1958
 * Eastern District. New York, New York, declarations of intention for citizenship, 1929-1942
 * Eastern District. Petitions for naturalization filed at Fort Hamilton during WWI, 1918-1920

FamilySearch Historical Records

 * New York, Southern District, U.S District Court Naturalization Records, 1824-1946
 * New York, Southern District Naturalization Index, 1917-1950
 * New York, Southern District Index to Petitions for Naturalization, 1824-1941

FamilySearch Digital Library

 * Henry T. Ulasek and Marion Johnson, comp. Preliminary inventory of the records of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (record group 21) Washington, D.C. : National Archives & Records Administration, 1959

Citing This Collection
Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.