New York, New York Passenger and Crew Lists - FamilySearch Historical Records

Record Description
The collection consists of images of passenger arrivals in New York Harbor for the years 1925 to 1942. The lists consist of large sheets of paper divided into columns and rows. The lists usually occupy two pages.

Passenger arrival lists known as customs manifests date back to 1820. However, the first official emigration station for New York was Castle Garden, located at the tip of lower Manhattan. Congressional action in 1891 resulted in federal immigration officials recording the immigrants’ arrival. After January 1892, passengers arriving in New York debarked at Ellis Island, located east of Manhattan in the New York Harbor. From 1892 to 1924, almost all immigrants entered the United States through the port of New York.

The passenger arrival list was used by legal inspectors to cross-examine each immigrant during a legal inspection prior to the person being allowed to live in America. Only two percent of the prospective immigrants were denied entry.

The information was supplied by the immigrant or a traveling companion (usually a family member). Incorrect information was occasionally given, or mistakes may have been made when the clerk guessed at the spelling of foreign names.

For a list of records by localities and dates currently published in this collection, select the Browse.

Citation for This Collection
The following citation refers to the original source of the information published in FamilySearch.org Historical Records collections. Sources include the author, custodian, publisher, and archive for the original records.

Suggested citation format for a record in this collection.

Record Content
Passenger lists, particularly later lists, include the following information:


 * Name of ship and port of departure
 * Ship's arrival date and port of entry
 * Names of immigrants
 * Immigrants' age, gender, marital status and occupation
 * Country where immigrant has citizenship
 * Last place of residence in that country
 * Name of relative or friend living at last residence
 * Name of relative or friend to be visited in this country
 * Final destination
 * Physical description
 * Birthplace

How to Use the Records
To begin your search it is helpful to know the name and date of entry into the United States. If you do not know this information, check the census records after 1900.

To search the collection by name fill in the requested information in the boxes on the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the individuals in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. You may need to look at the information on several individuals comparing the information about them 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.

For tips about searching on-line collections see the on-line video at FamilySearch Search Tips.

To search the collection image by image you will need to follow this series of links: ⇒Select the "Browse" link in the initial search page ⇒Select the "NARA Roll Description" category which takes you to the images

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 and 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.

Unable to Find Your Ancestor?

 * Check for variant spellings. Realize that the indexes may contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings and misinterpretations.
 * 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 of other port cities.

Please note that 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.

Known Issues with This Collection
For a full list of all known issues associated with this collection see the attached Wiki article. If you encounter additional problems, please email them to [mailto:support@familysearch.org support@familysearch.org]. Please include the full path to the link and a description of the problem in your e-mail. Your assistance will help ensure that future reworks will be considered.

Related Web Sites

 * Ancestor Search
 * The Statue of Liberty - Ellis Island Foundation, Inc.
 * Ellis Island JewishGen - contains advanced search tools and access to lost manifests
 * Ellis Island WikiMedia Commons

Related Wiki Articles

 * New York Emigration and Immigration
 * New York History
 * New York, Passenger Arrival Lists (Ellis Island) (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * New York, New York, Index to Passenger Lists (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * Free Online New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1897

Citing FamilySearch Historical Collections
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information. This will help you or others to find the record again. 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.

A suggested format for keeping track of records that you have searched is found in the wiki article Help:How to Cite FamilySearch Collections.

Citation Example for a Record Found in This Collection
"New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1891," images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org: accessed 29 August 2012), vol 13762-13763 Sep 5-6 1939 &gt; Image 507 of 739, Iva B. Kempshall, 55, New York, New York, 19 Feb 1890; citing United States Immigration and Naturalization Service, Washington, D.C.