Illinois, County Naturalization Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Record Description
This Collection will include records from 1800 to 1862.

The collection consists of images of naturalization records from county courthouses in Illinois. The content and time period varies by county. Few counties have records after 1945.

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

Record Content
County Will Records may include the following information:


 * Full name of deceased
 * Name of county
 * Name of spouse
 * Names of children and where they are from
 * Date of Will
 * Names of witnesses

Naturalization Records usually include the following information:


 * Name of court
 * Full name of Petitioner
 * Place of residence
 * Occupation
 * Date and place of birth
 * Date of emigration, date of arrival
 * Port of entry and name of ship
 * Date and place of Declaration of Intent to become citizen
 * Name of spouse
 * Date of marriage
 * Number of children, name and residence of each child
 * Birth date and place of birth of each child
 * Able to speak English?
 * Affidavit of witness(es)

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


 * The full name of your ancestor
 * The approximate immigration and naturalization dates
 * The ancestor’s residence

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. If your ancestor naturalized befor 1900, check the census records to see when he or she first appeared in the census. This will give you a 10 year window in which they may have immigrated.

Search the Collection
To search the collection you will need to follow this series of links: ⇒Select "Browse" link in the initial search page ⇒Select "County" ⇒Select "Record Type, Year Range, Volume number/letter" which takes you to the images

Look at the images one by one comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine which one is your ancestor. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to make this determination.

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, 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?

 * Check for variant spellings. Realize that the indexes may contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings and misinterpretations.
 * Look for an index. Local genealogical and historical societies often have indexes to local records.
 * Search the naturalization records year by year.
 * Search the indexes of nearby counties.

General Information About Naturalization Records
Naturalization is the process of granting citizenship privileges and responsibilities to foreign-born residents. 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.

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.

Related Websites
Illinois Naturalization Records

Related Wiki Articles
Illinois Naturalization and Citizenship

Citing Family Search Historical Collections
Citations for individual image records are available for this collection. Browse through images in this collection and click on the "Show Citation" box: Illinois, County Naturalization Records, 1800-1962

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