Unofficial Guide to Ancestry.com, page 12
This sent me again to Fold3, as the site has many complete files. I searched for a widow’s pension and found several pages of pension files for Frederika (image F), including a copy of her marriage certificate (August 2, 1864). She was awarded an eight-dollars-a-month widow’s pension.
Interestingly, Anna’s 1890 claim was among the files I found. The letter (written in German) was translated, and both the original and translation are part of the lengthy file. Anna claimed that Adolph would never have married without telling his parents (which he did not do) and that she was entitled to his Army pension. Her claim was rejected.
You really never know what you’ll find in those military pension files!
Revolutionary War pension file excerpts, like this one from Fold3, can attest to details of a person’s wartime service.
This Civil War pension index card for Adolph Metzger, found in “General Index to Pension Files, 1861–1934,” notes the names of both his mother and wife.
7
USING IMMIGRATION AND TRAVEL RECORDS
Unless you have Native American heritage, your ancestors were among the tens of millions of immigrants who left Europe, Asia, Oceania, South and Central America, and Canada to make their way to the United States. Your family may have heritage steeped in the lore of County Kildare or may have lost to time the memory of a country of origin.
While Ellis Island is the most iconic immigration port in America, it certainly was not the first port of entry. With Europeans sailing to American shores as early as the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, Ellis Island was two to three hundred years down the road. In fact, Ellis Island didn’t open until 1892, just in time to welcome the surge of immigrants arriving in the early part of the twentieth century.
In 1819, the United States Congress passed legislation requiring arriving ships to carry a passenger manifest. The law, which took effect in 1820, made it mandatory for manifests to be presented to the customs house before anyone could depart the ship. Over time, those records came under the purview of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)
As tempting as it is to log into Ancestry.com and head directly to immigration records, you need to know an approximate date when your family immigrated to effectively find your immigrant ancestor. For example, if you found your ancestor on the 1880 federal census, it’s a sure bet they didn’t come through Ellis Island. In addition, knowing (or suspecting) a country of origin will help you to search the probable ports in which they entered the United States. So hang in there and let me cover some immigration basics and the major periods of immigration to the United States first.
A BRIEF LOOK AT AMERICAN IMMIGRATION
Europeans came to America far earlier than what we consider the eras of immigration. French trappers explored much of present-day Canada, the Spanish had long-held settlements in Florida and the Southwest, and the Russians and British vied for supremacy in the Pacific Northwest.
Beyond those early explorers, America witnessed approximately three major eras of immigration. The first is during what we call the Colonial Era, beginning around 1600 and continuing for approximately two hundred years. During this era, colonies were established along the Eastern seaboard, with the most important being Jamestown, Virginia (1607), New England (1620—think Mayflower), and New Amsterdam (1624). Colonists were primarily English, Dutch, and German.
The second main era is from 1800 until about 1900. This is when the potato famine rocked Ireland, when free land beckoned Scandinavians to the Great Plains, and when Chinese workers came to build the transcontinental railroad. It was also during this era that the California Gold Rush attracted newcomers from every corner of the globe.
As German and Irish immigrants hit America’s shores, many found steady work by joining the Army. A report compiled by the Adjutant General covering the years 1865 to 1874 showed half of all recruits were foreign-born: 20 percent were from Ireland, followed by 12 percent from Germany. If you’re having trouble finding your Irish or German ancestor’s immigration records, you may have more luck searching for them in the military (see chapter 6).
The last major immigration era began around the turn of the twentieth century. This was the heyday of Ellis Island and the great immigration from Eastern and Southern Europe, including many Jews seeking asylum from the pogroms in their homeland. Between 1892 and 1954, Ellis Island processed more than twelve million third-class and steerage immigrants. If your ancestors were of a higher social status (traveling first or second class), they would have been processed onboard steamships entering New York Harbor, not at Ellis Island.
BEGINNING YOUR SEARCH
Knowing the approximate date and probable ports where your ancestors arrived will help immensely as you search Ancestry.com immigration records. If you don’t already know the date or port of entry, you can use other genealogical records to help narrow your search.
Once you have that information, check out the records we’ll detail in this section.
Using Naturalization Records
One type of record that can be helpful in finding ancestors is the naturalization record. Naturalization is the process by which a foreign-born person becomes an American citizen. While a voluntary process, it is required for US citizenship. Naturalization records can provide you with clues to finding the name of the immigrant’s ship, age, place of residence, and place of birth.
Your ancestor first had to declare his intent to become a US citizen and renounce his allegiance to a foreign government. The record created from this was called a Declaration of Intention (image A). Early Declarations of Intention typically included the name of the person filing the intention, country of birth, application date, and signature. Records after 1906 were more detailed, noting physical description, birthplace, occupation, and (most importantly) the date and port of immigration. Beginning in 1929, a photo was also required. Three years after filing a Declaration of Intention, a person could file for a Petition for Naturalization. Once a petition was granted, a certificate of citizenship was issued.
Although naturalization laws were first established in 1790, the government has granted various people groups exceptions throughout history. First, from 1790 to 1922, wives of naturalized men were automatically granted citizenship. And up until 1940, children under the age of twenty-one automatically became naturalized citizens upon their father’s naturalization. Strangely, if a female US citizen married an alien, her citizenship was revoked. A second change to the law came about in 1824. From 1824 to 1906, foreign-born children who had lived in the United States five years before their twenty-third birthday could file for both their Declarations and Petitions at the same time. Additional exceptions were granted for military service, as, in many instances, a veteran could file a Petition for Naturalization without filing a Declaration of Intention.
Currently, Ancestry.com has more than two hundred thousand records in a collection titled “New York, New York County Supreme Court Naturalization Petition Index, 1907–1924.” Records may include important information such as birth location, occupation, spouse information, and witness names and addresses.
Naturalization records, such as this Declaration of Intention for Joseph Brooks, can be key in connecting you with other key details.
Using the US Census
Did you know that, in some instances, you can find immigration information in the federal census? Beginning in 1900 and continuing through 1930, the census required foreign-born people to declare their year of immigration and whether they were naturalized. On the 1920 census, respondents were asked for the year of naturalization. The 1940 census (the most recent census available) asks for citizenship of foreign-born people, with the following codes used (you’ll find this in column 16):
Na: Naturalized (image B)
Pa: Having first papers
Al: Alien
Am Cit: American citizen born abroad
Note that, on the 1940 census, a foreign-born person from Canada and Ireland was required to state whether he or she was Canada-French, Canada-English, or from the Irish Free State (Eire) or Northern Ireland (part of the United Kingdom).
Lastly, the 1870 US federal census had a column for “Male citizens of the U.S. aged 21 years and upwards.” If a foreign-born male checked this column he would have been naturalized prior to 1870.
Although the census can serve as a clue to finding the ancestor on a passenger list, censuses often have inconsistencies in how immigration and naturalization questions were answered. One ancestor I was researching gave three different dates of immigration on three different censuses.
You’ll also find birthplace information on the census, which is a huge help when doing immigration research. But again, inconsistencies abound. I’ve seen one person state his place of birth as Malta, England, Gibraltar, and Madrid. So if you find a birthplace on one census, be sure to check other census years for verification.
One other way the census can help in locating a country of origin is to check the censuses that ask for the person’s mother tongue. While this is not an infallible method, it definitely can be a clue. If your ancestral search takes you to Canada, be aware that the mother tongue can be listed on a census as Can (English), Can (Fr.), or English (Irish).
If your family arrived in America before 1820 or before the period when immigration status was requested on the census, you’ll need to consult other records in your search. We’ll discuss these later in this chapter.
The 1940 US federal census notes a person’s immigration status using an abbreviation. Na indicates the person is a naturalized citizen.
Ports of Entry
Again, we all think of Ellis Island when we think about the immigrant experience, but don’t limit your search to New York City. Other popular ports of entry included:
San Francisco, California (called “Angel Island”; arrivals came primarily from China)
Baltimore, Maryland (a favored pre-American Revolution port)
Boston, Massachusetts
Castle Garden, New York City (operated until Ellis Island opened)
Charleston, South Carolina (records from 1820)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (major port of entry beginning in 1815)
Port Townsend, Washington (arrivals from China)
St. Albans, Vermont (arrivals from Canada)
AN OVERVIEW OF ANCESTRY.COM’S IMMIGRATION RECORDS
Ancestry.com has the world’s largest online collection of immigration records. In addition to arrivals in America, you also can find collections of immigrant lists from Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Those with Canadian or Mexican heritage may find family in one of the bordercrossing collections.
Ancestry.com’s Immigration and Travel category has six major subcategories:
Passenger Lists
Crew Lists
Border Crossings and Passports
Citizenship and Naturalization Records
Immigration and Emigration Books
Ship Pictures and Descriptions
Each subcategory has its own unique records. Some contain images, original documents, digitized copies of books, or just simple indexes. You can do a global search of the entire Immigration and Travel category or search each collection individually.
To do a global search of these collections, select Immigration and Travel from the Search tab in Ancestry.com’s main menu or go to the Card Catalog, then select Immigration and Travel (in the left column) and click the Search Entire Immigration and Travel Category link.
But first, let’s look at what you can find in each subcategory.
Passenger Lists
As noted earlier, the US government required ships to present a passenger manifest list beginning in 1820. Early passenger lists included only basic information about immigrants, such as name, age, occupation, nationality, and gender. After 1892, immigration passenger lists added details such as last town of residence and final destination in the United States; the latter often included the name of a friend or relative in the states. Additionally, passenger lists noted whether the person could read or write, his general state of health, and his race. After 1906, you’ll also find a physical description. While details vary from ship to ship and era to era, you can expect to find:
full name
date of birth
birthplace
last residence (city and country)
occupation
associates already in America
intended destination in America
traveling companions
When searching passenger lists, don’t stop with just finding your ancestor’s name. Check out the names of other people on the list, and you’re likely to find other family members or neighbors. These same people probably lived close to your relative during a census, later married into your family, or witnessed a legal document.
You also can find annotations on a passenger list such as an X by the name of someone who was detained. Passengers may have been held due to a health condition or a woman may have been held until her husband or a relative came to get her. If you’re interested in learning more about passenger list annotations, check out the great (and free) guide online at
In the Passenger Lists subcategory of Ancestry.com, you’ll find records from around the world, including US, Swedish, German, Australian, Canadian, and Irish collections. I suggest using Ancestry.com’s Card Catalog to filter by Passenger Lists and Location (image C). Remember the caveat from chapter 3—be creative in your filters. For instance, if you filter passenger lists by Location: Asia, you’ll turn up two seemingly odd choices:
“Netherlands, Dutch East India Company Passenger Lists to India, 1699–1794” (in Dutch)
“Israel, Sarajevo Survivors Who Went to Israel, December 1948”
Knowing that Ancestry.com can select curious categories for collection, you may want to add a keyword to your search filters.
When researching passenger lists, consider filtering by location using the Card Catalog.
Crew Lists
This group of collections contains, not only crew lists, but also passenger lists, masters’ and mates’ certificates, and crew lists of airplane departures. The latter contains indexes to passengers and crews departing or arriving from various cities, including Seattle, Miami, San Diego, and Honolulu. Some of the crew lists span several decades, others only a few years. Image D from the collection “Dorset, England Crew Lists, 1863–1914” lists the names of the shipmaster and the crew, age, place of birth, name of ship, date and place of joining and discharge from the ship, capacity (e.g., master, mate), date, and place and cause of death or leaving the ship.
Passenger lists aren’t the only manifests worth researching. Crew lists provide valuable information about the shipmaster and his crew.
Border Crossings and Passports
The most common collections you’ll find in this group are bordercrossings to and from the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Also of great interest are passport applications. This group of collections also includes a few oddball records that you may not expect (remember to use the keyword filter!), such as internal Lithuanian passports (which, despite the name, are really identity cards rather than passports).
“Border Crossings from Canada to the U.S., 1895–1956,” detail the person’s name, age, residence, race, physical description, and destination (image E). Crossings in the collection “From Canada to U.S., 1895–1956,” have records for crossings into many of the US states bordering Canada:
Idaho
Maine
Minnesota
Montana
New York
North Dakota
Vermont
Washington
If you’re unsure of which state your ancestor might have crossed into, search for a map of the United States and find the state closest to where he lived in Canada. This makes for a good starting point.
US passport applications can provide a high level of detailed information about your ancestor, such as birth date and place, birth date of father, occupation, destination, and physical description. The description itself has more information than you’re likely to find elsewhere, such as shape of nose, mouth, chin, and face. Even if your family never applied for a passport, it’s fun to look up famous people like Franklin Roosevelt, who applied for a passport when he was assistant secretary of the Navy.
Prior to 1941, US citizens were not required to have passports for travel abroad, except for a few brief periods around the time of the Civil War and World War I.
Immigrants often came to Canada or Mexico before making their way to the United States, so look for bordercrossing records like the ones found in “Border Crossings: From Canada to U.S., 1895–1956.”
Citizenship and Naturalization Records
Ancestry.com has an impressive collection of naturalization records, ranging from records by state, records of intent (mentioned earlier), consulate applications, and oaths of allegiance. Several of these collections are indexes only, while others contain images of original documents.
