You can learn more about your ancestors’ immigration experience if they became a U.S. citizen.
In order to become a citizen, an individual followed the following process:
- Declared his intent to become a citizen in front of a court. Declarations of intent can be rich in details about a ancestor’s life before immigration, including their birth date, birth place, when they migrated, and ports of departure and arrival. They may detail the persons migration within the United States. Sometimes family details are included, such as names of their spouses and children, along with ages.
- Petitioned to become a citizen after a period of time set by federal law. At the time of their naturalization, the person may state where they filed their declaration of intent, which may be in another county or state if they have moved. Sometimes other citizens in the county vouched for the individual and can expand your knowledge of your ancestors’ family, friends, neighbors, and associates.
Individuals could file their naturalization documents in any court from the federal to state to local level before the 1950s. Records relating to your ancestors’ naturalization process may be found in a variety of locations in Indiana:
- Circuit Court Order Books
- Common Pleas Order Books
- Probate Order Books
- Superior Court Order Books
- Naturalization Books
- Loose papers
The Indiana State Archives is the official repository of Indiana naturalization records prior to 1951, with the exception of naturalizations found in court order books. Unfortunately, some counties submitted none or only some of their records. A partial index of these records are online at the Indiana Digital Archives.
An incomplete index of Indiana naturalizations has been compiled into An Index to Naturalization Records in Pre-1907 Order Books of Indiana County Courts by Indiana Historical Society (Indianapolis, 2001).
Check each county for online records: