Massachusetts, Naturalization Records, 1906-1917

What is in This Collection?

This collection consists of petitions for admission to citizenship and records of naturalization from the U.S. District and Circuit of Massachusetts for the period, Sept. 1906- April 3,1917 covering volumes 1 to 92. The collection is part of Record Group 21 Records of the United States District Courts of the United States and is National Archives microfilm publication M1368 Petitions and Records of Naturalizations of the U.S. District and Circuit Courts of the District of Massachusetts, 1906-1929, 330 rolls. The collection includes military naturalization petitions from Camp Devens and the Boston area.

The records are arranged by the date the petition was filed.

• U.S. District Court Petitions, September, 1906-June, 1929, vols. 1-425,rolls, 1-309. This series also included military petitions from Camp Devens and the Boston area, vols. 130A-145
• U.S. District Court Military Petitions, January-July 1919, rolls 310-317
• U.S. Circuit Court Petitions, October, 1906-December, 1911, rolls 318-330

Additional records and/or images may be added to this collection in the future.

To Browse This Collection

What Can These Records Tell Me?

The following information may be found in these records

Collection Content

Sample Images

• Massachusetts, Naturalization Records
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  1907 Petition

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  1907 Oath of Allegience

The actual naturalization volumes vary in size and format. Prior to 1906 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.