Alaska Naturalization Records, 1884-1992

What is in This Collection?

This collection consists of Alaska naturalization records from the collections at theNational Archives at Seattle for the years 1884-1991. The records are part of Record 21 Records of the United States District Courts'

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.

Related National Archives Collections

• Petitions for Naturalization Filed in Ketchikan, Alaska, 1960–1988 US District Court - Juneau Division
• Petitions for Naturalization Filed in Kodiak, Alaska, 1931–1960 US Territorial Court - Third (Valdez) Division]
• Petitions for Naturalization Filed in Seward, Alaska, 1911–1956 US Territorial Court - Third (Valdez) Division
• Petitions for Naturalization Filed in McGrath, Alaska, 1928–1932 US Territorial Court - Fourth (Fairbanks) Division
• Petitions for Naturalization Filed at Bethel, Alaska, 1927–1932 US Territorial Court - (Fairbanks) Division
• Petitions for Naturalization Filed in Ruby, Alaska, 1926–1931 US Territorial Court - Fourth (Fairbanks) Division

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

What Can These Records Tell Me?

Collection Content

Sample Image

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  1908 Declaration of Intent

Inventory

An inventory listing the films and digital folders included in this collection can be seen at Alaska Naturalization Records - Inventory.