Naturalization

Naturalization, the way in which an immigrant ancestor became a U.S. citizen, was accomplished in two separate stages. First, immigrants filed their "first papers," which also are known as a "Declaration of Intention." After a mandatory residency period, immigrants then filed their petition for citizenship, which included taking an oath of allegiance to the U.S. government and proving they had met the residency requirements.

Naturalization papers were filed in a court -- either a federal, state, or local court. When the legal requirements for naturalization were satisfied, the court issued a Certificate of Naturalization. First and final papers did not have to be filed in the same court.

Naturalization records for many Michigan counties have been forwarded to the State Archives of Michigan. Naturalization indexes for more than 20 counties are online.

For more information about naturalization records, see Chapter 2 of Michigan Genealogy.

A companion site for the book Michigan Genealogy.
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