Series 85113

DESCRIPTION: To become a citizen of the United States, an individual normally filed a "declaration of intention to become a citizen" at least two years prior to applying for citizenship. The next step was the naturalization hearing at which the candidate and witnesses either made oral statements or filed written petitions and affidavits attesting to the applicant's character, worthiness to become a citizen, and the validity of statements made to the court. If the judge found the applicant eligible to become a citizen, an oath was administered and the individual renounced his former citizenship. At this point a certificate of citizenship was issued documenting the fact. This book contains signed statements of individuals' intentions to become citizens of the United States. The records were kept by the court clerk on preprinted forms.

The declarations of intention have blanks for the insertion of the individual's name, his former sovereign, date, and signatures of the individual and the court clerk witnessing the statement. Declarations of intention document the applicant's intention to later become a U.S. citizen and to renounce his current citizenship.

ARRANGEMENT: Entries are chronological.

RELATED RECORDS: Some of the declarations of intention for the First District Court from the territorial period were recorded in volumes used by other courts. Volume A of the DECLARATIONS OF INTENTION AND CERTIFICATES OF CITIZENSHIP RECORD BOOKS, series 3942, of the Supreme Court contain these records recorded from 1852 to 1856. DECLARATIONS OF INTENTION RECORD BOOKS, series 85169, from the 4th District Court include 1st District declarations recorded in Weber County from 1880 to 1892. Copies of these declarations may also be found in the case files of the First District Court. First District Court minutes may contain more details about specific naturalization hearings. Some CERTIFICATES OF CITIZENSHIP issued to newly naturalized citizens from 1890-1892 by the territorial First District Court are in series 83895.

The CITIZENSHIP CERTIFICATES from the other district courts might also contain records of individuals whose declarations are in this series: the Second District, series 85175, the Third District, series 85110; and the Fourth District (from 1894-1895), series 85170 should also be consulted. County probate courts held concurrent jurisdiction in citizenship cases during this time, and records of these could also be checked. At statehood in 1896, the district court began keeping separate series of naturalization records and declarations of intention in each county. For other possible sources consult the Research Guide to Naturalization records.

PROCESSING NOTE: The 1884-1896 volume was microfilmed in 1966 by the LDS Genealogical Society. Archivally processed by A.C. Cone in 1989. The 1880-1883 volume was located in State Archives holdings in 1998 and the series inventory updated with that volume filmed in 1999.

CONTAINER LIST