Title: Wisconsin. Circuit Court (Lafayette County): Naturalization Records
Inclusive Dates: 1847-1954

Creator:

• Wisconsin. Circuit Court (Lafayette County)

Call Number: Lafayette Series 19

Quantity: 10.7 c.f. (9 archives boxes, 3 flat boxes, 9 card boxes, 1 CD box, and 11 volumes), 10 reels of microfilm (35 mm), and 2 reels of microfilm (16 mm)

Repository:

Housed at the Southwest Wisconsin Room and Area Research Center, Ullsvik Hall, University of Wisconsin-Platteville; owned by the Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Library, Archives, and Museum Collections

Archival Locations:

UW-Platteville Southwest Wisconsin Room / Platteville Area Research Ctr. (Map)

COLLECTION MAY BE STORED OFF-SITE: see catalog entry to request materials and for additional information.

Abstract:

Records of naturalization cases in the Circuit Court of Lafayette County, 1847-1954. Records include Declarations of Intention (1848-1954), Card Index to Declarations (1850-1939), Index to Intentions (1847-1878), Index to Citizenship (1880-1891), Petitions (1880-1954), Card Index to Petitions (1847-1954), Certificate of Naturalization Stub Books (1907-1927), Register of Citizenship (1847-1879), and Orders Granting and Denying Petitions (1929-1954).

Note:

The microfilm portion of this series was produced in 1987, 1999, and 2006 by the Genealogical Society of Utah which holds the master negative.

Language: English

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-lafa0019

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See a general description of the naturalization process and naturalization records.

General

The Lafayette County Naturalization Records consist of Declarations of Intention, Petitions, indexes to these records, plus Orders Granting and Denying Petitions and Naturalization Stub Books.

The original system of numbering volumes was retained because the indexes are often keyed to that system. For preservation purposes some volumes have been dismantled and placed in boxes. Because volume numbers are duplicated, when requesting a particular volume, the researcher should specify not only the volume number but also the type of volume and dates.

Indexes

The CARD INDEX TO DECLARATIONS, 1850-1939, gives the date, volume, and page number for Declarations in Volumes 1-2 and 1X-6X, and the volume and declaration number for those in Volumes 7X and 8X. However, this index appears not to include those in Volume 8X after Declaration number 709. (The researcher also should be aware that all the Declaration of Intention volumes are arranged more or less in chronological order, except Volume 8X, which is in reverse chronological order.)

The Declarations in Boxes 11-17 are not indexed in the Card Index to Declarations but are indexed by INDEX TO INTENTIONS, 1847-1878. The Index to Intentions provides the name and date but not a volume number. These boxed Declarations are original copies of many of the Declarations in Volumes 1-2. They are arranged in alphabetical order and concentrated in, but are not exclusively confined to, the years 1848-1884.

The CARD INDEX TO PETITIONS, 1847-1954, gives the date, volume, and page number for Petitions in Volumes 1X-7X, and the volume and Petition number for those in Volumes 8X-10X. (Note that Volumes 8X-10X are arranged in reverse chronological order.) This index also gives the volume and page for Petitions filed prior to 1906 (Volumes 14 and 15). Entries may refer to these volumes as “Vol. 11” or “Vol. B” or “Vol. 10” or “Vol. C.”

Some anomalies in the CARD INDEX TO PETITIONS should be pointed out:

• 1) Generally the space on the index card which gives the volume and page number also gives a year, which is usually earlier than the year in which the Petition was filed. This year is the first year to be found in the volume cited. This information serves no useful indexing function and therefore can be ignored.
• 2) For many individuals there are two index cards. The second card gives a volume and page number for volumes that are not contained in this collection. Only those cards which list a volume number suffixed by an “X”actually refer to materials in this collection.
• 3) Occasionally there is only the type of card which does not give a volume suffixed by an “X” (see note #2). In those instances, the date of naturalization is the key locator item. The researcher should request the volume which contains this date and then search for the Petition, keeping in mind that Volumes 1X-7X are arranged more or less in chronological order and Volumes 8X-10X more or less in reverse chronological order.

The INDEX TO INTENTIONS, 1847-1878, gives the name of the applicant and date of intention. It is organized by last name of the applicant and is roughly chronological thereunder. This index does give any volume numbers.

The INDEX TO CITIZENSHIP, 1880-1891, indexes intentions, petitions, and certificates. For each name the volume gives the name of the applicant, volume number, page number, date of intention, and county in which the intention was filed. For petitions and certificates, the volume gives the volume, page number, and date of the document. This volume contains very few names.

Other Indexes

At the beginning of most volumes there is an index to that particular volume. These indexes are arranged in alphabetical segments by first letter of surname and more or less chronologically therein. They give the page or document number.

Records

The DECLARATIONS OF INTENTION consist of three distinct groups: 1850-1906 (Volumes 1-2), 1848-1884 (Boxes 11-17), and 1906-1910 (Volumes 1X-8X). Although those in the 1850-1906 group and the 1848-1884 group cover the same time period, the Declarations in each group are unique: they do not duplicate each other. The Declarations in the 1850-1906 group list name, county of birth, the foreign ruler whose allegiance is being renounced, age, port of embarkation, and arrival date. Each volume contains a name index. Declarations in the 1848-1884 group contain some of the same data elements, but in general contain less information.

PETITIONS, 1903-1906, (Vol. 15) was originally titled “Volume 10 or C.” It contains petitions, oaths of witness, the final oath, and certificate for each petitioner. All elements appear on the same page for each name. There index at the front of the volume which is incomplete.

PETITIONS, 1880-1903, (Vol. 14) was originally titled “Volume 11 or B.” It contains petitions only.

MISCELLANEOUS RECORDS consist of a Register of Citizenship, 1847-1879, Orders Granting and Denying Petitions, 1929-1954, and Naturalization Stub Books, 1907-1927.

The Register of Citizenship, 1847-1879, lists the name and date of citizenship. The names are arranged alphabetically by last name and are roughly chronological. Each entry was numbered, presumably this was to keep track of the number of entries for each letter. The volume does not make references to other volumes.

Orders Granting and Denying Citizenship, 1929-1954, list name, any change of name, and the petition number for each individual.

Naturalization Stub Books, 1907-1927, record name; certificate number; date; name of issuing court; number of the Declaration; volume and number of the Petition; date of the court order; and the names, ages, and places of residence of the spouse and minor children.

Declarations of Intention from 1849 are included in Wisconsin. Circuit Court (Lafayette County): Orders and Decrees (Lafayette Series 28).

Acquisition Information

Accession Number: C1986/027, C1987/033, C1987/076, C1987/088, C1989/047, C1998/069, C2008/063

Lafayette Series 19	Series: Indexes, 1847-1954
	Card Index to Declarations, 1850-1939
Box   1 Reel   1	A-C
Box   2 Reel   1	D-G
Box   3 Reel   1	H-K
Box   4 Reel   1	L-N
Box   5 Reel   1	O-S
Box   6 Reel   1	T-Z
	Card Index to Petitions, 1847-1954
Box   7 Reel   2	A-H
Box   8 Reel   2	I-Q
Box   9 Reel   2	R-Z
Volume   [11] Reel   12	Index to Intentions, 1847-1878
Volume   [12] Reel   11	Index to Citizenship, 1880-1891
	Series: Declarations of Intention, 1848-1954	⇧
Volume   (1), in Box 10 Reel   3	1850-1892
Volume   2 Reel   3	1892-1906
Volume	Index to Volume 2
	1848-1884
Box   11 Reel   3-4	A-Colson
Box   12 Reel   4	Coltman-Green
Box   13 Reel   4-5	Greenan-Kelley
Box   14 Reel   5	Kelling-Maguire
Box   15 Reel   5-6	Mahan-Pearce
Box   16 Reel   6	Pedelty-Stanaway
Box   17 Reel   6-7	Stans-Z
Volume   (1X), in Box 18 Reel   7	, 1906-1910 (#1-100)
Volume   (2X), in Box 18 Reel   7	, 1910-1914 (#101-200)
Volume   (3X), in Box 18 Reel   7	, 1914-1916 (#201-300)
Volume   (4X), in Box 18 Reel   7	, 1916-1920 (#301-394)
Volume   (5X), in Box 18 Reel   7	, 1920-1923 (#395-494)
Volume   (6X), in Box 18 Reel   7	, 1923-1928 (#495-594)
Volume   (7X), in Box 18 Reel   7	, 1928-1929 (#595-610)
Volume   (8X), in Box 18 Reel   7	, 1929-1954 (#611-765)
	Series: Petitions, 1880-1954	⇧
Volume   [14] Reel   11	1880-1903 Note: Originally designated Vol. 11 or Vol. B
Volume   [15] Reel   11	1903-1906 Note: Originally designated Vol. 10 or Vol. C
Volume   (1X), in Box 19 Reel   7	, 1907-1909 (#1-50)
Volume   (2X), in Box 19 Reel   7-8	, 1909-1911 (#51-100)
Volume   3X Reel   8	, 1911-1914 (#101-200)
Volume   4X, in Box 22 Reel   8	, 1914-1919 (#201-299)
Volume   5X Reel   8-9	, 1919-1921 (#300-399)
Volume   6X Reel   9	, 1921-1927 (#400-499)
Volume   7X Reel   9-10	, 1927-1929 (#500-536)
Volume   (8X), in Box 20 Reel   10	, 1930-1937 (#537-397)
Volume   (9X), in Box 20 Reel   12	, 1938-1941 (#598-673)
Volume   (10X), in Box 20 Reel   12	, 1941-1954 (#674-762)
	Series: Miscellaneous Records, 1847-1927	⇧
Volume   [13] Reel   11	Register of Citizenship, 1847-1879
Box-Folder   20-4 Reel   12	Orders Granting and Denying Petitions, 1929-1954
Box   21 Reel   12	Certificate of Naturalization Stub Books, 1907-1927