General
The Outagamie County Naturalization Records consist of Declarations of Intention, Certificates of Naturalization and Petitions, Petitions, a cardindex to these records, Transfer Petitions, and Orders Granting and Denying Petitions.
The original system of identifying volumes by number or letter was retained because the indexes are often keyed to this system. To eliminate confusion when requesting a particular volume, the researcher should specify not only the volume number but also the type of volume (e.g. Declarations of Intention) and dates.
For preservation purposes some volumes have been dismantled and placed in boxes. These volume numbers are designated by parentheses in the list below for identification purposes; the box number is listed for circulation purposes.
Indexes
The most comprehensive index is the CARD INDEX TO CERTIFICATES AND PETITIONS, 1853-1963. The alphabetically arranged cards give various pieces of information, but the key information is the volume number and the page or Petition number. It also indirectly provides access to post 1906 declarations since a copy of the declaration is often attached to the petition.
Pre-1906 declarations can be found using the INDEX TO DECLARATIONS OF INTENTION, 1852-1906. It is arranged in alphabetical segments by the first letter of the surname and roughly chronologically thereunder. Entries give the name, date of filing, country of birth, and declaration number. Use the declaration number to request the appropriate volume (Volumes 1-4). There is no separate cumulative index to declarations filed after 1906 so the researcher must either consult the indexes located at the front of each declaration volume or view the copy attached to the petition.
Records
DECLARATIONS, 1852-1963, are arranged by Declaration number which is assigned roughly by date filed. The key to finding a declaration is the document number, however the filing date is also important because two separate sequences of declaration numbering result in some numbers being used twice. As can be seen on the Container List, Declarations in Volumes 1-4 (1852-1906) are numbered 1-6119 and Volumes (1)-(11) begin numbering again with number 1 and continue through 2204. Thus, for example, if the index indicates the desired Declaration is numbered “1003” and was filed in 1866, the researcher must be sure to request Volume 1, 1852-1870 of Declarations and not Volume 7, 1919-1924.
CERTIFICATES AND PETITIONS, 1853-1906, approve the individual's petition and confer citizenship all in one document and court appearance. The Outagamie County Court seems to have kept two sets of these records for this function during this time period.
The Certificates and Petitions in Volumes 1-4 (1853-1906) are transcriptions of the original documents. The volumes are indexed by the CARD INDEX in Boxes 1-5 and each volume has an alphabetical name index in the front. Also, they cover a wider time span than the originals, beginning in 1853.
The Certificates and Petitions in Boxes 7-13 are the unbound originals for Volume 2, p. 188 through Volume 4 with some gaps. They begin in 1899 and are arranged roughly chronologically by date filed and are not indexed. The jacket accompanying each person's documents often lists the volume and page number of the transcription. The only informational difference between the originals and the transcriptions (i.e. unbound papers or volumes) is that the loose papers are more likely to include a copy of the declaration or a document certifying the legality of the declaration.
PETITIONS, 1907-1963, are arranged chronologically by date filed. Most Petitions have the Declarations attached, and each volume contains an index.
ANCILLARY RECORDS include a few petitions transferred from other jurisdictions to Outagamie County, 1960-1962, and Orders Granting And Denying Petitions, 1929-1963. The Orders are arranged chronologically and consist of lists of petitions noting petition numbers granted or denied, name, and name change if applicable. There is no name index to these documents.
