Are the actual Naturalization certificates, or copies, available online or elsewhere? I am particula
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A great place to start might be the FamilySearch Research Wiki. If you type in just the word "naturalization" (without quotes of course) in the search bar at the top right, and before you press "enter" or click the search magnifying glass, you will see a short list of available topics pop up to further refine your search.
Be aware you may find that people became naturalized in places that seem to have no relationship to where they were known to have lived after coming to the United States. I was able to obtain the actual naturlization certificate of one of my great grandfathers who "always" lived in the New York City area after he came to the U.S. from Sweden. Obviously however, that wasn't entirely true, as his "citizenship" (naturalization) certificate from Washington State in 1892.
--Chris
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You may also want to check Ancestry.com. Depending on the year and the location, some "Declarations of Intent" and "Petitions for Naturalization" as well as naturalization index cards can be found.
Be aware "rules" and process for naturalization were different during different time periods in the US. So, you may or may not be able to find naturalization applications or information. Best luck I have had was for those who filed from about 1900 to 1931. Previously, some "naturalizations" took place in local circuit courts. One ancestor had to file a "declaration of intent" (in 1851) to become citizen with local circuit court. Later he went back to court and was "declared naturalized" and swore oath to US.
John
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Finding a naturalization document varies upon the time period and location. I found my ancestor's 1844 naturalization in the county archives.
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General Rule: The Two-Step Process
Congress passed the first law regulating naturalization in 1790 (1 Stat. 103). As a general rule, naturalization was a two-step process that took a minimum of 5 years. After residing in the United States for 2 years, an alien could file a "declaration of intent" (so-called "first papers") to become a citizen. After 3 additional years, the alien could "petition for naturalization." After the petition was granted, a certificate of citizenship was issued to the alien. These two steps did not have to take place in the same court. As a general rule, the "declaration of intent" generally contains more genealogically useful information than the "petition." The "declaration" may include the alien's month and year (or possibly the exact date) of immigration into the United States.
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The first major exception was that "derivative" citizenship was granted to wives and minor children of naturalized men. From 1790 to 1922, wives of naturalized men automatically became citizens. This also meant that an alien woman who married a U.S. citizen automatically became a citizen. (Conversely, an American woman who married an alien lost her U.S. citizenship, even if she never left the United States.) From 1790 to 1940, children under the age of 21 automatically became naturalized citizens upon the naturalization of their father. Unfortunately, however, names and biographical information about wives and children are rarely included in declarations or petitions filed before September 1906. For more information about women in naturalization records, see Marian L. Smith, "Women and Naturalization, ca. 1802-1940," Prologue: Quarterly of the National Archives, Vol. 30, No. 2 (Summer 1998): 146-153.
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The second major exception to the general rule was that, from 1824 to 1906, minor aliens who had lived in the United States 5 years before their 23rd birthday could file both their declarations and petitions at the same time.
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The third major exception to the general rule was the special consideration given to veterans. An 1862 law allowed honorably discharged Army veterans of any war to petition for naturalization--without previously having filed a declaration of intent--after only 1 year of residence in the United States. An 1894 law extended the same no-previous-declaration privilege to honorably discharged 5-year veterans of the Navy or Marine Corps. Over 192,000 aliens were naturalized between May 9, 1918, and June 30, 1919, under an act of May 9, 1918, that allowed aliens serving in the U.S. armed forces during "the present war" to file a petition for naturalization without making a declaration of intent or proving 5 years' residence. Laws enacted in 1919, 1926, 1940, and 1952 continued various preferential treatment provisions for veterans.
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Check out the "FamilySearch Research Wiki".
Learn what records are available for the specific location you are researching.
You mentioned Wisconsin so take a look at your specific county:
www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Wisconsin,_United_States_Genealogy
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