Locating Naturalization records is a important step in identifying origins for a individual new to the United States. The primary location for these records for Putnam County is at the archives in Bowling Green, OH.
There are three different forms of documentation for the genealogist to look for which are the Declaration of Intent, the Petition and Certificate of Naturalization. The Declaration of Intent was normally filled out shortly after the person would arrive at a final destination. These documents would be filed at the county seat in Ottawa. Information in this document can vary greatly based on the time period that they were filed. From 1862 to 1906 these records lacked any real detail in most cases. Foreign citizens that participated in the Civil War were waved from having to fill out this portion of the application. After 1906 the information in this document became more detailed. The information provided would include name, address, occupation, birthplace, nationality, country from which emigrated, age or birth date, physical description, date of intention, marital status, last foreign residence, port of entry, name of ship, date of entry, and date of document. Some times this document would be filed with the Petition.
The petition would include the same information as the Intent. The information would reflect the same issues as the Intent.
The Certificate of Naturalization was completed once the person had completed the citizenship requirements. Prior to 1906 this information was often only the name of the person and name of court. After that the period would be the same as the other forms.
The Naturalization Records in Bowling Green run from 1861-1907. They have copies of the intentions and certificates on microfilm. These are very good sources of origin, because they are given by the immigrants themselves.
This completes Putnam County. Now I will begin covering Fulton County, OH.
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