Source Information

Ancestry.com. Missouri, U.S., Western District Naturalization Index, 1840-1990 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
Original data: Naturalization Index for the Western District of Missouri, compiled ca. 1930 - ca. 1986, documenting the period ca. 1848 - ca. 1986. NAID: 572253; Records of District Courts of the United States, Record Group 21; The National Archives at Kansas City. Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.A.

About Missouri, U.S., Western District Naturalization Index, 1840-1990

This database contains an index to naturalizations from 1840-1963 and 1984-1990 filed in various federal, state, and local courts in Missouri, Kansas, and Oklahoma. Information that may be found in this database for each individual includes:

  • Given name and surname
  • Naturalization date
  • Birth date or age
  • Nationality
  • A reference to the location of the original record including a volume number, page number and record number

Other information found on the cards, but not indexed includes occupation, present address, and names, occupations, and addresses of witnesses.

Note: Once you've found an image of an individual you are interested in, be sure to check the next or following image, as often times it is the backside of the card you are looking at and could contain some additional information about your person of interest.

About the Naturalization Process:

The first step for an immigrant wishing to become an official U.S. citizen was to complete a Declaration of Intention to naturalize. These papers are also known as First Papers as they are the first forms to be completed in the naturalization process. Generally, these papers were filled out fairly soon after an immigrant's arrival in America. After the immigrant had completed these papers and met the residency requirement (which was usually five years), the individual was able to submit his Petition for Naturalization. Petitions are also known as Second or Final Papers because they are the second and final set of papers completed in the naturalization process. Immigrants also took a naturalization oath or oath of allegiance. These oaths are often filed with the immigrant's first or second papers. After an immigrant had completed all citizenship requirements he was issued a certificate of naturalization. Many of these documents may be found in the court in which they were created.

The amount of information that is contained on each of these naturalization documents varies widely between time and place. However, they often contain significant genealogical information and are often worth the search to locate them.

For more information on researching naturalization records consult Loretto Dennis Szucs' book They Became Americans: Finding Naturalization Records and Ethnic Origins, Salt Lake City, UT: Ancestry Inc., 1998.