Lynchburg (Va.) Naturalization Records, 1817-1898

Access and use

Location of collection:
Library of Virginia
The Library of Virginia
800 East Broad Street
Richmond, VA 23219
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Archives Reference Services
Phone: (804) 692-3888
Restrictions:

City of Lynchburg's loose naturalization records, 1817-1898, are digitized and available through the Naturalization Records Digital Collection on the Library of Virginia website. Please use digital images.

Terms of access:

There are no restrictions.

Preferred citation:

Lynchburg (Va.) Naturalization Records, 1817-1898. Local government records collection, Lynchburg (City) Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia, 23219.

Summary

Extent:
.45 cu. ft. (2 boxes)
Creator:
Lynchburg (Va.) Circuit Court
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Lynchburg (Va.) Naturalization Records, 1817-1898. Local government records collection, Lynchburg (City) Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia, 23219.

Background

Scope and content:

Lynchburg (Va.) Naturalization Records, 1817-1898, consist of loose naturalization records filed in the local court. Loose naturalization records may include affidavits, reports for naturalization, declarations of intent to become United States citizens, and notices of application for admission of citizenship. The reports are narrative accounts made by applicants summarizing their journey to the United States. The declarations of intent record the person's name, place of birth, age, country of previous citizenship, renunciation of allegiance and fidelity to the nation of which the person is currently a citizen, and the date the intention was sworn. Affidavits, signed by those who knew the applicant and could vouch for their loyalty to the United States, may also be filed with the reports and declarations.

Biographical / historical:

Context for Record Type: Beginning in 1795, a person could declare their intent to become a citizen at any time and in any place after they arrived in the United States. Prior to the Naturalization Act of 1906, the naturalization process primarily occurred in local and state courts. Declarations of intent were the record by which an applicant for U.S. citizenship declared their intent to become a citizen and renounced their allegiance to a foreign government. This document typically preceded proof of residence or a petition to become a citizen by two or more years.

Locality History: Lynchburg, in Campbell County, was named for John Lynch, the owner of the original town site. It was established in 1786, was incorporated as a town in 1805, and became a city in 1852.

Acquisition information:
These items came to the Library of Virginia in a transfer of court papers from the City of Lynchburg.
Processing information:

Loose naturalization records, 1817-1898, were processed and indexed in two separate groups for the purpose of inclusion in the Library of Virginia's Naturalization Records Digital Collection. The first section, ranging from 1817 to 1898 and housed in box 01, were processed and indexed as a distinct unit by Greg Crawford. The second section, ranging from 1843 to 1852 and housed in box 02, were removed from the Lynchburg City Ended Causes and processed and indexed as a distinct unit by McKenzie Long.

Encoded by G. Crawford: August 2013; updated by M. Long: November 2023.

Arrangement:

This collection is arranged into the following series:

  • Series I: Loose Naturalization Records, 1817-1898, separated into two boxes based on the date records were processed and indexed, and arranged chronologically within each box.

Separated into two boxes based on the date records were processed and indexed, and arranged chronologically within each box.

Physical location:
Library of Virginia