Blank naturalization certificate, City of Richmond Hustings Court, after 1905
Many—but by no means all—immigrants to Virginia have chosen to become citizens. The naturalization process has changed over time, from being overseen by Virginia’s colonial government under the direction of Great Britain to a federal system administered by local courts. The Library of Virginia has citizenship records prior to 1900 and a growing number of twentieth-century records.
Early citizenship records may contain only an individual’s name and country of origin. After 1906, when the federal government standardized naturalization forms, records contain not only a name and country of origin, but information such as date of birth, birthplace, date and place of departure, method of arrival (such as the name of a ship), date and place of arrival, and names of spouse and children.
The Naturalization Records Digital Collection consists of naturalization records found in county and city "loose papers" at the Library of Virginia. It does not represent all naturalization records in the Library's collections, such as records in court order/minute books, nor does it include naturalization records housed elsewhere, such as those held by Virginia circuit court clerks or the National Archives.
Most records in this collection were created between 1785 and 1905. The collection contains a small number of post-1905 records, as well as pre-1865 legislative petitions related to citizenship and immigration. This collection is updated periodically as new records are identified and digitized.
Revised August 2022