1
Finding U.S. Passenger Lists
1. The U.S. did not require passenger lists until Jan. 1, 1820. Before that time period ship captains and ship
companies made lists according to their needs. States or ports may have required lists too. Very few passenger lists
before 1820 survived. Surviving lists could be located at the port, with the shipping company, or in the collection of
a library, museum, or archive. Most of these lists have been transcribed and published in book or periodical format.
FindMyPast (http://www.findmypast.com/persi) includes an index to local history and genealogy periodicals
called PERSI. FindMyPast is free to search.
2. Search Ancestry Library Edition for U.S. passenger lists. Ancestry includes millions of passenger lists from numerous
ports such as New York City, New Orleans, Baltimore, Boston, Philadelphia, Hawaii, Florida, Alaska, Texas, Puerto
Rico, and many others. The dates of passenger lists are mainly from 1820 - 1960. Ancestry Library Edition is
available for use at any Buffalo & Erie County Public Library location.
3. Search Ancestry Library Edition for overseas departure lists. Unfortunately, not all U.S. passenger lists survived.
For some years and locations, copies and abstracts supplement the missing original lists. Copies and abstracts were
handwritten and errors certainly occurred. Also, the abstracts usually did not spell out first names. Some foreign
ports kept outgoing passenger departure lists. These lists may be easier to read, or may have been more accurate
than the U.S. lists (or copies/abstracts). Some major collections of foreign departure lists in Ancestry include: United
Kingdom, Hamburg, and Sweden.
4. Search Ancestry Library Edition for Canadian or Mexican Border Crossings. Canadian Border Crossings were first
kept in 1895 and Mexican Border Crossing Records began in 1903. Before those dates, immigrants coming in
through Canada and Mexico were not recorded or regulated. Immigrants were issued compiled inspection cards
that they surrendered to US officials onboard trains as they crossed the border. The information on the cards was
similar to what was on passenger lists. Before Sept. 30, 1906, Canadians and Mexicans entering the US were not
included on border crossing records.
5. Search Ancestry Library Edition for Canadian arrival lists. In the early 1890s, about 40% of passengers arriving in
Canada were en route to the United States. Many immigrants came through Canada on their way to the U.S.
because it was cheaper than coming directly to the U.S. Also, immigration across the Canadian border was not
regulated or recorded until 1895. This allowed persons who were restricted from entering the U.S. under the
immigration laws of the time a way into the country
(https://wiki.rootsweb.com/wiki/index.php/Major_Settlements,_Immigration,_and_Naturalization.) Canadian
passenger lists are available in Ancestry from 1865-1935. It should be noted that Canadian lists were not strictly kept
for all ports and all time periods.
6. Search FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org). FamilySearch is a free website available to everyone and includes
many of the same passenger lists and border crossing records as Ancestry. Though they are the same lists, the
indexing may be different, so you may find a name in one database and not in the other.
7. Search the Ellis Island passenger lists. If you think your immigrants came through New York City, try the Ellis Island
(http://libertyellisfoundation.org) website to search for passenger lists. The Ellis Island site has lists for 1892-1957.
Another option to search the Ellis Island site is to use Stephen Morse’s One-Step search pages
(http://stevemorse.org/#ellis). It should be noted that the lists available through Ellis Island are the same lists that
are held at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). NARA’s lists are those that have been
digitized by Ancestry, FamilySearch, and other sources. Though they are the same lists, the indexing is different, so
you may find a name in one database and not in the other. See the list below for the dates that the New York City
Barge Office, Ellis Island and Castle Garden were used as immigrant processing stations in New York City.
August 1, 1855 - April 18, 1890 - Castle Garden
April 19, 1890 - December 31, 1891 - New York City Barge Office
January 1, 1892 - June 13, 1897 - Ellis Island
June 14, 1897 - December 16, 1900 - New York City Barge Office
December 17, 1900 - 1924 - Ellis Island
8. See the Library’s guide: Passenger Lists: Selected Sources in the Grosvenor Room for books and websites that
include passenger lists. https://www.buffalolib.org/special-collections/guides-publications#8
9. If you have any of the following documents related to your ancestor, you may already have detailed information
about your ancestor’s arrival to the United States.
Naturalization Records - If your ancestor arrived in the U.S. after 1906, and was naturalized, a Certificate of
Arrival would have been created as part of the naturalization process. The Certificate of Arrival provides the
immigrant’s date, port, and ship of arrival. These certificates may be found in your ancestor’s naturalization
records.
Erie County, NY, Naturalizations
o Naturalizations after 1906 may be found at the Erie County Clerk’s Office (usually only until 1929) or
through the National Archives at New York City (https://www.archives.gov/nyc/finding-
aids/naturalization-holdings.html).
o Naturalizations before Sept. 27, 1906 can be found in the Erie County Clerk’s Office, Basement Record
Center in Erie County Hall, at 92 Franklin St.
Western New York Naturalizations, U.S. District Court - The Grosvenor Room has an index that covers the
National Archive held records for Western New York from Sept. 27, 1906 – 1966. Partial data from the index can
also be found online for free through FamilySearch: https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1854307.
Naturalizations for other locations
o County Clerk’s Office where your ancestor lived at the time of naturalization.
o Sept. 27, 1906 and later – National Archives.
o Ancestry Library Edition – Many naturalization records are included, though none from Erie County.
Most are U.S. District Court naturalizations vs. county naturalizations.
o FamilySearch – Many naturalization records are included, both U.S. District Court and some county
naturalizations. There are many from WNY, but none for Erie County. Here is a link to the New York
county naturalizations: https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1999177.
Passports—May include the date and ship of immigration and/or naturalization information. U.S. passport
applications from 1795-1925 are available in Ancestry Library Edition and FamilySearch. Passports after
1925 can be requested through a Freedom of Information Act request at the following website:
https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/have-passport/passport-records.html. Passports were
not required for overseas travel until the end of 1941 (as well as during the Civil War and during WWI), but
many U.S. citizens obtained them anyway.
Visas and Alien Registration
Visas were required for every immigrant intending to stay permanently in the U.S. beginning July 1, 1924. The
back of the visa application provides the alien’s date, port, and ship of arrival.
Mandatory Alien Registration began on August 1, 1940. Alien registration forms asked (in addition to other
questions) for the port, date, and ship of the alien’s last (most recent) arrival as well as the date of the first
arrival.
o U.S., Index to Alien Case Files at the National Archives at Kansas City, 1944-2003 - This database is
available in Ancestry Library Edition and FamilySearch. It covers aliens from most areas in the United
States who were born before 1909 and either did not naturalize before April 1, 1956, or never
naturalized. Ancestry’s index usually includes name, date of birth, date of arrival, port of entry, country
of origin, and registration number. FamilySearch’s index usually includes name, event date (arrival
date), birth date, and record identifier (registration number).
Visa and alien registration information is available through May 1, 1951 for genealogy research. To obtain a visa
or alien registration record, or to learn more, see: https://www.uscis.gov/genealogy.
10. Browse passenger lists - If you have worked through all of the above steps and still have not found the passenger list
that you are seeking, browsing passenger lists may produce the list. You can browse passenger lists using databases
such as Ancestry Library Edition and FamilySearch. You can also browse passenger list microfilm. The Buffalo & Erie
County Public Library does not carry passenger lists on microfilm. The Family History Library has microfilmed
passenger lists which can be rented for a fee at a local Family History Center
(https://familysearch.org/wiki/en/Introduction_to_LDS_Family_History_Centers).
For a detailed list of surviving passenger lists housed by the National Archives, see:
https://www.archives.gov/research/immigration/passenger-arrival.html#film.
For a list of European passenger steamship arrivals for the Port of New York from 1890-1930 and for the
ports of Philadelphia, Boston, and Baltimore from 1904-1926, see:
GRO INDX Morton Allan directory of European passenger steamship arrivals for the years 1890 to
1930 at the Port of New York and for the years 1904 to 1926 at the ports of New York,
Philadelphia, Boston, and Baltimore. Baltimore: Genealogical Pub. Co., 1993.
You will need to narrow down your search to as small a date range as possible. One way to do that is by
using data found in census records. The following chart shows the immigration information that can be
found in both U.S. Federal Census records and New York State Census records. Census records from other
states may include immigration data too.
Question Asked
U.S. Federal Census
New York State Census
Year of immigration to the U.S.
1920, 1930
Year of naturalization
1920
Number of years in the U.S.
1900, 1910
1905, 1915, 1925
If naturalized, when and where
1925
11. Tips & Miscellaneous Information
Search for married women using their maiden names. In some countries, women used their maiden names
for business, especially France, Italy, and the Netherlands.
Sometimes ports took a few years to comply with new immigration laws. Therefore, passenger lists may
not reflect the data that was supposed to be recorded immediately after new laws were passed.
Births and deaths at sea were usually recorded at the end of a passenger list or through a column or a
notation near the person’s name on the list.
Stowaways were usually found along the journey. Their names were generally added to the end of the
passenger list or added to the crew list because they were required to work for their passage fare. If they
were not discovered, then there will not be evidence of their arrival.
Detained Aliens – Lists of detained aliens were kept beginning in 1903. If your ancestor was detained, you
should see the notation S.I. (for special inquiry) or the word admitted or deported stamped next to his
name. If any of these are present, there should be a list of detainees directly after the last page of the ship’s
manifest. Next, there should be a list of detainees held for special inquiry. The list should provide details
about why the person was detained; how long they were detained; if they were deported and the name of
the return ship; and if the person was detained because they were waiting for someone, the name and
address of the person they are waiting for should be provided.
Prior to 1903, if the alien deportation was an open and shut case, no special records were kept, but
there should still be a notation by the person’s name, such as S.I. If there was an appeals case,
NARA may have records associated with the case, but they are not indexed.
Return/Seasonal Migration - Italians, Poles, and Greeks usually made multiple trips back home. Some just
came to the U.S. to make enough money to buy land in their home countries. Others were saving up to send
for the rest of their family and may have gone back and forth between countries before permanently
settling.
Bibliography
GRO INDX CS49 .C63 2002. Colletta, John Philip. They came in ships: a guide to finding your immigrant ancestor's arrival record. Orem,
Utah: Ancestry, [2002].
GRO INDX CS68 .T46 1993. Tepper, Michael. American passenger arrival records: a guide to the records of immigrants arriving at
American ports by sail and steam. Baltimore: Genealogical Pub. Co., 1996.
GRO Ref CS47 .N49 1998. Newman, John J. American naturalization records, 1790-1990: what they are and how to use them. Bountiful,
Utah: Heritage Quest, [1998].
GRO Ref CS47 .S96 1998. Szucs, Loretto Dennis. They became Americans: finding naturalization records and ethnic origins. Salt Lake City,
Utah: Ancestry, 1998. ***Has an excellent immigration chronology.
GRO Ref CS49 .C383 2005. Carmack, Sharon DeBartolo. The Family Tree guide to finding your Ellis Island ancestors. Cincinnati, OH: Family
Tree Books, 2005.
GRO Ref CS68 .U6 2000. Eales, Anne B. and Robert M. Kvasnicka, Eds. Guide to genealogical research in the National Archives of the
United States. Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 2000.
GRO Ref F118 .N39 2014. Joshi, Naomi, ed. New York Family History Research Guide and Gazetteer. New York, NY: New York Genealogical
and Biographical Society, [2014].
STACKS CD3023 .P7. Potter, Constance. St. Albans Passenger Arrival Records. Prologue Magazine. Spring 1990. P. 90-93.
STACKS JV6450 .N6. Novotny, Ann. Strangers at the door; Ellis Island, Castle Garden, and the great migration to America. Novotny, Ann.
Riverside, Conn.: Chatham Press [1971].
National Archives and Records Administration. Immigration Records. https://www.archives.gov/research/immigration/
Smith, Marian L. "Any woman who is now or may hereafter be married . . ." Women and Naturalization, ca. 1802-1940. Prologue Magazine.
Summer 1998, Vol. 30, No. 2. http://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/1998/summer/women-and-naturalization-1.html.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Genealogy. https://www.uscis.gov/genealogy.
2
Passenger Lists Class: Websites
Accessing Naturalization & Passports
1. New York, Western District, Naturalization Index, 1907-1966 -
https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1854307
2. Obtain New York Naturalizations from the National Archives - https://www.archives.gov/nyc/finding-
aids/naturalization-records.html
3. New York Naturalizations through FamilySearch - https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1999177
4. U.S. Passports on FamilySearch - https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/2185145
Background Information, Immigration
1. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Legislation from 1790 - 1900 -
http://www.schundler.net/Legislation%201790-1900.pdf
2. National Archives. Major United States Laws Relating to Immigration and Naturalization: 1790–2005 -
https://www.archives.gov/files/research/naturalization/420-major-immigration-laws.pdf
3. Detailed NARA lists/descriptions of passenger list collections -
https://www.archives.gov/research/immigration/passenger-arrival.html#film
4. A guide to interpreting passenger lists notations - https://www.jewishgen.org/infofiles/manifests/
Free Websites, Passenger Lists
5. Ellis Island - https://www.libertyellisfoundation.org/
6. National Archives Archival Databases - https://aad.archives.gov/aad/
7. Cyndi’s List Immigration - https://www.cyndislist.com/immigration/
8. Stephen Morse - https://www.stevemorse.org/
FamilySearch (Free)
9. FamilySearch Card Catalog - https://familysearch.org/catalog/search
10. FamilySearch Records - https://www.familysearch.org/search
Finding Library and Archive Holdings
11. ArchiveGrid - https://researchworks.oclc.org/archivegrid/ - A catalog of archival records in U.S. and
foreign libraries, archives, museums, historical societies, and other collections. Search for keywords
such as: manifest(s), log books, passenger lists, custom house, aliens, name of passenger line company,
along with a location such as a city or state.
12. WorldCat – www.worldcat.org – A catalog including materials from the U.S. and foreign libraries.
Search as for ArchiveGrid. Set limiters to archival material.
3 - Finding a Passenger List with Known Information
1. Go to: www.buffalolib.org
2. Click on the Research link near the top of
the page.
3. Select Genealogy from the Categories list.
4. Select Ancestry Library Edition.
5. Click the Search menu and select
Immigration and Travel.
6. Under Narrow by Category, select
Passenger Lists.
7. Insert the known
information. The known
information is the passenger
name, William Hennelly;
the port of arrival, Portland,
Maine; the ship, President
Polk; and the date of arrival,
November 1, 1923. For the
date of arrival, input the
month and year only, in
case the date is off a bit. The
ship name (or keyword from
the ship name) goes in the
keyword field. Make the
year of arrival exact.
8. When you get your results, select the first hit. William’s birth year, 1905, is known and that
data is given in the first result.
9. Click View.
10. Once the image is open, find the passenger of interest on the list. Also, always be sure to
move forward to the next page because passenger lists are often two or more pages long.
Forward until it is clear that the document being viewed does not pertain to the person of
interest.
---------------------------------------------------------
11. If you do not find the person that you are looking for, but think that the known data is
correct, the problem may be an indexing error associated with the name. Use the same
search, but without the name. The database will return a list of names containing that
data. Click on any individual with the right arrival, ship, and port. You can then browse the
passenger list page by page to see if you find the name that you are looking for. Keep in
mind that the person that you select may not be on the first page of the manifest, so you
will want to move backwards through the images to get to the first page. The manifest may
be several pages long.
4 - One-Step Webpages by Stephen P. Morse
1. Go to - https://www.stevemorse.org/
2. The Stephen Morse website includes many helpful search utilities for popular genealogy
websites and records. If you find a passenger list database difficult to search, check
here to see if Mr. Morse has developed a search tool for it. There are many choices for
passenger lists. For this search, select Ellis Island Passengers Gold Form.
3. Input search criteria as seen below:
5- Finding a Passenger List Ancestry Library Edition
1. Go to: www.buffalolib.org
2. Click on the Research link near the top of
the page.
3. Select Genealogy from the Categories list.
4. Select Ancestry Library Edition.
5. Click the Search menu and select
Immigration and Travel.
6. Narrow the category to Passenger Lists.
7. Search as seen to the right.
8. You will get no results from step seven’s search.
9. Edit your search as below by selecting Edit Search.
Use the *
(asterisk)
character in the
place of the last
part of the
surname. The
asterisk will take
the place of 1 or
more letters that
may follow the
letter b.
10. Again, you will retrieve no accurate or close results.
11. Edit your search again as below.
This time we are
substituting the
asterisk for the
beginning of the last
name. There must be
at least three letters
before or after the
asterisk to use it for
truncation.
12. The results will include a listing for Julianna Yolabski. Click View Image.
13. Investigating the list, we find the family. The first names and ages of the family members
are correct and it appears that an unclosed G caused the transcriber to transcribe the name
wrong.
14. An alternate way to find this name is by using the question mark (?) as a wildcard
character. The question mark substitutes for one letter. You can use it more than once in a
name.
15. If one of the
traveling family
members has a less
than common first
name, try a first
name search. Leave
the last name field
empty and input an
estimated birth and
arrival year.
6 - Finding Passenger Lists in FamilySearch
www.familysearch.org
Method 1 – “Catalog”
1. Go to the
Search
menu and
select
Catalog.
2. Select Keyword and input the
country name of interest as well
as the term: immigration. For
this search input: Finland
immigration. Then click Search.
3. Along the left side of the
screen you will see various
ways to narrow your results.
Under Availability, select
Online and then select
Update.
4. A list of all of the online
immigration records
associated with Finland in
FamilySearch will return.
Select the record set of
interest. For this search,
select Emigrantlistor, 1874-
1939.
5. The Notes section on the record should include a description of the record set in English.
You can access the records under the Film/Digital Notes section. Look at the Format column.
If there is a camera only, the records have been digitized and you can view them from any
computer with internet. If there is a camera with a key, they have been digitized, but you have
to view them at a Family History Center. If there is a magnifying glass, the records have been
indexed and are searchable online. If there is a microfilm reel only, the records have not been
indexed or digitized. Click on the camera/magnifying glass to access the images/index. You
will need to sign up for a free account to view the images.
Method 2 – “Records”
6. A quick
way to get
to select
sets of
passenger
lists is to
use the
Records section of the website.
7. You can click the map to see select
online records associated with a specific
country, or select Browse all published
collections.
8. Once at the list of records,
narrow the list by clicking the
“Migration & Naturalization”
limiter at the left of the screen.
You could narrow the results
further by entering a location
name or other keyword (s) in the
search box.
7 - Ancestry – Foreign Departure Lists
1. Go to: www.buffalolib.org
2. Click on the Research link near the top of the
page.
3. Select Genealogy from the Categories list.
4. Select Ancestry Library Edition.
5. Click the Search menu and select All Categories.
6. Scroll to the Explore by Location
section. For our search, select
Europe and then Germany.
6a. A map will open. Click See More About
Germany.
7. Scroll to Immigration and Travel and select View other Immigration & Travel collections
related to Germany.
8. Select Hamburg Passenger Lists, 1850-1934. Note all the other German possibilities.
Alternate ways to search for departure records from foreign countries:
1. Select Immigration & Travel from the Search menu. Select the View All in Catalog button
(green). Then Filter by Location.
2. Select Card Catalog from the Search menu. Perform a keyword search for terms such as:
departure(s), emigration, outgoing, etc. along with the name of a country/city/port/etc.
9. We will search for Lawrence and Julianne Miga, a married couple from Poland who arrived
in the U.S. between 1880 and 1883. Lawrence was born about 1849 and Julianne was born
about 1850. Search as follows for Julianne.
10. The top
two hits look
promising.
Wawrzyniec is
the Polish form
of Lawrence.
Click View
Record for
Julie Miga.
11. The information found on this transcription provides what is needed to find a U.S.
incoming passenger list. Click the thumbnail image to view it.
8 - Ancestry – U. S. Border Crossing Records
1. Go to: www.buffalolib.org
2. Click on the Research link near the top of
the page.
3. Select Genealogy from the Categories list.
4. Select Ancestry Library Edition.
5. Click the Search menu and select Card
Catalog.
6. Input the term border into the search box and click the Search button. Your results list will
show crossings from Canada to the U.S., from Mexico to the U.S., from the U.S. to Canada,
and other records. For this class, we will focus on crossings from Canada to the U.S. Notice
how you can filter your search by Immigration & Travel. Click that record set.
7. Click on U.S., Border Crossings from Canada to
U.S. When you open a database in Ancestry, it
is a good idea to read its description. Here you
can see what locations are included.
8. Input a search for
the following
criteria and then
click the Search
button.
9. Your results will return.
10. If you hover over a result, you will see a partial record transcription and a thumbnail image
of the record. The first result appears to be a ship manifest, and the second appears to be
a two-sided card.
11. Select the ship manifest first (1
st
result), by clicking the View Image icon to the right side of
the first listing.
12. You will notice that something seems to have gone wrong when she reached the U.S., as
the word Debarred is stamped next to her listing. Advancing to the next page of the
document provides more information.
13. Go back to the results list and select the second result, which includes data on an index
card. A useful piece of information is Ms. Day’s alias, Helen Smith.
14. Border Crossing records include much useful information. Information which may be
included is:
Name
Age
Birth date
Birthplace
Gender
Ethnicity/nationality
Arrival date and place
If ever in the U.S. before, when and where
Names of individuals accompanied by
Name of nearest relative or friend in former country
Name of nearest relative or friend at destination
Occupation
Physical description
