Naturalizing Mexican Immigrants : A Texas History

APPENDIX 1. Texas Naturalization Records and Archives, Pre-1906

An explanatory note is needed concerning the content, location, and limitations of Texas naturalization records prior to 1906. These records are significant, as they provide statistical data on Mexican immigrants’ naturalization proceedings from the mid-nineteenth century to 1906. Texas naturalization records are found in the Lorenzo de Zavala State Library and Archives in Austin and at the National Archives Southwest Region at Fort Worth. Records are also located in various courts of the counties and in some Texas state universities. The records in the Lorenzo de Zavala State Library and Archives include micro films of most of the county and district naturalization records found in Texas (i.e., indexes, declarations/applications, petitions of intention, granted certificates, and court records of litigation). The original naturalization records, however, are located in the archives of the courts which processed the applications (National Archives 2005). The National Archives Southwest Region at Fort Worth has custody of the original indexes of all naturalizations granted or denied in Texas from 1840 to 1906. These indexes are separated in ten volumes and are titled “Index to Naturalization Records Found in Texas State, District and County Courts, 1846–1939.” Micro- films of these records are also found in the Lorenzo de Zavala State Library and Archives. The Work Projects Administration compiled these indexes in 1941. The National Archives at Fort Worth also has custody of the naturalization records of the federal courts in Texas, which date from 1840 to 1990, as well as of the records of the Texas Immigration and Naturalization Bureau district offices. The federal court records, however, are incomplete for the years after 1906. Some of the federal court records have been microfilmed; copies of these have been given to the county courts or state universities. In conducting my research, I examined the naturalization indexes at Fort Worth and used the indexes to identify the counties where Mexican immigrants had applied for citizenship in Texas. This allowed me to construct a timeline of Mexicans’ naturalization patterns. I also examined the immigration and naturalization records and the federal court records from the nineteenth century to 1940. I found that after 1939 the records were fragmented, and thus I turned to statistical data prepared by the U.S. Census Bureau, the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization, the APPENDIX 1 Texas Naturalization Records and Archives, Pre-1906 314 Naturalizing Mexican Immigrants Department of Homeland Security, and the State Department of Labor. Finally, to explore particular cases I examined the naturalization files at the Lorenzo de Zavala State Library and Archives. Texas naturalization records begin in 1840, a few years after the independence of Texas from Mexico. Records of applications filed by Mexicans, however, did not begin until 1848. In 1845, when Texas was annexed to the United States, U.S. naturalization law governed all proceedings, including the manner of compiling records . Throughout the nineteenth century federal law allowed all courts of record to process naturalization applications. A court of record consisted of a court that practiced common law, had a sitting judge, a seal, and a clerk or notary public who could record all proceedings (2 U.S. Statutes at Large 153). In Texas the courts of record were the county, district, state, and federal courts. The county courts, however, received the majority of the applications. Because precinct courts were not allowed to naturalize, most Mexican justices of the peace were ineligible to process naturalization applications. As I discuss in this book, during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries a person of Mexican descent was not appointed or elected to a judgeship position above the county level. Moreover, throughout the nineteenth century a person of Mexican descent acted as a county judge in only three counties. Their appointments, however, were infrequent. Until 1906 all courts were required to maintain an index with information that included who had applied, the applicant’s country of origin, place of entry, disposition of the application, and final decision (denial or granting). No information on race or religion was gathered. Most courts also kept a duplicate of the naturalization declaration (the application) and the certificate of granted naturalization. Because the federal government did not issue standard guidelines for the printing of applications or certificates, each court designed its own forms and gathered different information. These records were not centralized, as the federal government allowed the originating courts to keep their records. In 1906 the U.S. Congress deemed it necessary to centralize the record keeping...