INDEX TO CUYAHOGA COUNTY PROBATE COURT NATURALIZATION RECORDS, 1859-1901 

This index, arranged alphabetically by surname, and dating from 1859-1901, provides access 
to the naturalization records preserved by the Cuyahoga County Probate Court in three sets 
of volumes: Declaration of Aliens (DOA) (16 volumes); Declaration of Alien Minors (DOAM) 
(8 volumes); and the Naturalization Book (NB) (26 volumes). Those interested in additional 
information regarding the naturalization process, particularly as administered during the 
late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in the United States, should request from the 
Cuyahoga County Archives a copy of the information sheet "Tracing an Immigrant Ancestor 
through the Naturalization Records in the Cuyahoga County Archives." 

The index contains eleven columns or data fields that include the name of the volume indexed, 
the volume number and page number, the surname, first name, middle name, country of origin, 
the date of arrival, the date of declaration (date that the declaration or "first paper" was 
filed), and the date of naturalization. The database also includes a "Record Problem" column 
that many contain additional information useful to the researcher. Spelling variations for a 
first name are listed here, while surname spelling variations are noted with a "see also" 
reference. Records that are incomplete or that have been identified as void are so marked. 
For naturalizations recorded in the NATURALIZATION BOOK (NB) volumes 25 or 26, a reference to 
a petition number may be listed. In a few cases this column may provide a clarification or 
correction to the data that was recorded in the original records. Finally, missing pages are 
noted in this column. Researchers should be aware that not all immigrants made application 
for citizenship in the Probate Court, as some sought naturalization in the Court of Common 
Pleas and in the U.S. District Court. The County Archives preserves the Common Pleas naturaliz-
ation records and you should contact the Archives for a search of available indexes to those 
documents. The records from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio are pres-
erved by the National Archives and Records Service-Great Lakes Region in Chicago, Illinois. 

When requesting a copy of a Probate Court naturalization document from the Archives you should 
provide the following information: the person's name, date of declaration and/or date of natural-
ization, and the reference to the relevant volume, by name, e.g. DOA, DOAM, NB, and to the appro-
priate volume and page numbers. Persons can communicate with the Archives by mail, or visit in 
person, at 2905 Franklin Blvd. N.W. Cleveland, Ohio 44113; or they can make a request by tele-
phone (216) 443-7250, fax communication (216) 443-3636, or by e-mail, countyarchives@nls.net.