U.S. passport applications, 1795 to 1925

Who applied, and when passports were required

The State Department issued passports from 1789, but until August 23, 1856 states and courts could issue them too, so some early travelers carried passports that never passed through the federal government. The numbers grew quickly: the National Archives counts 130,360 passports issued between 1810 and 1873, and more than 1,184,085 between 1912 and 1925.

As a general rule, U.S. citizens did not need a passport to travel abroad until 1941. The exceptions matter for research. Passports were required from August 19, 1861 to March 17, 1862, during the Civil War. A 1915 executive order recommended them, and they were required again from May 22, 1918 until the formal end of World War I in 1921. Since a 1941 act, they have been required. So an ancestor who traveled during World War I is more likely to have an application than one who sailed in 1890, though many earlier travelers applied anyway.

Passports were generally valid for two years or less, so a frequent traveler may have filed several applications. Search the indexes for the person's whole adult life, not just one trip.

What an application tells you

The earliest applications were usually handwritten letters. By the 1860s most were on printed forms, which ask more consistent questions. Most applications give an exact date of birth, though some early ones give only an age, such as aged about forty six years or thereabouts. Most give the exact town of birth, but some name only a state or a country.

Applications also carry a physical description: height, forehead, eyes, nose, mouth, chin, hair, complexion, and shape of face. Some give an occupation, the foreign destination, and the reason for the trip. From December 21, 1914, a photograph was required, so applications from the World War I years often include a picture of your ancestor.

Clues for naturalized citizens

For immigrants, the passport application can be the bridge back to the old country. A naturalized citizen's application may state the court and date of naturalization and the date and ship on which they first came to the United States. On some older applications the court and date are written across the face of the form.

The detail varies. One 1836 application says only that a notary knew the man to be a naturalized citizen, while others give the exact court. If a man became a citizen as a child through his father's naturalization, the application usually says so. Spelling clues are valuable too: the National Archives describes an application showing that a man's surname had been written differently on his naturalization certificate, which is the kind of variant that can unlock a search.

Do not take the dates on faith. The National Archives gives the example of a man whose 1900 and 1905 applications gave different arrival and naturalization dates. Compare every application a person filed, then check the dates against passenger lists and court records.

Aliens, wives and children

Passports were generally issued only to citizens. There were two short exceptions for people who had filed a declaration of intention: from 1863 to 1866, when few such passports were issued, and from March 2, 1907 to June 4, 1920. The National Archives holds a separate series of declarant applications for 1907 to 1911 and 1914 to 1920.

In the mid-1800s about 95 percent of applicants were men. A wife, children, or servants traveling with the applicant were named on his application with their ages and relationship, and one passport covered the group. Children traveling only with their mother were listed on hers. Applications by women in their own names became more frequent later in the century, and by 1923 women were over 40 percent of applicants. A wife could also prove her citizenship through her husband: the National Archives describes a 1915 application in which a woman used her husband's naturalization papers as proof.

Emergency, insular and special applications

Americans already abroad could apply to a diplomatic or consular officer for an emergency passport, issued from 1874 until 1926 and valid for six months. These applications give the birth date and place, occupation, U.S. residence, date of leaving the United States, and residence abroad. For naturalized citizens they also give the original ship and date of immigration and the court of naturalization. Applications for 1874 to 1876 no longer exist.

Residents of the insular possessions filed their own applications. The National Archives has them for Hawaii (1916 to 1924), the Philippines (1901 to 1924), and Puerto Rico (1915 to 1922), and they include the father's citizenship. Special passports went to government officials, and there are smaller series such as applications by wives of members of the American Expeditionary Forces in Europe, 1919 to 1920.