Local Genealogical Gems : Albany Hall of Records Naturalization Index

The naturalization index on the Albany Hall of Records website is this week's local genealogical gem. These records are only for naturalization that took place in Albany County between 1821 and 1991. The older records do not hold as much information as the newer ones.

The search window is simple to use. For example; one of my great great great grandfathers was Michael Behrhof. His surname was spelled many different ways over the years. In the search window the complete name does not need to be filled out. After many attempts of finding him in the index, he was found by simply typing Ba in the surname field and he appeared as Michael Barhoof. Awesome.

After finding your ancestor/relative in the index, write down the date, petition number, book, and page number. Now you can go to the Hall of Records and request the actual document or view it on their computer. Below is a scan of my ancestor's naturalization paper. His declaration of intent was filed on 11 July 1854 and he was naturalized and became a United States citizen on 24 October 1859.

The Albany County Hall of Records is located at
95 Tivoli Street, Albany, NY 12207
Phone: 518.436.3663
Email: achor@albanycounty.com
Hours: 8:30 am - 4:30 pm