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Rockingham County (Va.) Naturalization Records, 1826-1911. Local government records collection, Rockingham County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia, 23219.
These items came to the Library of Virginia in a 2004 transfer of court papers from Rockingham County under the accession number 40981.
Naturalization Records, 1826-1911 were processed and indexed for the purpose of inclusion in the Library of Virginia's Naturalization Records digital collection by Library of Virginia staff.
Encoded by G. Crawford: March 2014; updated by M. Long: May 2024.
Context for Record Type: Beginning in 1795, a person could declare their intent to become a citizen at any time and in any place after they arrived in the United States. Prior to the Naturalization Act of 1906, the naturalization process primarily occurred in local and state courts. Declarations of intent were the record by which an applicant for U.S. citizenship declared their intent to become a citizen and renounced their allegiance to a foreign government. This document typically preceded proof of residence or a petition to become a citizen by two or more years.
Locality History: Rockingham County was named for Charles Watson-Wentworth, second marquis of Rockingham, who supported the colonies during the years before and during the Revolutionary War. The county was formed from Augusta County in 1778. The county seat is the city of Harrisonburg.
Lost Locality Note: A courthouse fire in 1787 destroyed primarily wills and estate records. In June 1864 during the Civil War, court records (mostly volumes) were removed from the courthouse and loaded on a wagon to be taken to place of safety on or beyond the Blue Ridge. The wagon was overtaken by Union troops near Port Republic and set afire, which was put out by local citizens. Many order books, deed books, will books, and fiduciary books, however, were lost or severely damaged by the fire. The loose records that remained at the courthouse were undamaged. Pre-1865 records including deeds and wills were rerecorded following an act of assembly passed in November 1884.
Rockingham County (Va.) Naturalization Records, 1826-1911 may include affidavits, reports for naturalization, declarations of intent to become United States citizens, and notices of application for admission of citizenship. The reports are narrative accounts made by applicants summarizing their journey to the United States. The declarations of intent record the person's name, place of birth, age, country of previous citizenship, renunciation of allegiance and fidelity to the nation of which the person is currently a citizen, and the date the intention was sworn. Affidavits, signed by those who knew the applicant and could vouch for their loyalty to the United States, may also be filed with the reports and declarations.
This collection is arranged into the following series:
Naturalization records for Rockingham County (Va.) and other localities are available through the Library of Virginia's Naturalization Records digital collection and can be found by searching the Digital Collections Discovery section of the Library of Virginia website.
Additional Rockingham County Court Records can be found on microfilm at The Library of Virginia. Consult "A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm."
Rockingham County is one of Virginia's Lost Records Localities. Additional Rockingham County Court Records may be found in the Lost Records Digital Collection available on the Library of Virginia. Search the Lost Records Digital Collection available at Virginia Memory.