When is a citizen soldier a citizen?

[Kace]

A couple of us were sitting around the fire at a recent event when this topic came up. We are still stumped as to the answer.

Thousands of immigrants joined up some straight off of the boat. When did these immigrants get their citizenship? We all know that today it is a long, drawn out and complicated process. What was the process back in the 1860's.

I have called my local office but they were less then helpful.

Kace

[PogueMahone]

Re: When is a citizen soldier a citizen?

Does this help?

History of U.S. Immigration Policies
Outlined below are thumbnail sketches of immigration-related legislation adopted between 1790 and 1990. More detailed information on the most recent legislative changes, beginning in 1952, are also available separately.

1790—In an area previously controlled by individual states, an act was adopted that established a uniform rule for naturalization by setting the residence requirement at two years.

1819—Congress enacted the first significant federal legislation relating specifically to immigration. Among its provisions, it: (1) established the continuing reporting of immigration to the United States; and (2) set specific sustenance rules for passengers of ships leaving U.S. ports for Europe.

1864—Congress first centralized control over immigration under the Secretary of State with a Commissioner. The importation of contract laborers was legalized in this legislation.


from website: http://www.fairus.org/site/PageServe...h_research9c29

Interesting question.

[Dale Beasley]

Re: When is a citizen soldier a citizen?

Different war and different time...

When we returned from the Iraq/Kuwait we were able to swear-in two of our soldiers as US Citizens. It was a good day to be an American.

[OldKingCrow]

Re: When is a citizen soldier a citizen?

When we returned from the Iraq/Kuwait we were able to swear-in two of our soldiers as US Citizens. It was a good day to be an American.

and rightly so...anyone who willin' to don the MARPAT or ACU deserves to be fastracked to citizenship.

[Hank Trent]

Re: When is a citizen soldier a citizen?

What was the process back in the 1860's.

I've been doing some research on and off about immigration for an upcoming portrayal, and I should know this, but I don't. I was hoping somebody would come along with an answer and I could find out the lazy way. :)

But here's a start, from 1856:

Laws of the United States, Relative to Naturalization

There's also The Naturalization Laws of the United States, from 1855.

Looks like the major law, prior to 1856 at least, was enacted in 1802, with subsequent revisions. The biggest thing to slow it down would be that the immigrant has to announce his intention three years before, and to have resided here five years before.

According to page 70 of the second book linked above:

No statute or principle of public policy forbids the enlistment of aliens into the army of the United States, and such enlistments are therefore valid. 5 Hill's Rep. 16

Which apparently led to an interesting loophole during the war, since unnaturalized aliens could serve, but weren't liable to be drafted:

The necessity of procuring substitutes from a class of the population not liable to draft, led to the enlistment of a large body of recruits of foreign birth, who had never been naturalized. Under these circumstances any considerable increase in the emigration from Europe to America was looked upon with suspicion by foreign governments or statesmen unfriendly to the United States, as having been caused by improper inducements, in violation of municiple law. It was even charged, by persons high in influence in England, that agents from the United States had visited Ireland and the British North American provinces, for the purpose of enlisting men in the army, and had dispatched many recruits to America, ostensibly as mechanics or farm laborers. By a resolution adopted by the United States Senate, on May 24th [1864? not clear what year], the President was requested to state if such was the fact.

The Secretary of State replied, that no authority to recruit abroad had been given by the United States Government, and that applications for such authority had been invariably rejected. The Government had no knowledge, he added, that any such recruits had been obtained in the provinces named, or in any foreign country. Source.

I really know nothing on this topic, so hope that others will chime in.

Hank Trent
hanktrent@voyager.net

[Curt Schmidt]

Re: When is a citizen soldier a citizen?

Hallo!

Historical Naturalization can be messy, IMHO, as the concept and the practice varies over time and becomes more complex as the 19th century and its "patterns of immigration" change. Plus, getting "naturalized" was not always important as folks, once here did not care as much, or found that after filing papers of intention to vote in osme states they could vote, own land, etc, whether a naturalized citizen or not.

In brief and to over-generalize...

Pre Rev War immigrants seemd to need to have only gotten here, and if there were records they were simple oaths of allegiance administered by Parliament and signed when the newcomers got off the boat.
With the rebels winning the Revolution, the choice was offered to choose between British or American citizenship- usually requiring or ore violently forcing the "Tories" to leave.

The U.S.'s first Naturalization Act was passed on the March 26, 1790, stating “any free white person over the age of twenty-one who had resided for at least two years in the United States might be granted citizenship on application to any common law court in any state where he/she had resided for at least one year.”
An applicant could go to any common law court, prove he (she) was of good moral character, and take an oath of allegiance to the U.S. Constitution. A judge then made a ruling on the petition. U.S. Citizenship was granted to those who satisfied the judge. Married women and children under twenty-one drew their citizenship from their husbands or fathers. Children of denied or rejected applicants could apply for citizenship independently when they reached the age of twenty-one.

That worked for five years. Due to growing numbers of immigrants from Europe, Congress repealed the 1790 act and passed a stricter law on January 29, 1795- effectively complicating the earlier procedures and making them similar to what is still used today.

The procedure was changed from a one-step to a two-step process requiring a declaration of intent and then a petition for admission to citizenship. Free white immigrants had to declare their intention in a supreme, superior, district, or circuit court of any state or territory or possession of the U.S. to become U.S. citizens and renounce any allegiance to a foreign ruler. Residency requirements were increased from two to five years, including one year in the state (later or territory) where the court was located. Immigrants who had “borne any hereditary title, or been of any of the orders of nobility” had to renounce that status.

Again, changing immigration trends and reactions saw a number of acts passed, but the last major change in the procedures, sparked by Irish and French immigrants, was in 1802 (the last really major change until 1906).
However, between 1841 and 1860, more than 87 per cent of immigrants coming to American shores came from Ireland, Germany, and Britain.

Again, being overly brief and over-generalized...

Curt