Carl Albert Gillberg's Two Declarations of Intention

For some reason, my paternal great-grandfather, Carl Albert Gillberg, filled out two separate Declarations of Intention to become a United States citizen – one in 1924 and the other in 1939.

I thought it would be interesting to compare the two documents. I've highlighted these differences in bold.

Declaration of Intention - Dated May 5, 1924¹



Information gleaned from the May 5, 1924 Declaration of Intention -

1. Name: Carl Albert Gilbert (Gilbert instead of Gillberg)
2. Age: 42
3. Color:  White
4. Complexion:  Light
5. Height: 5 feet 7 inches
6. Weight:  178 lbs.
7. Color of Hair:  Blonde
8. Color of Eyes:  Gray
9. Other Visible Distinctive Marks:  Left Forefinger Off
10. Place of Birth:  Stockholm, Sweden
11. Date of Birth:  8 January 1882
12. Current Residence:  142 Hawthorn Avenue, Salt Lake City, Utah
13. Emigrated to the U.S.A. from: Eskilstuna, Sweden
14. Name of Vessel:  S.S. Canada
15. Last Foreign Residence:  Eskilstuna, Sweden
16. Marital Status:  Married
17. Name of Spouse:  Hilda Maria Carlson
18. Spouse's Place of Birth:  Eskilstuna, Sweden
19. Spouse's Current Residence:  142 Hawthorn Avenue, Salt Lake City, Utah
20. Port of Arrival:  Chicago, Illinois
21. Date of Arrival:  18 September 1909

Declaration of Intention - Dated July 24, 1939 ²


 
Information gleaned from the July 24, 1939 Declaration of Intention -

1. Name:  Carl Albert Gillberg
2. Current Residence:  4810 St. Elmo Drive, Los Angeles, California
3. Current Occupation:  At Home
4. Age:  57
5. Sex:  Male
6. Color:  White
7. Complexion:  Light
8. Color of Eyes:  Gray
9. Color of Hair:  Blonde
10. Height:  5 feet 8 inches
11. Weight:  188 lbs.
12. Other Visible Distinctive Marks:  Left Forefinger Off
13. Race:  Scandinavian
14. Nationality: Swedish
15. Place of Birth:  Stockholm, Sweden
16. Date of Birth:  8 January 1882
17. Marital Status:  Married
18. Spouse's Name:  Hilda M.
19. Date of Marriage:  3 April 1901
20. Place of Marriage:  Eskilstuna, Sweden
21. Spouse's Place of Birth:  Eskilstuna, Sweden
22. Spouse's Date of Birth:  17 February 1878
23. Spouse Immigration Information:
    1. Entered the United States at:  Salt Lake, Utah
    2. Date of Entrance:  9 July 1910
    3. Current Residence:  Los Angeles, California
24. Number of Children:  Eight
25. Children's Names, Dates and Places of Birth:
    1. Margit – 20 July 1902 in Sweden
    2. Maimi – 4 October 1907 in Sweden
    3. Ruth C. – 17 June 1911 in Salt Lake, Utah
    4. Ingrid A. – 5 November 1913 in Salt Lake, Utah
    5. Helen A. – 4 September 1915 in Salt Lake, Utah
    6. Ida M. – 26 October 1916 in Salt Lake, Utah 
    7. Edith E. – 26 October 1916 in Salt Lake, Utah
    8. Ruby H. A. – 15 July 1920 in Salt Lake, Utah
26. Current Residences of Children:  Los Angeles, California
27. Previous Declaration of Intention:  About 1924 at Salt Lake City, Utah
28. Last Foreign Residence:  Eskilstuna, Sweden
29. Emigrated to the U.S.A. from:  Eskilstuna, Sweden; Quebec, Canada
30. Lawful Entry in the United States:  Port of Entry Not Shown
31. Name at Entry:  Carl A. Gillberg
32. Date of Entry:  17 September 1909
33. Name of Vessel:  Canada

As you can see, there are definite differences in the amount of information provided in each of these declarations.

Obviously, the 1939 Declaration of Intention provides a lot more information, including the marriage date and place for Carl and Hilda and a list of their children with each child's date and place of birth. How great is that?

If you find a Declaration of Intention for an immigrant ancestor, congratulations! That's awesome! But don't stop there. Check to see if your immigrant ancestor filled out additional Declarations of Intention. Your immigrant ancestor may be like my great-grandfather Carl, who filled out more than one.

Thanks for reading!

Jana

© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

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1 Utah State Archives and Records Service; Salt Lake City, Utah; County: Salt Lake; Record Group: Salt Lake County, Third District Court Declarations of Intention Record Books, 1896-1959; Series: 85108. Ancestry.com. Utah, Naturalization and Citizenship Records, 1858-1959 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.^↩

2 National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington, D.C.; Naturalization Records of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, Central Division (Los Angeles), 1887-1940; Microfilm Serial: M1524; Microfilm Roll: 54. Ancestry.com. U.S., Naturalization Records - Original Documents, 1795-1972 (World Archives Project) [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010. ^↩