A passport is an official government document that verifies the passport holder's identity and allows them to travel internationally. Passports might also be used for other purposes, such as providing proof of citizenship.
"The introduction of a passport system in France immediately after the French Revolution is usually cited as the point of origin for the modern passport. Passports were systematically issued with the intention of establishing the bearer's personal and legal identity through the use of a standardized document produced within a standardized structure." That French passport served as a model for other European countries during the 19th century[1].
Depending on the country, passports may have existed in the 18th century but they may not have been widely used until more recent times. Passports are genealogical sources for facts aside from ancestral travel. These records may verify a birthdate and place when no other birth record is available. Familial names, including a spouse, child, or parent, might also be available. Mention of an occupation can lead to additional records.
Information found on a passport application, depending on location and time period, may include:
- Type of passport
- Issuing country
- Person's name
- Date
- Photo
- Birth date and birthplace
- Citizenship of the passport bearer
- Citizenship of the bearer's father
- Physical description (height, weight, hair, eye color, etc.)
- Residential address
- An address to send passport document
- Occupation
- Countries traveling to
- Date returning to homeland
- Signature
When researching passport application records, it's vital to learn when passports were issued in that county and who had to have one. In some cases, travel to a specific country or countries may not have required a passport until a particular date. Specific groups of people, such as wives or minor children, may have been added to the head of the household's passport, thus not needing to have an individual passport. Some groups of people may have been denied a passport, such as those who were residents but not citizens. Reading more about historical passports for the country you are researching can help you better understand who may have had a passport and why someone may not have one.
If your ancestor was eligible for a passport, don't assume they didn’t apply for one because they were poor or would not have traveled for vacation. Ancestors may have traveled back to their home country to visit family or for work experiences. Travel wasn't something just done for vacation. Travel in the 19th century occurred far more often than we believe.
Finding passport applications
A passport will most likely be a home source. Privacy restrictions may limit access to more recent passport applications. Consult the government agency tasked with issuing passports or archiving passport applications for information about privacy and availability.
Passport applications may be found in the archives of the issuing government agency or their archive, such as a National Archive or a National Library. Sometimes, these records may not be available online and must be accessed via onsite research or writing to the agency.
Some databases exist online via genealogy websites such as MyHeritage. Look for the records subject category Immigration & Travel when searching for available online passport applications.
See also
- Travel records
- Passenger lists
- Emigration records
- Immigration records
- US passenger lists
- US passport records
- Great Migration
- Vital records
- Ellis Island Immigration Records
- How to research immigrant ancestors
- How to research ancestors who were lost at sea
- How to find overseas US ancestors using US records
- Naturalization records
- Searching for U.S. naturalization records
- How to research ancestors in the United States
- Birth records
Explore more about passport records
- Immigration & Travel records colleciton at MyHeritage. This category includes passenger arrival records, naturalization records, border crossings, emigration records, passports, convict transportation records.
- United States Passport Applications, 1795-1925 records colletion at MyHeritage. Relatively few citizens had the means to travel internationally in the early 19th century. As a result, most of the passport applications in this collection are from the late 19th to early 20th centuries. The amount of information found on the applications also varies. Earlier passport applications required relatively little information, containing only the applicant’s name, birth date, residence, and destination.
- Following Your Family’s Immigration Trail on MyHeritage on the MyHeritage Knowlegde Base
- Tracing Immigrant Ancestors: Advanced Tips and Techniques on Legacy Family Tree Webinars
- Ship Passenger Lists and Records Online
- How do I look for records of passengers on the UK National Archives
- The Ships List - a website that helps find your ancestors on ships' passenger lists, immigration reports, newspaper records, shipwreck information, ship pictures, ship descriptions, shipping-line fleet lists and more.
- 4 Famous Americans Who Applied for a U.S. Passport 100 Years Ago on the MyHeritage blog.
References
- ↑ Robertson, Craig. The Passport in America. The History of a Document. Oxford University Press. P. 14