Figuring Out Manifest Markings on Ships Passenger Lists

Kristen had a great question

I am looking for some help on my great-grandfather Guy Reginald Austen Bolam.

He was born in 1900 in England, traveled back and forth between the US and England much of his life, and died in the US in 1970. His father was William Austen Bolam (AKA Austin Bolam or Cecil Austen Bolam) who was born in England around 1871 and died in 1955 in Florida. We are unsure of who his mother was.

My specific question is regarding the passenger record for his August 20, 1921 arrival in New York at Ellis Island on the ship "Aquitania." There are several notations on his and his wife Helen's entry in the original ship manifest, including those in the Head Tax column and several other places. Could you tell me what these notations mean? (I found this ship's manifest on www.ellisisland.org.)

Also, it is listed on this same ship's manifest that he previously entered the country in 1905 and 1921. While I have found an entry in 1919 (which I assume to be the stated 1921 entry), I cannot find the 1905 arrival. Do you have any suggestions?

Ask Olive Tree Genealogy Response: Kristen you've done some good researching and analyzing of the records you found for your great grandfather. Manifest markings are difficult.

You might want to check the glossary on Jewish Gen as it shows two of the markings beside your great grandpa's name:

C.L. = Certificate of Landing
USC = United States Citizen

A certificate of landing was pretty much the same as a Certificate of Arrival and was noted on passenger manifests after 1926 as part of the naturalization process.

I'm afraid I don't know what the numbers 3/24099-EF refer to  but I'm willing to bet it's a case file reference of some sort.

Tips for finding the 1905 voyage referred to are probably ones you already know:

* Use wildcards such as B*l*m* for Bolam and variants
* Don't use a first name
* Use a date of birth plus/minus 5 years
* Don't use any names, just use place of birth and date plus 1905 as year of arrival
etc

Just keep playing around with a less and less restrictive search to widen the possibilities. Oh and don't forget that it's possible he arrived at a port city other than New York.

Meaning of Markings on Ships' Passenger List

Millie's question:

I am researching my great-grandfather,JANOS HEIMLICH. On Oct. 4,1899 he picked up his son Emanuel Heimlich at EllisIsland. He arrived on the ship Werra from Bremen, Germany. They resided in Hungary. Emanuel was 9 yrs. 6mos. old. The manifest said pick up by father, residence would be New York.
That is the only information that I have. I can't find anything more. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

OLIVE TREE ANSWER: Hi Millie

Have you found your ancestor in census records after his arrival?

The 1900, 1910 ,1920 and 1930 census identify citizenship status, with notations showing the individual was an Alien,or had started the Naturalization process or had his final papers.

You can read more about the value of census records in your search for an immigrant ancestor at http://naturalizationrecords.com/usa/census.shtml

Have you found Emanual's Naturalization Records?

I took a look at the online manifest. You didn't mention the notation beside Emanuel's name - in the occupation column. Perhaps you didn't realize it had any meaning. It does

In 1926 verification clerks began to record the verification (record check) and naturalization certification activity on each passenger list record. The annotations may be found on any passenger list, before or after 1926, but they will all relate to naturalization activity occurring in 1926 or later.

In Emanuel's case, the markings are a bit hidden but appear to read

3X-16023 2/4/34 [it is the /34 that is questionable]

The "X" means Emanuel did not have to pay the Certificate of Arrival fee. He was exempt because he arrived before 1906.He would be issued a Certificate of Landing. The numbers 16023 are the application number, the 3 before the X is the district number. The second group of numbers is the verification date.

You can read about Manifest Markings and their meanings(plus refer to a District Number decoder) at http://www.jewishgen.org/InfoFiles/Manifests/occ/

There is an explanation and Resource Guide to Naturalization Records at http://naturalizationrecords.com/

Good luck, don't despair, you have more information than you realize