Vermont, St. Albans Canadian Border Crossings - FamilySearch Historical Records

What is in This Collection?
The collection contains an index and passenger manifests to Canadian border entries. Each month the records were sent to the INS District Office. The records that were located at the district office in St. Albans, Vermont, cover 1895-1954. The "Event Place" of Vermont references the district office location. It will be necessary to view the original record to determine the port of entry. The four microfilm publications in this collections are part of Record Group 85 Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service.


 * Soundex Index to Canadian Border Entries through the St. Albans, Vermont, District,1895-1924, M1461  National Archive Catalog
 * Soundex Index to Entries into the St. Albans, Vermont, District through Canadian Pacific and Atlantic Ports,1924-1952,M1463
 * Manifests of Passengers Arriving in the St. Albans, VT, District through Canadian Pacific and Atlantic Ports,1895-1954,M1464
 * Manifest of Passengers Arriving in the St. Albans, Vermont, District through Canadian Pacific Ports, 1929-1949,M1465

What Can These Records Tell Me?
The following information may be found in these records:

Crossing index
 * Port and serial number
 * Name of immigrant
 * Names of accompanying individuals
 * Birthplace
 * Age
 * Sex
 * Marital status
 * Language
 * Race
 * Nationality
 * Last permanent address
 * Name and address of friend or relative in previous county
 * If previously lived in the US, dates and place
 * Who paid passage
 * Name and address of friend or relative in the US
 * Money with them
 * If ever arrested
 * Purpose for coming to the US
 * Physical description
 * Port and date of landing

How Do I Search This Collection?
To begin your search it is helpful to know:
 * The full name of your ancestor
 * The approximate date of immigration

If you do not know this information, check the census records after 1900.

View the Images
View images in this collection by visiting the :
 * 1) Select NARA Publication Number and Title
 * 2) Select Chronological Order or Alphabetical Order to view the images.

How Do I Analyze the Results?
Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images. Keep track of your research in a research log.

I Found the Person I Was Looking For, What Now?
Use passenger lists to:


 * Learn an immigrant’s place of origin
 * Confirm their date of arrival
 * Learn foreign and “Americanized” names
 * Find records in his or her country of origin such as emigrations, port records, or ship’s manifests
 * If your ancestor had a common name, be sure to look at all the entries for a name before you decide which is correct
 * Continue to search the passenger lists to identify siblings, parents, and other relatives in the same or other generations who may have immigrated at the same time
 * If your ancestor has an uncommon surname, you may want to obtain the passenger list of every person who shares your ancestor’s surname if they lived in the same county or nearby. You may not know how or if they are related, but the information could lead you to more information about your own ancestors
 * When you select an image to view, sometimes the manifest includes more than one page, and when you use the "click to enlarge manifest" link, the image that appears is not always the first page of the record. You may need to click on the "previous" or "next" links to view the remaining pages of the full manifest
 * The information was supplied by the immigrant or a traveling companion (usually a family member). Incorrect information was occasionally given, or mistakes may have been made when the clerk guessed at the spelling of foreign names
 * The passenger arrival list was used by legal inspectors to cross-examine each immigrant during a legal inspection prior to the person being allowed to live in America. Only two percent of the prospective immigrants were denied entry

I Can't Find the Person I'm Looking For, What Now?

 * Check for variant spellings. Realize that the indexes may contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings and misinterpretations
 * Try a different index if there is one for the years needed. You may also need to search the passenger lists year by year
 * Search the indexes of other port cities

Research Helps
The following articles will help you in your research for your family in the state of Vermont.
 * Beginning Research in United States Immigration and Emigration Records
 * Vermont Guided Research
 * Vermont Record Finder
 * Research Tips and Strategies
 * Step-by-Step Research

Citing This Collection
Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.