Florida, Knights Keys Passenger Lists - FamilySearch Historical Records

Record Description
This collection consists of images of passenger lists of vessels arriving from Havana, Cuba. It corresponds with NARA Publication A3371: Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at Knights Key, Florida, February 1908-January 1912 and is part of Record Group 85 Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

Record Content
The records usually include the following information:


 * Name
 * Birth place
 * Age, gender, marital status and occupation
 * Height, hair color and eye color
 * Nationality or citizenship in what country
 * Last residence
 * Name and address of relative or friend at former address
 * Destination
 * Name and address of relative or friend in this country
 * Port and date of entry
 * Name of ship

How to Use the Record
To begin your search it is helpful to know:


 * The full name of your ancestor
 * Identifying information such as approximate date of immigration

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

Search the Collection
To search the collection by name: Fill in the requested information in the boxes on the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the individuals in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. You may need to look at the information on several individuals comparing the information about them to your ancestors to make this determination. Keep in mind:
 * There may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * You may not be sure of your own ancestor’s name.
 * Your ancestor may have used different names, or variations of their name, throughout their life.
 * If your ancestor used an alias or a nickname, be sure to check for those alternate names.
 * Even though these indexes are very accurate they may still contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings, misinterpretations, and optical character recognition errors if the information was scanned.

For tips about searching on-line collections see the on-line article FamilySearch Search Tips and Tricks.

To browse by image: To search the collection you will need to follow this series of links: ⇒Select "Browse through images" on the initial collection page ⇒Select the appropriate "NARA Roll Number" which takes you to the images.

Look at each image comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine if the image relates to them. You may need to look at several images and compare the information about the individuals listed in those images to your ancestors to make this determination. Keep in mind:


 * There may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * You may not be sure of your own ancestor’s name.
 * Your ancestor may have used different names or variations of their name throughout their life.

Using the Information
When you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors. Add this new information to your records of each family. For example, you can 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.

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * 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.

Unable to Find Your Ancestor?

 * Look for variant spellings of the names. You should also look for alias names, nicknames and abbreviated names.
 * Search the indexes and records of nearby localities.

Related Websites

 * NARA Collection Description A3371
 * NARA Immigration Records
 * NARA Sample Passenger List Form 1907-1917
 * Find Your Ancestors in One Step $
 * US Ports of Arrival and their Available Passenger Lists 1820-1957

Related Wiki Articles

 * Florida Emigration and Immigration
 * United States Emigration and Immigration
 * Florida

Citations for This Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image.

Collection Citation:

Image Citation: