Genealogy and Local History Blog

Enemy Alien Records of World War I

by · September 5, 2024

Map showing World War I alliances courtesy of Australia's Digital Classroom: https://digital-classroom.nma.gov.au/images/map-showing-first-world-war-alliances

When the Senate granted President Woodrow Wilson’s request for a declaration of war on April 6, 1917, Wilson requested both citizens and non-naturalized immigrants to remain neutral in thought, word, and deed, and to uphold all laws and support all measures adopted for the safety and security of the US. However, all natives, citizens, denizens, or subjects of Germany and its allies Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria (including American-born women who married German men) were considered alien enemies and were required to demonstrate their loyalty in ways beyond what was required of US citizens and non-enemy aliens.

An executive order was issued by President Wilson in November 1917 requiring the registration of German-born men ages fourteen and older who had not been naturalized. Registration occurred at the nearest US District Court. German-born women were required to register starting in April 1918.

Wilson’s declaration of war included twelve regulations that restricted the conduct of alien enemies in the US. Broadly, the regulations barred owning firearms, established a permitting process to reside/work in areas deemed as restricted zones or to depart the US, and laid out policies regarding threats and attacks against the US, along with condemning all aid to the enemy.

Significantly, Regulation 12 stated that “an alien enemy whom there may be reasonable cause to believe to be aiding or about to aid the enemy . . . or violates any regulation promulgated by the President . . . will be subject to summary arrest . . . and to confinement in such penitentiary, prison, jail, or military camp.” The War Department established war prison barracks at Fort Oglethorpe, GA; Fort McPherson, GA; and Fort Douglas, UT.

Fig. 1. Germans in an internment camp at Fort Douglas during World War I. Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division. https://www.loc.gov/item/2014705872/

The Records

Records related to World War I enemy alien control programs were created by several different federal agencies, including records related to internments and those related to registrations, permits, and enforcement. Internment-related records are in the Justice Department (Record Group (RG) 60), State Department (RG 59), Adjutant General’s Office (RG 407), Office of Alien Property (RG 131), US District Courts (RG 21), and Immigration and Naturalization Service (RG 85). Agencies dealing with registrations, permits, and enforcement records are the US Attorneys and Marshals (RG 118), US District Courts (RG 21), Post Office (28), and Immigration and Naturalization Service (RG 85).

The acronym “NAID” used in this blog stands for “National Archives Identifier.” NAIDs are unique numbers assigned to all descriptions in the National Archives catalog. They can be assigned from record groups down to individual items.

Records Relating to Internments

General Records of the Department of Justice (RG 60)

The Justice Department (DOJ) was responsible for determining which aliens should be interned. The digitized Alien Enemy Index, 1917-1919 (NAID 602456) contains 57,722 alphabetically-arranged index cards that give each alien’s name, subject matter, judicial district, and related file number. These cards are finding aids to DOJ case files in two separate record series in RG 60. The first series is titled Class 9 (European War Matters) Litigation Case Files and Enclosures, 1914–1961 (NAID 599528) and have a ”9” prefix (Fig. 2). These files provide a complete history from the alien’s arrest to their release or deportation. Class 9 files found in the alien enemy index cards are primarily from the sub-category “9-16” (Regulation of Alien Enemies). Most files from Class 9 have not been digitized. The second record series indexed in this collection are cards with the “189796” prefix. They refer to File 189796 of the Straight Numerical Files 1904-1974 (NAID 583895) and document naturalization matters related to persons listed in the index (Fig. 3). These files have also not been digitized.

Fig. 2. Alien Index Card, Ernst Thom, “9” prefix. Source: Alien Enemy Index, 1917-1919, archives.gov.
Fig. 3. Alien Index Card, August M. Spohn, 189796 prefix. Source: Alien Enemy Index, 1917-1919, archives.gov.

Before searching the index, know that some first names may be abbreviated, so if you don’t get results searching by first and last name, search by last name, or even first name if it’s an unusual name. Also consider alternate spellings, and that some women may be listed by their husband’s name, e.g. Mrs. John Koenig.

General Records of the Department of State (RG 59)

Some records in an alien’s DOJ Class 9 file may be copies of correspondence with the State Department if the National Alien Enemy Relief Committee based in Washington, DC, or the Swiss government took an interest in a particular alien’s case. (The war ended diplomatic relations with the German government, so the Swiss Embassy looked after interests of enemy aliens.) This correspondence usually includes the relevant file number from the partially-digitized State Department’s Central Decimal Files, 1910-1963 (NAID 302021). To ensure all relevant records are located, the Name Index, 1910-1973 (NAID 581008) should be searched, but it hasn’t been digitzed yet.

Records of the Adjutant General’s Office (RG 407)

The Adjutant General’s Office created numerous records documenting the War Department’s operation of the internment camps. Descriptive Enemy Cards, 1914-1919 (NAID 7513259) give each internee’s physical description. The 201 Files, 1918-1920 (also known as World War I Prisons and Prisoners: Prisoners of War and Alien Enemies in the U.S.) (NAID 7933768) contain correspondence from or about prisoners. Correspondence Relating to Personal Property, 1917-1921 (NAID 7933769) includes receipts for property surrendered upon internment. None of these have yet been digitized.

Records of the Office of Alien Property (RG 131)

Under certain circumstances, the Trading with the Enemy Act of 1917 allowed the federal government to seize, administer, and sell alien-controlled property (Fig. 4). Records created by the Office of Alien Property include Records of Interned Aliens, 1917-1918 (NAID 7381637); Records of Investigation, 1917-1921 (NAID 7373130); Trust Files, 1917-1934 (NAID 6879970); and other records that identify aliens and their property. These are also not yet digitized.

Fig. 4. Photograph 165-WW-25B-4; Alien Property Custodian – Sale of Property – Property taken over by Alien Property Custodian sold at auction. The plant of A.W. Faber Pencil Co., Newark, N.J. was sold by Public Auction by order of A. Mitchel Palmer, Alien Property Custodian. View o; 9/24/1918; Alien Property Custodian – Sale of Property; American Unofficial Collection of World War I Photographs; Records of the War Department General and Special Staffs, Record Group 165; National Archives at College Park, College Park, MD. [Online Version, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/alien-property-taken, September 5, 2024]

Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (RG 85)

The administration of the internment camp at Hot Springs, NC (Fig. 5), is detailed in the series General Subject Files of the Immigration and Naturalization Service Enemy Alien Internment Facility at Hot Springs, North Carolina (World War I), 1917 – 1918 (NAID 5106146); Accounting Files of the Immigration and Naturalization Service Enemy Alien Internment Facility at Hot Springs, North Carolina (World War I), 1917 – 1918 (NAID 5111263); and Correspondence of the Inspector in Charge of the Immigration and Naturalization Service Enemy Alien Internment Facility at Hot Springs, North Carolina, with the Secretary of Labor (World War I), 1917 – 1918 (NAID 5106167). These have not been digitized. Additional records of internment can be found within the fully-digitized Subject and Policy Files, 1906-1957 (NAID 559947).

Fig. 5. German internees at Mountain Park Hotel in Hot Springs, Madison Co., North Carolina, 1917. Courtesy http://www.ibiblio.org/.

Records Relating to Registrations, Permits, and Enforcement

Growing apprehension that German aliens in the US might resort to espionage caused government officials to expand regulations. Among the eight new regulations was Regulation 19, which required enemy alien registration. This process involved completing a four-page form that required the registrant to provide family information, details of immigration, a physical description, a photograph, and fingerprints. Over 480,000 German enemy aliens were registered, 200,000 permits were issued, and 6,300 enemy aliens were arrested under Presidential Arrest Warrants. Unfortunately, no master lists of these documents survive; very few records exist today, and those that do are incomplete. Researchers should be aware that enemy alien registration records have been identified at a variety of locations outside the National Archives, including state archives, historical societies, and county libraries. To date, the only states with known surviving enemy alien registration records are: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota (state registration), New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, Texas, and Wisconsin. Following is a list of digital collections of state enemy alien registration records:

FamilySearch:

US District Court records also have material about detained aliens, such as Case Files on Detained Enemy Aliens, 1917-1919 (NAID 17408476) from the US District Court for the Western (Cincinnati) Division of the Southern District of Ohio, but aren’t digitally available yet.

Fig. 6. Page from Edward Sonnenberg’s alien registration form. Source: Familysearch.org, “Enemy alien registration affidavits, correspondence, and supporting documentation, 1918,” US District Court (North Dakota), film no. 1769635, item 3, image 296.

Ancestry.com:

  • Kansas, Permits and Registration of Alien Enemy Residents, 1918
  • Kansas, U.S., Registration Affidavits of Alien Enemies, 1917-1918
  • Web: Minnesota, U.S., Alien Registration Index, 1918

National Archives catalog; partially digitized:

  • Alien Registration Affidavits, 2.6.1918-6.28.1918, US District Court, Phoenix Division, District of Arizona. NAID 294758
  • Alien Application Permits. Dept. of Justice. Office of the U.S. Marshall for the District of Kansas. NAID 5917758
  • Alien Enemy Registrations, 1917-1920. U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky. Frankfort Term. NAID 5752917
  • Lists and Forms Relating to Alien Registration, 1918. US District Court. Shreveport Division, Western District of Louisiana. NAID 4706580
  • Reports on Aliens, 1917-1919. Department of Justice. Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Judicial District of Minnesota. NAID 5821666
  • Reports of Special Agents, 1917-1918. Department of Justice. Office of the US Attorney for the Judicial District of Minnesota. NAID 5923162
  • Correspondence Relating to Enemy Alien and Espionage Act Violations. Department of Justice. Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Judicial District of Nebraska. NAID 5917191
  • Alien Registration Affidavits,1918. US District Court, Eastern District of North Carolina. Raleigh Term. NAID 5889371
  • Case Files on Detained Enemy Aliens, 1917-1919, Western (Cincinnati) Division of the Southern District of Ohio. NAID 17408476
  • Aliens’ Applications for Permission to Depart from the United States, 1918-1919. Dept. of Labor. Bureau of Immigration, District 4 (Philadelphia). NAID 567234

The series identified below are the only known registration records currently maintained by the National Archives:

Records of U.S. Attorneys and Marshals (RG 118)

The US Marshals were tasked with the responsibility for enemy alien registration, permitting, and general enforcement, but very few of the records related to these processes exist today. Records from the U.S. Marshals in three states survive: Kansas, Minnesota (Fig. 7), and Nebraska. The six series noted below are fully digitized and searchable by name in the National Archives catalog:

  • District of Kansas, Enemy Alien Registration Affidavits, 1917-1921 (NAID 286181)
  • District of Kansas, Alien Application Permits, 1917-1918 (NAID 5917758)
  • District of Kansas, Lists of Permits Issued to Enemy Aliens, 1918-1918 (NAID 5917760)
  • District of Minnesota, Reports on Aliens, 1917-1919 (NAID 5821666)
  • District of Minnesota, Reports of Special Agents, 1917-1918 (NAID 5923162)
  • District of Nebraska, Correspondence Relating to Enemy Alien and Espionage Act Violations, 1917-1919 (NAID 5917191)
Fig. 7. Excerpt from Dangerous Alien Enemy report on German alien Joe Walter, February 14, 1918. Source: National Archives Record Group 118: Records of U.S. Attorney, Reports of Special Agents, Department of Justice, Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Judicial District of Minnesota, 7/1/1870-.

Records of District Courts of the United States (RG 21)

The US District Courts were not directly involved in administering the enemy alien control program. For unknown reasons, four courts maintained incomplete records of the registration process within their geographic jurisdiction. Louisiana is fully-digitized and the rest are partially digitized:

  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky. Frankfort Term: Alien Enemy Registrations, 1917-1920 (NAID 5752917)
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. Raleigh Term: Alien Registration Affidavits, 1918-1918 (NAID 5889371)
  • U.S. District Court for the Phoenix Division of the District of Arizona: Alien Registration Affidavits, 1918-1918 (NAID 160920782) (Fig. 8)
  • U.S. District Court for the Shreveport Division of the Western District of Louisiana: Lists and Forms Relating to Alien Registration, 1918-1918 (NAID 4706580)
Fig. 8. Page from Dolores Padilla Bachmann’s enemy alien affidavit, 1918. Source: National Archives, U.S. District Court for the Phoenix Division of the District of Arizona: Alien Registration Affidavits, 1918-1918.

Records of the Post Office Department (RG 28)

The Post Office Department was not directly involved in administering the enemy alien control program. The agency retained a small sample of registration affidavits that are online:

    Post Office Department: Sample of Registration Affidavits of Alien Females in Wisconsin, June 21-28, 1918 (NAID 38983236)

Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (RG 85)

The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) were not directly involved in administering the enemy alien control program. The agency retained a small number of registration affidavits associated with active investigative files and is online:

    Department of Labor. Bureau of Immigration. District 23 (El Paso): Investigative Files, 1911–1919 (NAID 583816)

How Do I Get Copies?

Researchers need to contact [email protected] for access to, or copies of, records of the Justice and State Departments, the Adjutant General’s Office, and the Office of Alien Property. Send a separate request for each record group and include the alien’s name and state of residence, record group, and record series. Include your name, postal address, e-mail address, and phone number. For in-person research go to the National Archives at College Park, 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD 20740. For US District Court record requests, locate the appropriate National Archives regional facility serving your state of interest here.

If you’d like to know more about President Wilson’s proclamation regarding alien enemies and the DOJ’s subsequent actions through December 31, 1917, go to the 1917 Annual Report of the Attorney General and read “Action of the Attorney General under the President’s Proclamation of April 6, 1917, Relative to Alien Enemies,” 57-73.


 

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