History Office and Library

Our staff is responsible for researching, writing, and preserving the history of federal immigration and naturalization services, from 1891 to today.

Our History
USCIS benefits from a legacy of more than 100 years of federal immigration and naturalization administration. Explore our organizational timeline and read about key turning points in U.S. immigration history.

Historical Library
Our library was founded to track the history and implementation of federal immigration and naturalization policies. From our website, you can search our library catalog, read about our collection, and e-mail our library staff.  Note: please visit the Genealogy Program to learn how to access the records of individual immigrants.

Research Guides
Consult our online guides to see how research with federal immigration records can provide a better understanding of the history of federal immigration and nationality policies, as well as the agencies and people who administered them.

Featured Stories
Read the stories of people and programs that make up federal immigration history, from Ellis Island to today.  

History Office Webinars
Learn about methods and topics in immigration and citizenship history, including genealogy. 

Please note that our office does not maintain the records of individual immigrants. If you are conducting genealogical research and want to obtain historic immigration and naturalization records, contact the fee-for-service Genealogy Program.