Obtaining an Alien File

Last week I wrote of my visit to the National Archives in New York City and the instruction I received on Alien Files.  I located an individual of interest in the online index and requested a copy of the file last Tuesday evening.  On Wednesday, the NARA office in Kansas City, Missouri contacted me with additional information from the file, including a place of birth and date and port of entry to the United States, to verify that they had the correct file.  (This information did not actually verify anything; rather, it was such facts that I was hoping to discover.  This verification would be useful, though, for common names.)  For just $15, one week later I had in my mailbox the copies of the file.  The contents of this particular file were the two pages comprising the Alien Registration Form filed in 1940.  Other files may contain a lot more documents and information, but I still received a wealth of information from these two pages, including:

-Date and place of birth
-Entry date into the United States
-Ship name
-Physical description and marital status
-Current address
-Occupation and name and address of employer
-Signature

Alien Registration Form filed 1940 for Joseph Regenye.
Part of his Alien File available through the National Archives.

Page 2 of the Alien Registration Form.