Finding William Henry Kelsey’s Naturalization in a Utah County Minute Book

Naturalization records are some of the most exciting finds for genealogists researching immigrant ancestors. They can tell us where our ancestor was born, when they arrived, and when they became a citizen of the United States. Recently, I found a record of William Henry Kelsey’s citizenship in a Utah County minute book on FamilySearch — and it got me thinking about the complex history of naturalization records in territorial Utah and whether more records might survive.

*An AI assistant helped write this blog post including drafting paragraphs and writing citations from the list of sources in William H. Kelsey’s profile at FamilySearch.

William Henry Kelsey’s Life

William Henry Kelsey was born on 21 November 1830 in Dover, Kent, England, the son of Edward Kelsey, age 44, and Ann Gibbons, age 39.[1] He was christened on 30 January 1831 at Dover St Mary the Virgin.[2] William grew up in Dover with his parents and siblings, including sisters Mary, Matilda Louisa, and Eliza Ann.

By his late teens, William’s life had changed dramatically. He was baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on 16 February 1848.[3] Tragically, his father, Edward Kelsey, died that same year, in July 1848.[4] Despite losing his father, William was clearly committed to his new faith. By the time of the 1851 England census, twenty-year-old William was lodging in Croydon, Surrey, and listed his occupation as a “Latterday Saint Elder.”[5]

On 27 September 1852, William married Harriet Huggett in Norwood, Ealing, London.[6] They began their family in the Croydon and London area, where their first three children were born: Harriet Matilda in 1853, Ellen in 1855, and William Henry Jr. in 1856.[7] They also lost a baby in December 1858.[8]

The 1861 England census captured the Kelsey family at their home in Camberwell, Surrey, where William was listed as a “Dissenting Minister” living with Harriet and their three surviving children.[9] But William was already preparing to leave England. In May 1861, the family sailed from Liverpool to New York on the ship Monarch of the Sea, arriving in June.[10] From there, they traveled overland from Florence, Nebraska, to Utah Territory with the Sixtus E. Johnson pioneer company, arriving on 27 September 1861.[11] The family settled in Springville, Utah County, where their daughter Emma Sarah was born in December 1861.[12]

In Utah, William practiced plural marriage. He married Hesther Huggett — Harriet’s twin sister — on 26 July 1862 at the Endowment House in Salt Lake City.[13] He later married Laura Esther Street on 13 March 1876, also at the Endowment House.[14] William and Laura had several children together, including Esther Ruth (1877), Josephine Victoria (1879), and Dora Deborah (1882).[15]

William served a mission to Europe in 1872, being set apart on 30 April 1872.[16] He continued to live in Springville until his death on 5 August 1895, at the age of 64. He was buried in the Springville City Cemetery.[17]

The Naturalization Record

I found William Henry Kelsey’s naturalization in the “Utah, Utah County Records, 1850–1962” collection at FamilySearch, in a volume titled “Minute Book of Naturalization: Utah. Naturalization Records 1873–1880.”[18] The header on page 44 reads, “ At the regular September Term of the U.S. District Court Commenced & held Sept. 17, 1877, Present Hon. P.H. Emerson Judge.

The specific entry for William reads:

From this brief entry, we learn that William H. Kelsey was a native of England and was living in Utah County, Utah Territory, at the time of his naturalization. He appeared alongside another man, Robert Shine, who was naturalized in the same session — the ditto marks after Robert Shine’s name indicate that the same phrase about being a native of England applied to both men. The presiding judge was Philip H. Emerson.

William was naturalized in September 1877, about sixteen years after arriving in Utah. This timing is interesting. His naturalization at a time when elections in Utah had become fiercely contested between the Mormon-controlled People’s Party and the anti-Mormon Liberal Party.[19] Perhaps he felt a desire to vote during the political conflict of this decade.

Philip H. Emerson was a justice of the Territorial Supreme Court of Utah, first appointed by President Ulysses S. Grant in 1873 and reappointed by President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1877.[20] As a territorial supreme court justice, Emerson also served as a district court judge presiding over the court covering Utah County.

Understanding Naturalization in Territorial Utah

The naturalization process in Utah Territory was complicated by the political and religious tensions of the era. From the 1850s through 1874, immigrants in territorial Utah typically filed for naturalization in probate courts. The probate courts were under local control, and their judges were often members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Because of ongoing conflicts between the federal government and LDS Church members, many Latter-day Saints preferred the local probate courts over the federally appointed district courts.[21]

This changed with the Poland Act of 1874, which stripped probate courts of their civil and criminal jurisdiction and restricted them to matters of estates, guardianships, and divorce.[22] After the Poland Act, naturalizations were processed through the territorial district courts. William H. Kelsey’s 1877 naturalization before Judge Emerson in “open court” reflects this shift — his citizenship was granted in the district court, not the probate court.

It’s also worth noting that LDS Church members who applied for naturalization during the 1870s and 1880s were sometimes denied citizenship because of polygamy.[23] The federal district court judges were often unsympathetic to Latter-day Saints, and naturalization hearings could become a flashpoint in the broader conflict over polygamy. William was living in a polygamous household at the time of his naturalization — he had married Harriet’s twin sister Hesther in 1862 and Laura Esther Street in 1876. It’s interesting that his naturalization was granted without apparent difficulty. Perhaps the court was not aware of his marital situation, or perhaps the issue was not raised at his hearing. More research into the specific court practices in Utah County during this period could shed light on this.

Do More Utah County Naturalization Records Survive?

After finding William’s record, I naturally wanted to know: are there more naturalization records from Utah County that I can search?

The FamilySearch catalog lists a collection titled “Utah, Utah County, naturalization records, 1859–1927,” which includes declarations of intention spanning from 1859 through 1929, as well as the minute book where I found Kelsey’s entry.[24] These originals are housed by the Utah County Recorder in Provo and have been digitized by FamilySearch. This is encouraging — there are multiple volumes of declarations of intention that cover a broad time range.

However, there are noticeable gaps. The minute book I found covers only 1873–1880. The FamilySearch wiki mentions a naturalization index for the district court covering Utah County (as well as Juab, Millard, and Emery counties) spanning 1860–1989, divided into two time periods.[25] The district court minutes for Utah County, covering 1852–1966, also contain naturalization entries embedded within the general court minutes.[26] So it’s possible that additional naturalization entries exist in the broader court minute books, not just in the dedicated naturalization minute book.

I searched the district court minute books for Utah County (1852–1966) on FamilySearch using full-text search (catalog entry) for additional naturalization entries for William Kelsey. No naturalization entries were found beyond what was already in the dedicated naturalization minute book. However, the search did turn up William’s name on jury lists and in other court business, which confirms he was an active participant in civic life in Utah County after becoming a citizen.

When I checked the Utah State Archives, I noticed something interesting. Their digitized collection on FamilySearch includes naturalization records for many Utah counties — Beaver, Box Elder, Cache, Carbon, Davis, Emery, Garfield, Grand, Iron, Juab, Millard, Piute, Salt Lake, San Juan, Sanpete, Sevier, Summit, Tooele, Wasatch, and Weber — but Utah County is notably absent from that list.[27] The Utah State Archives’ naturalization research guide confirms that some records may still be held by the court itself or may have been transferred to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. It also notes that the Rocky Mountain branch of the National Archives holds some naturalization records for the Fourth District Court (Utah County) starting from about 1939.[28]

So where are the Utah County naturalization records? It appears that many of them remained with the Utah County Recorder rather than being transferred to the Utah State Archives. The volumes that FamilySearch digitized from the Utah County Recorder’s office may be the primary surviving collection for the territorial period. For researchers looking for naturalization records from Utah County before 1906, the key sources to check are the dedicated naturalization volumes in the FamilySearch collection, the general district court minutes (which can contain naturalization entries mixed in with other court business), and the naturalization index at FamilySearch.

Searching for the Declaration of Intention

Using the Utah County naturalization collection I found in the FamilySearch catalog, I located the digitized microfilm of the first volume of declarations for 1859-1865.

 

I clicked the paper with an AI symbol on it to search with Full-Text Search, I found William H. Kelsey’s name in the front index on page 173.[29]

But when I navigated to page 173 in the digitized images, it wasn’t there — the images skipped straight from page 171 to page 174. It appears that the spread containing pages 172–173 was missed during the digitization process. This is a good reminder that even when records have been digitized, pages can be skipped. Always check the page numbers as you browse, especially when you’re looking for a specific entry that should be there based on an index.

I emailed the Utah County Recorder’s office to ask whether they still have the original volume and whether I could obtain an image of the missing page. This is the kind of situation where an on-site visit to the repository can make all the difference. If the volume is still housed at the county recorder’s office in Provo, I plan to visit in person to view page 173 and photograph the declaration of intention entry for William Henry Kelsey. A declaration of intention from the early 1860s could reveal important details — at minimum, his name and country of origin, but possibly also the names of his witnesses, which could help identify associates in the Springville community. Since he arrived in Utah in September 1861 and this volume covers 1859–1865, he may have filed his declaration of intention shortly after arriving in Utah Territory.[30] They haven’t responded in several months so I will have to visit the Recorder’s office personally. This is what the volume looks like:

Tips for Finding Naturalization Records in Utah

If you’re searching for an ancestor’s naturalization in Utah Territory, here are a few things to keep in mind.

Before 1874, check the probate court records for the county where your ancestor lived. Naturalizations may be recorded in the probate court minutes alongside other civil matters. After 1874, look in the territorial district court records. Remember that district courts covered multiple counties, so your ancestor’s naturalization might be found in a neighboring county’s court records.

Check the FamilySearch catalog under the county name and the subject “Naturalization and citizenship” to find available volumes and digital images. Don’t overlook general court minute books — naturalization entries were often recorded within the regular court minutes rather than in separate naturalization volumes.

The naturalization indexes available at FamilySearch can be especially helpful. The Utah County naturalization index covering 1860–1989 draws from district court minutes, petition books, and probate minutes and also covers Juab, Millard, and Emery counties.

Finally, look for the declaration of intention as well as the final order of admission. These were separate steps in the naturalization process and may be recorded in different volumes.

Future Research

• Visit the Utah County Recorder’s office to find William Henry Kelsey’s declaration of intention on page 173 of in the Utah County declarations of intention volume 1 (1859–1865).
• Research Robert Shine, who was naturalized alongside William, to learn more about who he was and whether he had any connection to the Kelsey family.

 

Notes

[1] William Henry Kelsey, “England, Births and Christenings, 1538-1975,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:J7GJ-ZQR : 5 February 2023).

[2] “England, Kent, Canterbury Parish Registers, 1538-1986,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QGNJ-GB52 : 8 March 2024), entry for William Henry Kelsey and Edward, 30 January 1831.

[3] “William H Kelsey,” Early Mormon Missionaries (https://history.churchofjesuschrist.org/missionary/individual/william-h-kelsey-1830 : accessed 25 June 2017); baptism date: 16 February 1848.

[4] William Henry Kelsey timeline, FamilySearch Family Tree (https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/person/timeline/KWJH-GCC : accessed 17 August 2026); Edward Kelsey, died July 1848, Buckland, Kent, England.

[5] 1851 England Census, Croydon, Surrey, William Kelsey, age 20, lodger, occupation: “Latter Day Saint Elder”; Ancestry.com; citing Class: HO107; Piece: 1601; Folio: 212; Page: 24.

[6] “England, Surrey, Parish Registers, 1536-1992,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QGZP-K4TT  : 10 March 2024), entry for William Henry Kelsey and Harriet Huggett, 27 September 1852.

[7] William Henry Kelsey timeline, FamilySearch Family Tree (https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/person/timeline/KWJH-GCC : accessed 17 August 2026); Harriet Matilda Kelsey, b. 24 July 1853, Croydon; Ellen Kelsey, b. 17 January 1855, Croydon; William Henry Kelsey Jr., b. 31 December 1856, London.

[8] William Henry Kelsey timeline, FamilySearch Family Tree (https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/person/timeline/KWJH-GCC : accessed 17 August 2026); child born and died December 1858, London.

[9] 1861 England Census, Camberwell, Surrey, William H Kelsey, age 30, “Dissenting Minister,” born Dover, Kent; Ancestry.com; citing Class: RG9; Piece: 382; Folio: 123; Page: 20.

[10] Mormon Migration database, Liverpool to New York on the Monarch of the Sea (16 May 1861 – 16 June 1861); (http://mormonmigration.lib.byu.edu/ : accessed 17 August 2026).

[11] “Utah, Mormon Pioneer Overland Travel Database, 1847-1868,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QK9B-CCPG : 19 February 2025), entry for William Henry Kelsey, arrived 27 September 1861; Sixtus E. Johnson Company.

[12] William Henry Kelsey timeline, FamilySearch Family Tree (https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/person/timeline/KWJH-GCC : accessed 17 August 2026); Emma Sarah Kelsey, b. 14 December 1861, Springville, Utah.

[13] William Henry Kelsey timeline, FamilySearch Family Tree (https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/person/timeline/KWJH-GCC : accessed 17 August 2026); marriage to Hesther Huggett, 26 July 1862, Endowment House, Salt Lake City.

[14] William Henry Kelsey timeline, FamilySearch Family Tree (https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/person/timeline/KWJH-GCC : accessed 17 August 2026); marriage to Laura Esther Street, 13 March 1876, Endowment House, Salt Lake City.

[15] William Henry Kelsey timeline, FamilySearch Family Tree (https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/person/timeline/KWJH-GCC : accessed 17 August 2026); Esther Ruth Kelsey, b. 12 February 1877; Josephine Victoria Kelsey, b. 10 June 1879; Dora Deborah Kelsey, b. 24 October 1882; all born in Springville, Utah.

[16] “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Missionary Registers (Worldwide), 1860-1937,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKDW-THYV : 11 March 2025), entry for William H Kelsey, 1872.

[17] “Find a Grave Index,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVVH-JCZS : 1 April 2025), entry for William Henry Kelsey; burial at Springville City Cemetery.

[18] “Utah, Utah County Records, 1850-1962,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:6D1C-9X98 : 9 March 2024), entry for William H Kelsey, 1877; “Minute Book of Naturalization: Utah. Naturalization Records 1873–1880.”

[19]  “The Path to Utah Statehood,” PBS American Experience (https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/mormons-utah/ : accessed 17 August 2026).

[20] “Phillip H. Emerson,” Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phillip_H._Emerson : accessed 17 August 2026).

[21] “Utah Naturalization and Citizenship,” FamilySearch Research Wiki (https://www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/Utah_Naturalization_and_Citizenship : accessed 17 August 2026).

[22] “Utah Court Records,” FamilySearch Research Wiki (https://www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/Utah_Court_Records : accessed 17 August 2026).

[23] “Utah Naturalization and Citizenship,” FamilySearch Research Wiki.

[24] FamilySearch catalog, “Utah, Utah County, naturalization records, 1859–1927” (https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/2334095 : accessed 17 August 2026).

[25] “Utah Naturalization and Citizenship,” FamilySearch Research Wiki.

[26] “Utah Naturalization and Citizenship,” FamilySearch Research Wiki.

[27] “Utah, State Archives, Records – FamilySearch Historical Records,” FamilySearch Research Wiki (https://www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/Utah,_State_Archives,Records-_FamilySearch_Historical_Records : accessed 17 August 2026).

[28] “Naturalization and Citizenship,” Utah State Archives (https://archives.utah.gov/research/guides/naturalizations/ : accessed 17 August 2026).

[29] Utah County, Declarations of Intention, vol 1, front index, “k” section; “Naturalization Records: Utah. Declarations of Intention 1859–1865,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9KZ-39CT-7 : accessed 17 August 2026), image 21.

[30] Utah County, Declarations of Intention, vol 1, negative search for page 173; “Naturalization Records: Utah. Declarations of Intention 1859–1865,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9KZ-39Z8-C : accessed 17 August 2026), images 205-206.