If you browse through the Chinese Exclusion Case File numbers, you’ll notice that the numbers differ depending on which INS office they come from. Honolulu categorized their files into different “Series” usually depending on immigration status.
Why does the series number matter?
It gives you a glimpse into how your relative was able to enter the United States during the Chinese Exclusion Era. Series 4383? The woman entered as the wife of a merchant. Series 4384? The wife was married to a U.S. citizen. It’s not 100%, though.
There are some Series that feel like a catch-all. My great-grandmother, who was married to a citizen and never worked in Hawaii (to the best of my knowledge) has a file from series 4380, “Return Certificates of Lawfully Domiciled Laborers.” I’ve seen this many times, where the wife enters as a laborer although she doesn’t appear to have been working.
I’ve seen women with files in series 4383 be rejected because their husband doesn’t qualify to be a merchant. They pop up with a different case number, sometimes entering as a laborer, sometimes entering as the wife of a citizen.
Honolulu Series Numbers
The NARA website gives a description for each different series, but they don’t make it exactly easy. I’ve not found it a comprehensive list. So, in case this is helpful to you at all (it has been for me), here’s the list as I’ve compiled it. descriptions are from the NARA website, and the listed series number is a link to the NARA catalog. Feel free to let me know if I’m missing something.
| Series Number | Series Title | # of Boxes |
|---|---|---|
| 4500 | Case Files of United States Citizens of Chinese Race Applying for Certificates of Citizenship in the Hawaiian Islands | 127 |
| 4379 | Applications of non-immigrants for temporary admission under exemptions to the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, the Immigration Act of 1917, and the Immigration Act of 1924. | 7 |
| 4380 | Application Case Files for Return Certificates of Lawfully Domiciled Chinese Laborers | 135 |
| 4381 | Case Files of Chinese Applicants for Form 431, Merchants Return Permit | 19 |
| 4382 | Case Files of Chinese Applicants for Form 430, American Citizens of Chinese Race for Preinvestigation of Status, and Chinese Applicants for Admission as U.S. Citizens | 210 |
| 4383 | Application Case Files for Admission as Wives of Chinese Merchants, Teachers, and Clergy, 1916 – 1939 | 10 |
| 4384 | Case Files of Chinese Applicants for Admission as Wives of Nativeborn American Citizens of Chinese Race | 6 |
| 4385 | Application Case Files for Admission as the Children of Chinese Merchants, Teachers, and Clergy, 1913 – 1938 | 9 |
| 4386 | Case Files of Chinese Applicants for Admission as Children of Nativeborn American Citizens of Chinese Race | 4 |
| 4387 | Visa Case Files of Chinese Applicants for Admission as Section 6 Students, Teachers, and Travelers | 16 |
| 4388 | Visa Case Files of Section 6 Chinese Applicants to Proceed to the Continental United States | 2 |
| 4390 | Case Files of Applicants for Duplicate Certificates of Residence (Chinese workers) | 1 |
| 4391 | Case Files of Applicants for Duplicate Certificates of Identity | 1 |
| 4393 | Case Files of Chinese Applicants for Admission as Wives and/or Children of Chinese Naturalized Under the Hawaiian Kingdom and Pre-Examination of Status of Chinese Claiming Such Naturalization | 6 |
