Letter from Chinese Inspector Thomas Thomas in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to the Commissioner-General of Immigration Transmitting Jim Long's Request That His Certificate of Residence be Returned, with
6/6/1905
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In this letter Jim Long asked for his papers back since he never went to China because of illness.
In 1900 the Office of the Superintendent of Immigration, which had been established in the Department of the Treasury in 1891, became the chief agency responsible for implementing Federal regulations mandated by the Chinese exclusion laws. Both the Chinese Bureau within the Customs Service and the Chinese Division of the INS employed "Chinese" inspectors, people designated to enforce the Chinese exclusion laws. Immigration-related decisions made by these Federal officials were sometimes appealed to Federal courts, which also heard criminal cases involving Chinese alleged to be living in the United States illegally. This document is featured in "The Chinese Exclusion Act: Researching in the National Archives," available on iBooks.
In 1900 the Office of the Superintendent of Immigration, which had been established in the Department of the Treasury in 1891, became the chief agency responsible for implementing Federal regulations mandated by the Chinese exclusion laws. Both the Chinese Bureau within the Customs Service and the Chinese Division of the INS employed "Chinese" inspectors, people designated to enforce the Chinese exclusion laws. Immigration-related decisions made by these Federal officials were sometimes appealed to Federal courts, which also heard criminal cases involving Chinese alleged to be living in the United States illegally. This document is featured in "The Chinese Exclusion Act: Researching in the National Archives," available on iBooks.
Transcript
IMMIGRATION SERVICE OFFICE OF Chinese Inspector PORT OF Pittsburg, Pa., June 6, 1905Commissioner-General of Immigration, Washington, D.C. (Through Commissioner of Immigration, Philadelphia, Pa.)
Sir:
I have the honor to transmit inclosed herewith statement of Jim Long of #309 Grant St., Pittsburg, showing that on June 20, 1902, he applied to the Collector of Customs, Pittsburg, and deposited with him certificate of residence #124,710, which was forwarded to the Collector of Customs, San Francisco, for the purpose of returning to China on a visit.
He states now that on account of sickness he never returned to China as he contemplated at the time of preparing this statement, and prays that his certificate of residence, #124,710, be returned to him.
Respectfully,
Thomas Thomas
This primary source comes from the Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
National Archives Identifier: 19086705
Full Citation: Letter from Chinese Inspector Thomas Thomas in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to the Commissioner-General of Immigration Transmitting Jim Long's Request That His Certificate of Residence be Returned, with ; 6/6/1905; Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, Record Group 85. [Online Version, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/letter-from-chinese-inspector-thomas-thomas-in-pittsburgh-pennsylvania-to-the-commissionergeneral-of-immigration-transmitting-jim-longs-request-that-his-certificate-of-residence-be-returned-with-enclo, March 19, 2025]Rights: Public Domain, Free of Known Copyright Restrictions. Learn more on our privacy and legal page.
