The History Office and Library was founded to be the steward of the Agency's history and to track the history and implementation of federal immigration policy from the creation of the Immigration Bureau in 1891 to the activities of USCIS today. Among the library's frequent patrons are scholars, students, journalists, attorneys, and many others with an interest in the history of immigration and nationality law, policy, and agency programs.
Our collection includes:
- General Collection - reports, handbooks, guides, manuals and other materials documenting agency operations.
- Periodicals - 20th century agency periodicals (Monthly Review, Reporter, Commissioner's Communique, etc.)
- Photography Collection - depicts agency facilities and operations throughout the country from the 1890s to the present.
- Poster Collection - agency created posters to highlight services, programs, locations and notable immigrants.
- Historic Forms Collection - forms used throughout the history of the agency.
- Video Collection - covers major changes in immigration, conferences, training tapes and other topics from the 1980s to the present.
- Vertical/Subject Files - immigration topics arranged alphabetically from A-Files to Zero Population Growth
- Legal History Resources - Immigration Laws and Regulations, Opinions of the Solicitor, secondary sources, and more.
- Artifact Collection - three dimensional objects that reflect the history of the agency (flags, uniforms, badges, patches, hats, etc.)
The History Office and Library is available by appointment only, Monday through Thursday (excluding federal holidays) from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm.
Please send your appointment requests to: cishistory.library@uscis.dhs.gov Please see our researcher guide for more information.
Note: The appearance of external hyperlinks does not constitute endorsement by the USCIS History Office and Library of the linked sites, or any information, products or services contained therein. The USCIS History Office does not exercise editorial control over the information you may find at these sites.
Use Browse Search to browse indexes (e.g., Main Title, Subjects, All Authors, etc.). Browsing allows you to scroll through or reposition an index to the nearest matching entry. Indexes may also be searched to list entries beginning, containing, or ending with a letter, keyword, or phrase.