As someone who began her simple life in a large, bilingual family–the child of Dutch immigrants to Iowa–Cynthia Clara Borgman’s adulthood might seem an easily predictable vision of a typical, early-nineteenth-century Midwestern life.
It wasn’t.
Cynthia traveled far and died young (in her 20s) in Amoy, China while serving as a missionary for the Dutch Reformed Church. When I first heard the story, I wondered: How exactly did she die? Where was she buried? What kind of work did she do while she was in China? Why did she travel so far away from home?
As always, I turned to genealogy for the answers. It did not disappoint.
Finding Ancestors Overseas: Passports
The first key piece of evidence in tracking down Cynthia’s story–and a vital part of any genealogical research into ancestors living oversease, or expatriate ancestors–was her passport application. Cynthia’s passport application (available on Ancestry.com’s U.S. Passport Applications, 1795-1925 collection) revealed a wealth of information about her, including:
- Vital information, such as her name, birthdate, and birthplace
- Whether she has ever been married
- Her father’s name
- Her last residence and occupation in the US
- Whether she is a naturalized or native-born US citizen
- The country she intends to travel to, and the reason she is travelling there
- How long she intends to be in said country
- How and when she intends to depart the United States, including
- Her port of departure
- The vessel she will travel aboard
- The date of her departure
- Whether she has ever had a passport before
- A full, physical description
- A photo!
Thanks to this passport application, I know that Cynthia Borgman likely traveled to China from San Francisco aboard the Japanese ship Tenu Maru on 18 September 1923. She intended to reside there for five years, working as a teacher at a school run by the Reformed Church in America. The passport application also contained a photo of her that I had never seen before!
Finding Expatriate Ancestors: Consular Registration Records
The next key record to locate for expat ancestors, after the passport application, is their consular registration. These records are available at Ancestry’s U.S., Consular Registration Applications, 1916-1925 collection. Around the world, American Consulates registered and continue to register Americans who reside in foreign countries. China in the 1920s was no exception. When Cynthia Borgman arrived in China, she visited a local US Consulate and registered her residence. She then re-registered each year she dwelt there. Thus, consular registration records can serve as a kind of annual census for American citizens living overseas. The information available on Cynthia’s consular registration record is invaluable, revealing:
- When she left the US, and when she arrived in China
- Her place of residence in China
- Length of time she anticipates living in the country
- Whether she is subject to paying taxes while in the country
- Her occupation while in the country, and who she worked for
Thanks to Cynthia’s Consular Registration record, I know that Cynthia did indeed leave the US on 18 September 1923, and she arrived in Amoy, China on 20 October 1923–a trip across the Pacific that lasted over a month. I also know that, while in China, Cynthia lived in “Sio-Khe, Fukien Province.” Lastly, I know that she registered at the US Consulate in Amoy, China on 22 October 1923 and re-registered on 4 November 1924. This gives me a much clearer picture of how and when she got to China, where exactly she lived there, and how long she was there.
Finding Expat Ancestors: Consular Death Records
Lastly, Consular death records can be absolutely essential to track down if one of your expat ancestors might have died while overseas. These records are contained in Ancestry’s Reports of Deaths of American Citizens Abroad, 1835-1974 database. US Consulates abroad regularly registered death of US Citizens abroad, and these records reveal a wealth of information, including:
- Date, time, and place of death
- Cause of death
- Relatives or friends who accompanied the person at their death
- Burial place
- What was done with her personal effects
- When and to whom notification of the person’s death was sent
Thanks to the US Consulate in China’s death records for US Citizens, I know that Cynthia died at the Hope & Wilhelmina Hospital in Amoy, China at 2 pm on 30 June 1925. She died of amoebic dysentery, and was buried at Mission Cemetery, Island of Kulangsu, Amoy, China.
Conclusion
If your US ancestor lived in a foreign country for an extended period, or even died there, consider searching US Passport and Consular records. You never know what you’ll find!