Swiss Overseas Emigration, 1910-1953

This database contains registration cards of approximately 142,000 individuals who left Switzerland for overseas destinations from 1910-1953. Most of the individuals were emigrants, but some people were merely travelers. The majority of the emigrants were headed to the United States. Travel was conducted by ship, as well as by plane in later years.

The records consist of pre-printed forms with one emigrant recorded per card. Answers to the forms questions could be handwritten or typed. Some forms were printed in French, Italian, and German all on one form. Other forms were printed in just one language.

Information recorded on the emigration cards includes:

• Name


• Gender


• Birth year


• Place of origin


• Last residence


• Marital status


• Occupation


• Departure date


• Port of embarkation


• Port of disembarkation


• Ship name


• Destination


• Destination


• Status (emigrant or treveler)


• Travel agency


• Prices of specific aspects of travel

Note that these cards are only for emigrants heading overseas. Emigrants to other European countries are not included in this collection. Also, this collection does not necessarily cover all overseas emigrants for this time period. There may have been some emigrants who never registered or whose cards have been lost. However, this collection is the complete collection of what is held by the National Archives of Switzerland.