Last week I posted Emma la Forêt's application for an emergency passport to leave Europe in 1917. This week we get to see the passport itself (yes, this is the real thing!). It is a buff-colored 12" x 17 1/4" piece of paper, watermarked with the seal of the U.S. Department of State. It has three impressed seals and one rubber-stamped seal of the American Embassy in Paris, France on the front. On the back, there are, in succession, an impressed seal of the American Consulate in Algiers, Algeria; a rubber-stamped seal of the Département d'Alger Sûreté Départementale (Algeria Regional Police); an impressed seal of the American Consulate in Marseilles, France; a rubber-stamped seal from the Commissariat in Marseille, but I can't read most of it; and a rubber-stamped seal from the Ministère de l'Interieure (Minister of the Interior) in Bordeaux, France. As usual, I have underlined the information that was entered onto the preprinted form.
-- >< -- >< -- >< -- >< --
Photo of Emma and Rosita This document expires Dec 14. 1917 unless
E. La Foret [signature] renewed.
[impressed Paris Embassy seal]
[rubber stamp of Paris Embassy seal]
The person to whom this passport is issued
printed Great Seal has declared under oath that he desires it for
of the United States use in visiting the countries hereinafter named,
for the following objects:
Algeria (name of country) Residence (object of visit)
France (name of country) en route (object of visit)
——— (name of country) United (object of visit)
——— (name of country) States (object of visit)
This passport is not valid for use in other countries
except for necessary transit to or from the countries
named, unless amended by an American
diplomatic or principal consular officer.
Embassy
of the
United States of America,
at
Paris, France
To all to whom these presents shall come, Greeting;
The undersigned Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
of the United States of America,
hereby request all whom it may concern to permit
— Emma La Forêt — ———
Description a Citizen of the United States accompaniedAge 50 Years ______ by her minor child Rosita safely
Stature 5 Feet 7 Inches Eng. and freely to pass and in case of need to give
Forehead high them all lawful Aid and Protection.
Eyes blue grey
Nose regular Given under my hand and the
Mouth medium Seal of the Embassy of the
Chin round [impressed United States
Hair dark brown Paris at Paris, France
Complexion fair Embassy the 14th day of September
Face oval seal] in the year 1917 and of the
Independence of the United States
the one hundred and forty second
Signature of the Bearer.
Emma La Foret. [signature]
CANCELED [rubber stamped diagonally]
No. 1704
Wm G. Sharp [signature]
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CONSULATE OF THE UNITED STATES
OF AMERICA, AT ALGIERS, ALGERIA.
October 4, 1917.
GOOD
~~~~~~ A. C. Frost [signature]
BON Consul of the United
States of America.
Service No. 214
(No fee)
[impressed I hereby certify that
Algerian the bearer of this
Consulate passport is the wife
seal] of Jean L. La Forêt
Vice Consul of the
United States of
America at Algiers,
Algeria.
A. C. Frost [signature]
Consul of the
United States of America.
No 3454.
Vu à la PRÉFECTURE d'Alger
Bon pour se rendre = en Amérique
via Marseille - Bordeaux - New. York
Objet du voyage = rentre dans son pays.
Alger, le 4 Octobre 1917
POUR LE PRÉFET,
Le Chef de la Sûreté Départementale délégué.
[rubber-stamped
Algeria Regional Police Imaranos(?) [signature]
seal]
BON Consulat Général des États - Unis
d'Amérique à Marseille, France.
Vu le 9th of October 1917
Le Consul Général des États- Unis
d'Amérique:
No fee
Service No. 838. John Q.(?) Moody(?) [signature]
[impressed
Marseille
Consulate
seal]
COMMISSARIAT SPECIAL DES PORTS
VU [illegible]
Marseille, le 9 [illegible] 1917.
Giraud(?) [signature]
COMMISSARIAT SPECIAL
[illegible] la Préfecture
VU au départ pour les
Marseille, le 9/10/17 Etats-Unis
[rubber-stamped Pour le Préfet via Bordeaux
Marseille et par délégation
Commissariat Le Commissaire Spécial
seal] Morelli(?) [signature]
VU pour se rendre à New. York
Bordeaux, le 12/10/ 1917 .
P. LE PRÉFET DE LA GIRONDE,
La Commissaire Spécial délégué.
[illegible signature]
[rubber-stamped
Minister of the Interior
seal]
-- >< -- >< -- >< -- >< --
Wow! I think this passport is very cool, and I am lucky to have it, even if it isn't for a member of my own family. It's fairly straightforward; most of the information came directly from the passport application Emma submitted September 7. It was processed very quickly, being dated September 14 in Paris.
The two sentences that were struck through on the front of the passport were probably for standard emergency passport procedures. As Emma seemingly did not plan to travel again, they were not relevant for her.
The back of the passport has the same types of stamps that one might see in a passport today, and we can see Emma and Rosita's route from Algeria to Marseille to Bordeaux to New York. I wish I could read the French signatures better, but c'est la vie!
My guess is that the "Canceled" stamp was put on the passport after Emma and Rosita arrived in New York. As there is no date by the stamp, however, that is only a guess.
I have noticed that Emma consistently does not use the accent on Forêt. (I wonder if that bothered Jean?) As the passport was processed in Paris, I'm not surprised that they did include it.
When I received this gift of documents, the passport was folded and in the envelope in which it appears to have been sent:
This is pretty easy to read, so I won't transcribe it, but in the upper-right corner is a note in pencil:
Left Alger Oct 7/17
This was the only part of Emma and Rosita's trip not present on the passport. So they left Algeria three weeks after the passport was dated. There's no indication when they received it.
A second notation in the upper-right corner is "103" in pen. This isn't the passport number, and no other number on the passport matches it. It's a mystery what it refers to.
The other item that was in the envelope was Jean La Forêt's business card:
Jean L. La Forêt
Vice Consul Américain à Alger
6, Rue Henricet St. Eugène (Alger)
The reason it was included was because of the handwritten note on the back:
Passport
———
Emma La Foret
and minor child Rosita.
———
Issued by Embassy of
the United States at
Paris, France, on
Sept. 14-1917, for
three months, to go
from Algiers to New
York via France.
No. 1704.
——
Signed = Wm. G. Sharp
————
This writing looks similar to that of Emma's handwritten narrative, and the name of Wm. G. Sharp bears no resemblance to the signature on the passport. So Emma wrote a short note describing the passport, even though all of the information she wrote was included on the passport itself. I know documentation is good, but I don't understand the purpose of her note. On the other hand, it's nice to have one of Jean La Forêt's Vice Consul business cards.
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