Hoffman (Seligman) citizenship document, 1851

Seligman Hoffman emigrated from Germany to the U.S. He first settled in North Carolina, where he became an American citizen. Eventually, he settled in San Francisco and had three children: Jessie, William, and Eugene. Jessie married Samuel Meyer; they had two children, Elise and John. Elise Meyer married Lewis Samuel Rose, a grandson of Moses Rosenbaum (the Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life includes a portrait of Moses Rosenbaum painted by Toby Rosenthal). Elise and Lewis had two children: Lewis S. Rose, Jr. and John.

Collection consists of one hand-written court document attesting to the American citizenship of Seligman Hoffman received from the Court of Pleas and Common Session in Wilmington, North Carolina in 1851. On the reverse of the document is a voter registration seal for the city of San Francisco (1888).