Gottlieb Veith's Naturalization Record

Last week in this post I wrote that I was waiting for a naturalization record for Gottlieb Veith from the Clerk of Judicial Records in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania. I received it a few days ago and it is a bit disappointing. It was only 2 pages and the first page was a cover sheet that listed his name, filing date of 4 October 1888 and "No. 2904". On the second page Gottlieb is listed as a native of Germany.  He states he arrived at the Port of New York on the 2nd day of April 1883. This is a minor discreprancy - this date is off by one day from the ship's manifest of 3 April.

 Here is Gottlieb's signature:

Gottlieb Veith's signature on his Naturalization,
filed 4 October 1888, Lackawanna County, Pennsylvannia

I had been hoping that there would have been a town listed or perhaps some other birth information. I know naturalization records differ in what information is listed depending on the type of court, jurisdiction and era. The Court of General Sessions in Lackawanna County in 1888 obviously did not list much!

There is one piece of new information given though - a witness name:

witness to Gottlieb Veith Naturalization 4 October 1888

I think this signature says J Hallock or Hollock. One thing I learned early on in my genealogy education is to pay attention to witness signatures since they can be a clue to family. I don't recognize this name as a relative. A quick search on Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org do not turn up any Hallocks or Hollocks who would have been old enough to be a witness to this signature in 1888. If I decide to try to track down J. Hallock or J Hollock, my next step would be to check the city directories in the Scranton area to see if there are any listings for this name.