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UNITED
STATES
MILITARY
GENEALOGY |
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Forwarded by: Leanne Whitfield
Common
research options include:
- Review the
military service records at the National Personnel Records Center.
These records include information on all Army service members from
the Revolutionary War on, and many service members — regardless of
the branch of service in which they served — during the 20th
century. You might be hard-pressed to find records on your relative
if he or she was discharged from the military between November 1912
and January 1960. An unfortunate fire claimed these records that had
not previously been transferred to a safer medium, such as
microfiche or electronic copy. Records from A through Hubbard, James
E. were the ones destroyed.
- Fires in 1800
and 1814 claimed military records for Army and Navy veterans of the
American Revolution, War of 1812, and the Civil War. The War
Department began to replace these records with a reconstruction
project in 1894. The War Department has compiled documents of
military veterans who fought during these crucial American wars and
aptly named the documents a “Compiled Military Service Record.”
Those wishing to study their ancestor’s military service can
review this compilation of muster and bank rolls, hospital records,
prison records, payroll records, and the enlistment and discharge
papers.
- Another option
is to review pension documentation. All military service members and
their widowed spouses receive a military pension after their
service, provided they were discharged honorably. Pension paperwork
covers any military service member who served between 1775 and 1916,
and is considered to be one of the genealogical finds for those
seeking their family member’s military history. The primary reason
is the mound of paperwork that must be submitted when applying for
the military pension payments.
- World War I
draft registration records are available to the public and can be
found at the National Archives, Southeast Region, East Point,
Georgia offices. These records provide key information, such as
name, spouse and children, birth date and birthplace, occupation,
the nearest living relative, and even a physical description of the
young man registering for the draft. If your relative was born
between 1873 and 1900, chances are he registered for the draft and
you can find information about him in these records. Those seeking
draft information surrounding WWII vets are limited to descendants
born between April 28, 1877 and February 16, 1897; the rest of the
draft records for this war are sealed from the public and protected
under privacy laws.
- Did your
relative possibly fight somewhere between 1775 and March 3, 1855? If
so, research bounty land records. These records provide information
about military service members who fought during the Revolutionary
War, War of 1812, and the early Indian and Mexican wars. The federal
government granted land to military service members who suffered
hardship during their tenure during these wars, so if your relative
fought during this time period, he might have applied for one of
these land grants and the records should be on file.
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