Military and Immigration Records

By Karen Coombs

Did You Use These For Tidbits of Information?

When should you use Military Records?

· If you have any male ancestors between ages 18 and 30 during the time of war.

· For the Civil Ward Era, the ages to consider are 13 through 70.

Major Wars:

· Revolutionary Ward—1775-1783

· War of 1812—1812-1815

· Mexican War—1846-1848

· Civil War—1861-1865

· Philippine Insurrection—1899-1902

· World War I—1917-1918

· World War II—1941-1945

· Korean War—1950-1953

· Vietnam War—1965-1973

Basic Research Strategies:

· Identify ancestor you wish to find in Military Records.

· Decide what you want to learn such as: birth date, birth place, spouse, marriage date or burial date.

· Select a record to search—a record selection table is included in the U.S. Military Records Research Outline.

· Find and search the records. Military Records are in several different repositories. The Research Outline has a list of repositories and a general description of the records they house.

The Family History Library has major collections of records for Revolutionary War through World War I.

If you find your ancestor in military index and the library does not have the original records, you will usually need to contact the U. S. National Archives for a copy. A special form is used for these requests and is available at http:archives.gov.