This week we celebrate Independence Day in the United States. This is a great time to think about not only our Revolutionary War veterans but all of our ancestors who have served in the military. If someone asks me about my ancestors who served, I can name a few Revolutionary War Patriots, a couple of Civil War Soldiers, a World War II Veteran, a Vietnam Veteran, and a cousin who served in the Air Force. Like me, many people have family stories or records about our ancestors who served in the military, but what if you are researching a collateral line with which you are unfamiliar, or you simply don’t know whether any of your direct ancestors served in the military?
The first step in answering this question will be to determine if your ancestor’s birth year fits with the typical age range for servicemen during major conflicts. The FamilySearch Research Wiki provides a chart that shows the typical birth years and ages for persons serving in various wars throughout history. For wars prior to WWI, the typical ages of servicemen were 16-60. Beginning with WWI, the typical age range was from 18-60. Here are the birth years for a few of the major conflicts:
- The American Revolution (1776-1783) Birth years: 1715-1767
- The War of 1812 (1812-1815) Birth years: 1752-1799
- The Civil War (1861-1865) Birth years: 1801-1849
- World War I (1917-1919) Birth years: 1858-1900
- World War II (1941-1945) Birth years: 1881-1927
It will also be helpful to know the draft rules that were in place during your ancestor’s life. If your ancestor was of the correct age to register for the draft, you will likely find him in draft registration records.
The Enrollment Act of 1863, also known as the Civil War Military Draft Act, was the first national conscription (draft) law. It required men aged 20-45 to enroll for military service with the Union Army. Deficiencies in volunteers were to be filled by conscription.
The Selective Service Act of 1917 stated that all males aged 21 to 30 were required to register for the draft. In August 1918, the age range was changed to all men 18-45. There were three draft registrations over the duration of the war:
- June 5, 1917: all men aged 21-30 required to register
- 5 June 1918: registration required fo those who turned 21 after 5 June 1917. A supplemental registration was held 24 August 1918 for those who turned 21 after 5 June 1918.
- 12 September 1918: all men aged 18-45.
The Selective Training and Service Act of 1940 was enacted 16 September 1940. It required all men between 21 and 36 to register with local draft boards. Once the U.S. entered World War II, men between 18-45 were made subject to military service, and all men aged 18-65 were required to register.
After calculating whether your ancestor would have been of the correct age to have registered for the draft or served in a war, the next step will be to look at existing records to find clues about their possible service. Here are the types of clues you might find:
- The 1840 census asked for the names and ages of “Pensioners for Revolutionary or Military Services, Included in the Foregoing Household.” Pensioners could be veterans or widows. The information was written on the back of the population schedules, and listed the name of the pensioner, his age, and the persons with whom he was living.
- In 1890, a separate census schedule was made of Union Veterans and their widows. Confederate veterans were sometimes mistakenly listed as well.
- The 1910 census shows whether a person served in the Union Army (UA), Union Navy (UN), Confederate Army (CA) or Confederate Navy (CN). These clues can lead to military service and pension records.
- The 1930 census indicates Civil War veterans with the letters “CW.” It also shows service in the Spanish-American War (Sp), Phillipine Insurrection (Phil), Boxer Rebellion (Box), Mexican Expedition (Mex), or World War I (WW).
- Oral tradition or biographies might include stories about an ancestor’s military service. Mine online trees for clues and/or ask other relatives what they know.
- Cemeteries could provide clues. The headstones of veterans often include a medallion or inscription about their military service.
Finding Military Records for Your Ancestor
Once you have determined that your ancestor might have served in the military or at least registered for the draft, the next step is to find records for your ancestor. Here are a few places to look:
FamilySearch has 268 collections of military records that include records from the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, WWI and WWII, the Mexican War, the Korean War, enlistment records, personnel records, service records, pension applications, military censuses, and much, much more. See a list of the collections here. They are arranged alphabetically by state or country.
Fold3 is a subscription website that contains records for all major conflicts. You can access the site for free at a FamilySearch Family History Center. Fold3 is currently offering free access to Civil War records until July 18.
Ancestry has collections titled U.S., Compiled Revolutionary War Military Service Records, 1775-1783 and U.S., Compiled Service Records, Post-Revolutionary War Volunteer Soldiers, 1784-1811.
Search the 1841 Pensioner Census at Ancestry: U.S., Revolutionary War Pensioner Census, 1841 or browse by state and county at New Horizons Genealogy: 1840 Census of Pensioners for Revolutionary or Military Services.
Search the United States Census of Union Veterans and Widows of the Civil War, 1890 at FamilySearch.
For draft registration records, see United States World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918, and United States World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 at FamilySearch. Additional draft registration cards from 1940-1945 can be found by typing [state] draft in the Find a Collection Box at FamilySearch > Search > Records. Additionally, Ancestry has a collection titled U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947.
These are just a handful of the abundant resources for military records. To learn more about military records that might be available for your ancestor in a particular locality, visit the FamilySearch Research Wiki and search [State] military records. You can also visit the FamilySearch Catalog and search for your state, then scroll down to Military Records.
If you are interested in an in-depth look at Military Service Records or U.S. Federal Pensions, I recommend listening to Episodes 82 and 94 of the Research Like a Pro Podcast, where hosts Diana and Nicole interview Michael Strauss, who is an expert on military records. I learned so much from listening to these episodes. You can find them here:
RLP 82: Military Service Records with Michael Strauss
RLP #94: U.S. Federal Pensions with Michael Strauss
I hope this information will help you begin to discover military records for your ancestors. Have a wonderful holiday weekend!
