Were your ancestors war heroes? Feel it or maybe not, vital clues to your family's history might just be covering away in military archives - and finding them could be simpler than you think. Even when you're not sure whether or not all of your ancestors ever served in the military, it may pay to complete some digging. The payoff could be huge.
First some background in what you are trying to find and why. Fires in 1800 and 1814 damaged the documents of the American Military and Navy servicemen which were presented at the Conflict Department. In 1894, an effort was made to restore these records from a variety of places via abstracts, and specific packages of documents were made for each serviceman.
civil war court martial records
That packet of records was known as a Created Service History, and it covered information including position, military system, date of admission into service, and release, or death. Additionally it might contain different information, such as for example age, place of birth, and host to house on enlistment.
Indices to Collected Military Service Documents
In the U.S., the indexed Gathered Military Support Files to many conflicts can be found at the National Archives. They are the Innovative Conflict, the Conflict of 1812, various Indian conflicts, and the Civil War. All the indices have already been microfilmed. Should you choose find your ancestor's Gathered Service Record, it can show that you gain access to a lot of other information!
For example, if you understand that your ancestor offered in the Revolutionary Conflict, the pension file indices will show whether he or his beneficiaries have a pension file. If they did, you'll have usage of lots of information about the family.
As you will see, if you are fortunate to locate your ancestors'pension documents, you'll get an accurate photograph of what occurred to them in their decades of company, so these are positively files price seeking.
But do not end there - proceed and try to access the entire pension files. Why? Since when conflict veterans and their widows sent applications for pensions after various conflicts, such as the Innovative Conflict and the Civil War, they had to demonstrate the births, marriages and deaths of their immediate family therefore they could receive the funds. Often, the only real evidence they'd of those activities were pages from household Bibles. And so the pages were ripped out and submitted. These pages will still be in the files! Speak about uncovering an item of your family's record!
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