November 10, 2023
Veterans Day is observed today. It’s a good day to make a point of thanking any veterans you know for their service. It’s also a good day to spend some time thinking about the veterans on your family tree.
If you haven’t pinpointed all the veterans on your family tree, why not start researching them today. Over its nearly two-hundred and fifty years, the United States has been involved in numerous wars and other military actions. Even if you come from a non-military family, the chances are that you have numerous veterans in your family.
I started researching the veterans in my family by listing the wars that they might have served in. Beginning in 1776 with the Revolution, I checked my family tree for men of the right age to have served in each conflict. I also checked for women who might possibly have served, as well. Although far fewer women served, some did. That is especially true since the twentieth century when military service became an option for women.
If I didn’t know whether someone served, I checked their names against various military databases. Websites such as Family Search, Ancestry and Fold 3 have extensive lists of those who served in various wars. Many states also maintain lists of men who served from their state in specific conflicts such as the Civil War.
The more information you have about someone when you check the lists, the better. Many names are surprisingly common, so additional information such as birth date and place of birth will help you identify if the James Hadlock you have found is “yours.”
Other sources to help you confirm whether someone served are obituaries and headstones. Obituaries often report on someone’s military service. They can even include the regiment and company that he served in. Veterans’ families often apply to the federal government for military headstones for them. These headstones are distinctive and identify someone who served. Other headstones may have military symbols carved on them. For example, a GAR symbol on a headstone confirms that someone served for the Union in the Civil War.
The next step is to find out more about a veteran’s military service. General information about the history of a regiment an ancestor served in is often available online. Googling the name of the regiment is a good starting point. Many regimental histories also include diaries describing experiences of individual soldiers.
For information about individual military personnel, the National Archives (NARA) website at https://www.archives.gov/research/military offers information about how to obtain various records. A plethora of records is available including Compiled Service Records and complete pension records. Availability of various records varies according to conflict.
Military records from the National Archives are not inexpensive. For example, a pension record from the Civil War will cost $75. From personal experience, I have found these records well worth the cost, even for collateral records. They often contain family information that can be found nowhere else. I recommend ordering as many of the NARA military records as is feasible. You won’t be sorry.
Spend some time today researching your veteran ancestors and collateral relatives. It’s one way of remembering and honoring their service.
Happy Veteran’s Day
Carol Stetser
Researcher