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Top of page
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National Veteran’s Cemetery, Fort Logan, Colorado |
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MILITARY ANCESTORS: Bozarth; Peiffer; Quigley; Rhubart; & allied families |
MILITARY ANCESTORS: Moreland; McVicker; Pinnell; Scruggs; and allied families |
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INTRODUCTION
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Wars have been an integral part of American history and, as such, have produced indispensable genealogical records of literally millions of persons. These are records that not only hold the key to successfully extending many pedigrees, but also contain valuable family history information that helps one to see their ancestors as the real persons they were and not just names on a chart or in a database. This web-page entitled “Researching our War Veterans”, has been designed to provide a researcher with the following: A Listing Of Important Wars, Conflicts, And Military Events Each is linked to information that will provide the researcher with additional insight regarding the key aspects of each conflict. General Military Information Links to additional U. S. Military websites of a broad nature can be found in a dedicated section near the end of this page. A Guide to U.S. Military Records The section of this webpage entitled “U.S. Military Record Research” is linked to the U.S. Military Records Research Outline at the Family Search website. This outline introduces strategies and records that can help one to learn more about ancestors who served in the United States military. Use of this information will assist an investigator in setting meaningful research goals, evaluate the likelihood that an ancestor is found in military records, and select the records that will help to achieve defined goals. This outline describes the content, use, and availability of major sets of records created mostly by the federal government. It does not discuss historical sources about military institutions, weapons, battles, or tactics. There is no specific time during a search when military records should be used but one must know that they are one of the first sources to consider once research has begun on an individual who may have had military service or may have been closely related to someone else who did. This is because the information found in military records is often of such a nature that it facilitates the use of other sources and suggests new possibilities. Military Gravestone Inscription Abbreviations Gravestones provided by the U.S. Government to deceased military veterans contain a wide variety of inscriptions that can give a researcher much valuable information about that person’s service to their country.
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Military record research
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Your ancestor's birth date tells you what wars he may have fought in. Look over your family tree to find ancestors, especially men, who were born during the following time periods, then check military draft, service or pension indexes for the corresponding conflicts. (These are general guidelines; men and women who served at very young or old ages may fall outside these ranges.) |
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Birth years: War (battle years) 1726-1767: Revolutionary War (1775-1783) 1762-1799: War of 1812 (1812-1815) 1796-1831: Mexican War (1846-1848) 1811-1848: Civil War (1861-1865) 1848-1881: Spanish-American War (1898) |
Birth years: War (battle years) 1849-1885: Philippine Insurrection (1899-1902) 1872-1900: World War I (1917-1918) 1877-1925: World War II (1941-1945) 1900-1936: Korean War (1950-1953) 1914-1955: Vietnam War (1964-1972) |
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Military records identify individuals who served in the armed forces or who were eligible for service. This outline introduces strategies and records that can help you learn more about your ancestors who served in the United States military. Use this outline to set meaningful research goals, evaluate the likelihood that your ancestor is found in military records, and select the records that will help you achieve your goals. This outline describes the content, use, and availability of major sets of records created mostly by the federal government. The Family History Library’s research outlines for the separate states have more information about state military records. This outline discusses only sources that identify personal information about individuals in the armed forces and their units. It does not discuss historical sources about military institutions, weapons, battles, or tactics. |
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Introduction Step 1. Identify Ancestor You Wish To Find In Records Step
2. Decide What You Want To Learn |
Spanish-American War, 1898
World War I, 1917 To 1918
Vietnam War, 1964 To 1972 U.S. Air Force Service
Records *
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* = In July, 1973 there was a fire at the National Personnel Records Center, < http://www.archives.gov/facilities/mo/ >. About eighty percent of Army Records of those discharged from 1 November 1912 through 1 January 1960, were burned. About seventy-five percent of the Air Force files were destroyed. These were files of those who were discharged between 25 September 1947 and 1 January 1964, and whose names were from Hubbard, James E. through Z. |
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WARS OF THE UNITED STATES
The following is a listing of important wars, conflicts, and military events identified as integral to the history of the United States of America. Each is linked to information that will provide the researcher with additional insight regarding the key aspects of each conflict. |
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1622-1644 Anglo–Powhatan Wars 1637 Pequot War 1675-1676 King Philip's War 1676 Bacon's Rebellion 1677-1679 Culpeper's Rebellion 1689-1697 King William's War 1689-1691 Leisler's Rebellion 1702-1713 Queen Anne's War 1711-1713 Tuscarora War 1715-1716 Yamasee War 1739-1742 War of Jenkins' Ear 1744-1748 King George's War 1754-1763 French and Indian War 1758-1761 Anglo-Cherokee War 1763-1766 Pontiac's Rebellion 1763-1764 Paxton Boys Uprising 1765-1766 Stamp Act Revolt 1764-1771 War of the Regulation 1770 Boston Massacre 1773 Boston Tea Party |
1774 Lord Dunmore's War 1775-1783 American Revolutionary War 1786-1787 Shays' Rebellion 1790-1812 Ohio Valley campaigns 1794 Whiskey Rebellion 1798-1800 Quasi-War 1801-1805 First Barbary War 1812-1814 War of 1812 1815 Second Barbary War 1817-1818 First Seminole War 1832 Black Hawk War 1835-1842 Second Seminole War 1836 Texas War of Independence 1838-1839 Trail of Tears 1838-1839 Aroostook War 1839-1846 Anti-rent War 1842 Dorr Rebellion 1846-1848 Mexican-American War 1864-1868 Navajo wars 1855-1858 Third Seminole War |
1857-1858 Utah War 1860-1900 American Indian Wars 1861-1865 American Civil War 1866-1871 The Fenian Raids 1898 Spanish-American War 1899-1902 Philippine Insurrection 1900 Boxer Rebellion 1898-1934 The Banana Wars 1916-1917 Pancho Villa Expedition 1917-1918 World War I 1919-1920 Russian Revolutions of 1917–23 1941-1945 World War II 1950-1955 Korean War 1961-1975 Vietnam War 1982-1984 Lebanese Civil War 1983 Grenada Invasion 1989-1990 Invasion of Panama 1990-1991 First Gulf War 2001- Global War on Terror |
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Military Gravestone Inscription Abbreviations
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Gravestones provided by the U.S. Government to deceased military veterans contain a wide variety of inscriptions that can give a researcher much valuable information about that person’s service to their country. In many cases it may be difficult to figure out the military terminology utilized to identify the nature of their military experience. This difficulty is compounded by the many abbreviations used because of the limited amount of space available on the headstone. More often than not these abbreviations may not be well understood by many family historians. Below we have provided a brief lexicon of the type of abbreviations used to describe U. S. military service in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. |
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TERM / DEFINITION |
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1C /1ST CL = 1st class petty officer (US Navy rank) 2C /2ND CL = 2ndclass petty officer (US Navy rank) 3C /3RD CL/ = 3rd class petty officer (US Navy rank) 1812 vet = War of 1812 Veteran ACW = American Civil War ADC = Aide-de-Camp Adm = Admiral App = apprentice, as in Seaman Apprentice Armr = Armorer Art / Arty = Artillery Batt Bat = battery as in a military regiment Batt / Bn / Bttn = Battalion Bglr = bugler Bgd /Brig = Brigadier BGen / Brig Gen = Brigadier General Bosn = Boatswain (enlisted rating U.S. Navy) Brev /Bvt / Brvt = Brevet Capt/Cap = Captain Cav /Calv = Calvary Campn = campaign Chp / Chpn = CivW = Civil War Cmdt. = Commandant Co / Comp = Company Comdr / Comm = Commander Col = Colonel Commo / Comm = Commodore Confed = Confederate Contl = Continental (Continental Army, American Revolution) Corp / Corpl / Cpl = Corporal Cox = Coxswain CPO = Chief Petty Officer (U.S. Navy) CSA, CS = Confederate States Army, Confederate States of America CSN = Confederate States Navy CWO = Chief Warrant Officer CWV = Civil War Veteran Dr / Drm / Drum = Drummer Drgns = Dragoons Eng = Engineer En / Ens = Ensign (U.S. Navy) FO = Field Officer F/O = Flying Officer FSgt. = Flight Sergent Farr = Farrier (Army horse shoer) G.A.R. = Grand Army of the Republic (veteran’s group of Union soldiers) Gen/Genl/Gen’l = General (military rank) Gnr = Gunner GSO = General Staff Officer HA/ H Arty/ Hvy Art = Heavy Artillery |
IND = Independent Inf / Infty = Infantry Ka / KIA = killed in action Kw = killed in war LA / Lt Art / Lgt Art = Light Artillery (military regiment) Lds = Landsman (naval rank) Lt / Lieut =Lieutenant L1 / 1Lt = First Lieutenant L2 / 2Lt = Second Lieutenant LC / LtCol / LCol / Lt Coll = Lieutenant Colonel Legn = legion LGen / Lt Gen = Lieutenant General LI = Light Infantry LCpl = lance corporal (USMC) Lt Battry = Light Battery Lt Cdr / Lt Cmdr / Lt Comm = Lieutenant Commander Maj / Mj =Major Maj Gen /Major-Gen / MGen = Major General Mar = Marines MIA = Missing in Action MO = Medical Officer MP = Military Police MSgt./mr sgt = Master Sergeant M Att = Mess Attendant MOH = Medal of Honor Mus / Musc / Musn = Musician N = Navy NG = National Guard Noncom = Non-Commissioned Officer OS = Ordinary Seaman Of = Officer (rank unknown) Pat = patriot (Revolutionary War Service) Pfc. = Private First Class PH = Purple Heart PO = Petty Officer POW = Prisoner of War Pvt. = Private QM / Qtm =Quartermaster QMC = Quartermaster’s Corps Qm.Sgt / QMSgt = Quartermaster Sergeant R / Reg / Regt / Reg’t = Regiment RA / Rear Adm. = Rear Admiral Rev /Revol / RevW / Rev War / RW = Revolutionary War Rngr = Ranger Sea/ SN = Seaman S / Sgt / Sergt = Sergeant Sig = Signal (as in Signal Corps, Signalman) SP. AM. = Spanish-American War |
TA = Territorial Army TM = Teamster (military) Tr / Trp = Troop UCV = United Confederate Veterans Unk/unkn = unknown US = United States USA = United States Army USAAC – United State Army Air Corps USAAF = United States Army Air Force USAC = United States Air Corps USAF = United States Air Force USA Inf. = United States Army Infantry USAR = United States Army Reserve USARV = United States Army Vietnam USC Art = United State Colored Artillery USC Cav = United States Colored Cavalry USCG = United States Coast Guard USCGR = United States Coast Guard Reserve USC Inf = United States Colored Infantry USCT = United States Colored Troop(s) USM = United States Marines USMA = United States Military Academy USMC = United States Marine Corps USMCR = United States Marine Corps Reserve USN = United States Navy USNA = United States Naval Academy USNAC = United States Naval Air Corps USNG = United States National Guard USNMC = United States Navy Medical Corps USNR = United States Naval Reserve USV / US Vol = United States Volunteers USWV = United Spanish War Veterans Vet = veteran Vol = Volunteers WAAC = Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps WAAF = Women’s Auxiliary Air Force WAC = Women’s Army Corps WAF = Women in the Air Force Wag / Wagr = Wagoner War Ser = war service WASP = Women’s Air Force Service Pilots WAVES = Women Appointed for Volunteer Emergency Service (US Navy) WIA = Wounded in Action WO = Warrant Officer WT = Water Tender WW = World War WW1 / WW2 = World War One / World War Two
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Website Resources |
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This search engine may provide you with additional |
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information to assist with your research about this topic. |
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General Resources
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· Access Genealogy - Military Resource Center · Alex Chirnside's Military History Page · Ancestor Search - Military Genealogy and Family Tree Surname Search Engines ·
· The History Guy: United States Military History ·
Military History Research Sites · Ruth Ann's Military Links Page · American Merchant Marine at War · WorldVitalRecords.com - Military · Naval History and Heritage Command – U.S. Navy · Our Military Heritage – Allen County Library |
· FamilySearch.org - Research Guidance - U.S. Military Records Research Outline · American Women in Uniform, Veterans Too! · Ancestry.com - Clues in Military Photos . · Online Military Indexes, War Records & Databases of Soldiers · U.S. Dept of Veterans' Affairs - Guide for Submitting Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Requests · Research in Military Records - National Archives · Military Personnel Records - National Archives · Access to Military Service & Pension Records · Southern Campaign Revolutionary War Pension Statements & Rosters |
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Colonial Wars
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· King Philip's War - Wikipedia · FREE U.S. Military Databases – King Philip’s War |
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American Revolutionary War
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· Chronology of the American Revolutionary War · Guide to the American Revolution –Lib. of Congress · Global Gazetteer of the American Revolution · Rev. War Pension & Bounty Land Apps. 1800-1900 $ · FREE U.S. Military Databases – Revolutionary War · Sons American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970 $ |
· Battlefield atlas of the American Revolution · American Revolutionary War History Resources · D.A.R. Genealogical Research System |
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War of 1812
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· Library of Congress Guide to the War of 1812 · War of 1812 in the South - William C. Cook Collection |
· American Military History – The War of 1812 · FREE U.S. Military Databases – War of 1812 |
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Mexican –American War
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· Library of Congress Guide to the Mexican War · FREE U.S. Military Databases – War with Mexico |
· The Mexican-American War, Illinois Historic Digitization Proj. |
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American Indian Wars
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American Civil War
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· The Civil War Archive Regimental Index - A Listing of all Regiments that Fought During the U.S. Civil War · Civil War Soldiers & Sailors System – 6.3 million names · FREE U.S. Military Databases – Civil War |
· Civil War photos at the National Archives |
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Spanish-American War
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· Spanish-American War - Library of Congress Guide · Spanish-American War Service Summary Cards (Georgia Archives) |
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World War I
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· A multimedia history of World War I · The World War I Document Archive · FREE U.S. Military Databases – World War One |
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World War II
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· Directory of Online World War II Indices & Records · FREE U.S. Military Databases – World War Two |
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Korean War
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· The Center for the Study of the Korean War · FREE U.S. Military Databases – Korean War |
· US Army Korea Media Center official Korean War online image archive |
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Vietnam War
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· FREE U.S. Military Databases – Vietman War |
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Gen. Ref. Library
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Within our Genealogy Reference Library (U.S.A.) page where you will find U.S. military histories from the American Revolution to World War One at the following link. If you are looking for the history of a specific state or local U.S. military unit take a look in the Genealogy Reference Library U.S.A. Locations pages. In addition, we have general military reference texts as well as other books that will assist you with your research. |
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This Link will take you to our |
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collections of military reference books. |
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Free Military Records
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All of the records and databases listed on our Military webpage are FREE and can be accessed and searched online without having to pay for a subscription. We try not to list any sites that have only a few records for the purpose of getting you to a website that will charge a fee to actually see the record beyond just a name. |
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This Link will take you to our |
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collections of FREE Records. |
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About this webpage |
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CONTACT INFORMATION
We do like to hear from others who are researching the same people and surnames. We
need your help to keep growing! So please Email
photos, stories, and other appropriate information about this topic.
RULES OF USE We only ask that if you have a personal website please create a link to our Home Page. -- This webpage was last updated on -- 01 June 2014 |
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