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Planning my 1st visit to NARA

DianeMarkham

I am going to have one day in May to research at NARA in Washington DC. I have a list of records I'd like to get, probably more than possible in one day.

I am searching for:

Union Civil War for three veterans—pension files for two, the third deserted from a hospital so I'd want his Carded Medical Record 

Compiled military service records for all three

Homestead record from Kansas

Two Revolutionary War veterans, both died in service

My dad and father-in-law's WWII military records.

I do have Fold3, but have little success in finding anything with it. 

Any advice for me out there? What should I do in advance to make the best use of my time in DC?

thank you for your help!

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    Thank you for posting your question on History Hub!

    The National Archives at Washington D.C. holds custody of pre-World War I military service records. These records include the compiled military service records (CMSRs) of soldiers who served in U.S. Army Volunteer units during the Revolutionary War, War of 1812, Civil War, and other pre-World War I conflicts. CMSRs typically consist of an envelope containing card abstracts taken primarily from muster rolls, returns, pay vouchers, and other records, which can provide an overview of when and where a soldier served. To complete a request on the day of your visit you should know the name of the soldiers and the unit information.

    Carded Medical Records, Civil and Mexican War Volunteers (RG 94, Entry 534, NAID 655646) are found in Record Group 94: Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1762 - 1984. These records are arranged by organization (unit) and then surname.

    Please note: the United States Navy did not create and maintain official service records for enlisted men until 1886 and officers until 1903, because of this, records relating to personnel may be inconsistent and spread out in multiple Record Groups and Series. For example, there is the record series: Weekly Returns of Enlistments at Naval Rendezvous, January 6, 1855–August 8, 1891. (Entry PI-123 219; NAID 2363711) and Muster Rolls of Naval Ships, 1/1/1860 - 6/9/1900" (RG 24, Entry 132; NAID 563603). (These records have been digitized and on our online catalog.)

    You also mention military pension application files/bounty land warrant. Soldiers who served in the U.S. military often included information about their family members in their applications for Federal pensions making pension application files a useful source for genealogical research. Soldiers could have included this information intentionally (as when they list their spouses and children who are dependent upon them for financial support), or unintentionally (as when they sent in a marriage license that includes a parent's signature as one of the witnesses). Either way, pension application files can be useful for ascertaining family relationships, albeit usually close ones (most often, the nuclear family). To complete a request on the day of your visit you will need to know the name of the soldiers, the unit information, and the application and/or certificate number.

    For more information relating to Homestead Records please visit our website at: Accessing Land Entry Records | National Archives

    Please note most Revolutionary War records will be reformatted/digitized for more information please visit our website at: The American Revolution | National Archives

    If you have any follow-up questions, please feel free to reach out to our office directly via email at archives1reference@nara.gov.

    The medical and personnel records of enlisted men/officers during WWII will be found at the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis, MO. The address is the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC), 1 Archives Drive, St. Louis, MO 63138-1002. Please note that access to more recent records requires permission from the veteran or next-of-kin. The request can also be started online at https://www.archives.gov/veterans/military-service-records however; you will be prompted to print out a signature form to mail/fax into that facility.

    Additional supporting documents and/or unit information relating to WWII can be found at the National Archives at College Park, Md.

    We hope this assists you with your research!

    Sincerely,

    Archives 1 Reference Branch
    [RR1R-24-29187-LR]