Seeking records of 74th Colored Infantry from Tennessee

Dear Ms. Mendez,

Thank you for posting your request on History Hub!

We searched the National Archives Catalog and located the series Indexes to the Carded Records of Soldiers Who Served in Volunteer Organizations During the Civil War and the the series Carded Records Showing Military Service of Soldiers Who Fought in Volunteer Organizations During the American Civil War in the Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1762 - 1917 (Record Group 94) that may include a file for your great-great grandfather. Some of these records have been digitized and are available using the Catalog. Next, we located the series Regimental and Company Books of Civil War Volunteer Union Organizations, 1861 - 1867 in Record Group 94 that includes the file unit titled Regimental and Company Books of the 74th U.S. Colored Troops Infantry Regiment. These records have not been digitized. For more information about the non-digitized records and other Civil War era military records at the National Archives, please email the National Archives at Washington, DC - Textual Reference (RDT1) at archives1reference@nara.gov.

Due to the continued impact of COVID-19, you may experience a delay in receiving an initial acknowledgment as well as a substantive response to your reference request from RDT1.  We apologize for this inconvenience and appreciate your understanding and patience as we balance mission-critical work and the safety of our staff during the pandemic. Please check NARA’s web page about COVID-19 updates for the latest information.

Additionally, we located organization information by the National Park Services for the 74th Regiment, United States Colored Infantry which was assembled in New Orleans, Louisiana.

We suggest you search the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System (CWSS), which is a database containing information about the men who served in the Union and Confederate armies during the Civil War. Other information on the site includes histories of Union and Confederate regiments, links to descriptions of significant battles, and selected lists of prisoner-of-war records and cemetery records, which will be amended over time. The CWSS is a cooperative effort between the National Park Service and several public and private partners whose goal is to increase Americans' understanding of this decisive era in American history by making information about it widely accessible.

We hope this is helpful. Best of luck with your family research!