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Re: Different serial numbers for the same person?
Jonathan Deiss Sep 13, 2017 8:29 AM (in response to tindog13)2 people found this helpfulSoldiers who have two Army serial numbers are often soldiers who had served as both enlisted man and officer. At least in the WW2-era, enlisted men had a distinct series of serial numbers; officers had a different series of numbers. Officer's numbers often started with and 'O' (not a zero), followed by a sequence of numbers.
For instance, my grandfather was drafted in November 1941, as a enlisted man, and was assigned Army serial number 37129311. He was later commissioned and promoted to officer status and assigned a new Army serial number beginning with an 'O' : O-1306027.
It is also theoretically possible that the soldier served in two different branches of service, such as the Marines and the Army, or the Army and the Navy.
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Re: Different serial numbers for the same person?
Cara Moore LebonickSep 13, 2017 9:31 AM (in response to tindog13)
2 people found this helpfulDear Mr. Schweitzer,
Thank you for reaching out on History Hub. There are several reasons that one person could have been assigned multiple service/serial numbers. As Mr. Deiss indicated, the most common is that they went from enlisted service to officer service. Officers were assigned separate service numbers, often they are a lower number. Other reasons can include reenlistment under a different name or name change (this happens more commonly with women than men) or enlistment in a different branch of service.
We hope this helps to answer your question. If you believe that you may have received incorrect information from a record center, please reach out to their customer service. The National Personnel Record Center in St. Louis for military personnel records’ customer service line is 314-801-0800. Thank you!
Best,
Cara Moore
National Archives in St. Louis