Research your ancestor's World War I military service.
Genealogy is an increasingly popular hobby and, given that around 4 million men served in the United States Army during World War I, you may find an ancestor was one of them. Researching a relative's World War I service can be very rewarding but is likely to involve some detective work.
Instructions
1. Find out as much as you can about your relative's service. Talk to family members and check any documents you have for relevant information. Knowing the dates of your ancestor's service, the rank he held and the branch of the military he served in -- for example, artillery, machine guns or infantry -- will be a great help in your research, says genealogist Mitchell Yockelson. If possible, try to find out which battalion, troop or battery your ancestor was a member of.
2. Apply for a copy of your ancestor's records from the National Archives by completing Form SF-180, downloadable from the National Archives website. You will need to supply certain information, including the veteran's name, date of birth, Social Security number, dates of service and branch of service. If you are the next of kin you will also need to provide evidence that your ancestor is dead -- a death certificate, a copy of a newspaper obituary and a letter from a funeral home are all acceptable. This service is free for next of kin but there will be a charge if you are a more distant relative.
3. Take your research further by consulting other records held by the National Archives. If your relative held officer rank, information may survive in the records of the War Department General and Special Staffs (Record Group 165), which ran officer training schools during the war. If your relative was already an army officer when the United States entered the war in 1917, check the general correspondence files in the Records of the Adjutant General's Office (Record Group 94).
If your relative was an enlisted man, your task is likely to be more difficult. Once you know the unit in which he served, check the Records of U.S. Army Mobile Units (Record Group 391), which contain correspondence and special orders relating to specific units. You can use these records to trace the history of your ancestor's unit to understand more about his war experience and learn about the battles he fought in. Check the Wound Chevron special orders for his unit to see if he was wounded and entitled to wear a chevron.
4. Check whether your ancestor was killed in the war. If he was killed in action or lost at sea, you may be able to find him in the records of the American Battlefield Monuments Commission (ABMC). The burial records are searchable online and record the names of more than 33,000 Americans who are buried in the ABMC's cemeteries or listed on the Walls of the Missing. Bear in mind that around two-thirds of the American World War I dead are not buried in ABMC cemeteries and are therefore not listed on this website.
Tags: your ancestor, your relative, National Archives, Record Group, ABMC cemeteries