Researching the National Archives

Researching the New York State Archives

Researching the National Archives
Before you can request information from the National Archives, you must know the following:

1) Name of the soldier
2) Branch of service (Army, Navy, Marines)
3) State from which he served
4) Union or Confederate Army


Write to the National Archives at the following address:

General References Branch (NNRG-P)
National Archives and Records Administration
7th and Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20408

Request 2 copies of form NATF Form 80, entitled "Order for Copies of Veterans Records", for each Civil War Soldier you wish information on.

When the forms arrive, fill out one requesting pension records and one requesting military records. You must fill out a form for each type of record. Pension and military records each give different details about the soldier you are researching, so it is best to order both.

In a few weeks, you will receive a reply from the National Archives researchers. This reply will tell you what was found in the Archives and how much it will cost for them to copy the documents and ship the copies to you. It is usually very cheap.


Researching the New York State Archives
This information is from the NY State Archives Gopher site from 1993. Hopefully it is still accurate.

NEW YORK STATE ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION MILITARY SERVICE RECORDS

Military Service Records in New York State Archives. Military records in the New York State Archives document the service of many (but not all) individuals who served in the State's armed forces prior to World War II. The records contain summary data on military service, and usually take the form of financial claims, cards, registers, or one-page abstracts. The Archives holds no military case files (service, pension, or bounty land warrant) like those created by the Federal government.

Access to Military Records. Military records in the State Archives are available to the public in the Archives' research room on the 11th floor of the Cultural Education Center in downtown Albany, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., except State holidays. Records are not available for use if they are being microfilmed or processed, or if they are so fragile that handling would damage them. If records are available on microfilm, use of the original records is restricted. Some military records contain information that is accessible by name, either through an alphabetical arrangement or through indexes. Many other records are not name accessible.

Information about Military Records. Record series in the State Archives are listed in Guide to Records in the New York State Archives (1993). Detailed guides (published or draft) are available for State Archives records documenting New York's participation in the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and World War I, as well for records of the State War Council during World War II. In addition, most military records in the Archives have unpublished descriptions of their contents. These descriptions are available in the State Library/State Archives on-line catalog, which is accessible through the SARA Gopher on the Internet. Photocopies of individual record series descriptions are also available on request from the Archives.

War Service Searches. The New York State Archives will search selected major record series for documents relating to the war service of a named individual. The Archives searches only those record series that are accessible by name and comprehensive in their coverage. This Gopher document contains a form that can be used to request information about War Service of an individual. The amount of data on service varies according to the war.

CIVIL WAR. Will search Civil War Muster Roll Abstracts of N.Y. State Volunteers, U.S. Sharpshooters, and U.S. Colored Troops (13775) and similar abstracts for U.S. Navy, Marines Corps, and N.Y. National Guard. If a soldier's or sailor's residence (town or city) in 1865 is furnished, will search Town and City Registers of Men Who Served in the Civil War (13774). (Registers are not available for New York City, Brooklyn, Albany, Troy, Utica, Rochester, and some other communities.)

CHARGES FOR COPIES OR ABSTRACTS OF WAR SERVICE RECORDS. There is no charge for the search itself. If any documents are found relating to an individual's service, the minimum charge for handling, mailing, and photocopies (up to four pages) or abstracts of documents will be $2.00 (War of 1812, Spanish-American War, Mexican Border Conflict, and World War I) or $3.00 (Revolutionary War, Civil War). The charge for additional photocopies (five or more) is $.25 per page. Do not send check or money order with your filled-out request form. A notice of search results and (if a record of service was found) an invoice will be mailed to you. There will be no charge if no information is located.

SPECIAL NOTES.
1) Because many documents in the Archives are either too fragile or too faintly written to be photocopied, the New York State Archives may furnish a complete abstract, rather than a photocopy, of a record of military service.

2) Using available indexes and information provided by the requester, Archives staff will make a diligent effort to identify documents relating to military service of a particular individual; however, the Archives is not responsible for positively identifying documents relating to an individual, particularly when a common name is being searched.

For further information on State Archives' records holdings and services, contact:

NEW YORK STATE ARCHIVES
Cultural Education Center Room 11D40
Albany, NY 12230
Telephone (518) 474-8955
e-mail: jfolts%sedofis@vm1.nysed.gov

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NEW YORK STATE ARCHIVES
War Service Records
Search Request & Reply Form

APPLICANT: Please print or type.

1. NAME TO BE SEARCHED
_______________________________________________________
(last) (first) (initial)

2. WAR SERVICE RECORD TO BE SEARCHED (check one)
[ ] Revolutionary War [ ] War of 1812
[ ] Civil War [ ] Spanish-American War
[ ] Mexican Border Conflict (1916) [ ] World War I

3. BRANCH OF SERVICE (check one)
[ ] Army [ ] Navy [ ] Marines

4. NATIONAL GUARD SERVICE (for Civil War, Spanish-American War, Mexican Border Conflict, or World War I only, state if individual was in a National Guard unit mustered into Federal service)
[ ] Yes [ ] No

5. MILITARY STATUS (check one)
[ ] Commissioned officer
[ ] Non-commissioned officer or enlisted
[ ] Unknown

6. MILITARY UNIT (regiment or other military or naval unit number and/or name, if known)

_______________________________________________________

7. OTHER DATA (city, town or village of residence; birth date or approximate age at time of service; and any other relevant data, such as variant spellings of last name)

_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________

8. APPLICANT NAME AND ADDRESS:


_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________


_________________________________________________________

9. RETURN REQUEST FORM TO:
New York State Archives
Cultural Education Center Room 11D40
Albany, NY 12230