Researching Your Civil War Ancestor

Colonel John Singleton Mosby Major General James Ewell Brown Stuart

Process Outline ~ Use in Conjunction with Federal and State Sources

What to do First
- Interview family members for any old stories relating to the Civil War.
- Look for family Civil War letters and documents, newspaper articles, etc.
Basic Required Information
- Name(s)
- State of residence during the Civil War
- 1860 Census residence ~ state and county
- Age of ancestor during the Civil War ~ ages 16-40
- Not required to know whether veteran was Union or Confederate
Beginning Research ~ No Computer Required
- Check Broadfoot Publishing Co. rosters of Union and Confederate soldiers
- Check existing resources in the Genealogy Library
  - State and county books
  - Compendium of the Confederate Armies
  - Confederate Veteran Magazine Index
  - Official Records of Union and Confederate Armies (OR's) ~ online from Making of America; Cornell University Library
  - Pension file indexes for the appropriate state
- Review Federal and State Sources list for possible sources pertinent to the area or subject of your research
- Review 1890 Census of Union Veterans and Widows
- Request microfilm of Compiled Service Record from your local Family History Center or the Church of Jesus Christ Latter Day Saints at their online Family Search Center
  - Possible regiment(s) or battalion(s) of service
  - Confederate soldiers
  - Union soldiers from border and southern states
- Request Compiled Service Record for Union soldiers serving from northern states from the National Archives by submitting NATF form 96 or by using Order Online
- Request Pension Application File
  - Union Pension Records from the National Archives by submitting NATF form 85 or by using Order Online
  - Confederate Pension Records from State Archives
Level Two Research ~ Computer and Internet Sources
- Google Search Engine
  - Regimental histories
  - Biographies
  - Diaries
- Review Federal and State Sources list for possible sources pertinent to the area or subject of your research available from the Church of Jesus Christ Latter Day Saints at their online Family Search Center
- State Archives and Libraries
  - State rosters
  - Pension applications online
  - Confederate State Soldiers Homes Records online
- Ancestry Plus ~ subscription required
  - Union pension application indexes online
  - Regimental histories online
Advanced Research
- Need basic knowledge of the Civil War in the specific area of interest
- Published books and other published sources
  - Books in Print ~ available on library computers
  - Out-of-print books ~ Abebooks.com and Worldcom (normally available from your library website) for identification and specific details
  - Inter-library loan
- Southern Claims Commission Records
- Library and archives research
  - Diaries
  - Letters
  - Manuscript collections
- Newspaper research
  - Reunion lists and information
  - Obituaries
  - Miscellaneous personal stories and accounts
- Maps
  - Civil War Maps ~ Library of Congress
- Research at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)

Federal and State Sources ~ This is a list of resources for use in researching Civil War ancestors. The list is far from being a complete listing of Civil War sources for the researcher. The focus for this project has been listings of soldiers and veterans with a state wide or broader scope or definition. The sources have been identified by correct citation notation to provide adequate information to request the source through local libraries or from Inter-library loan. In many cases, as noted, sources are most readily available on a loan basis through your local Family History Center or the Church of Jesus Christ Latter Day Saints at their online Family History Center.

General Sources
- Civil War Rosters Arranged by State
- Eales, Anne Bruner and Kvasnicka, Robert M. Guide to Genealogical Research in the National Archives of the United States. Third Edition. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2000.
- U.S. War Department, comp. War of the Rebellion: Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. 128 vols. Reprint ed., Harrisburg, Pa.: The National Historical Society, 1985.
  - Official Records of the War of the Rebellion ~ online from Making of America; Cornell University Library
- Schweitzer, George Keene. Civil War Genealogy: A basic guide for tracing your Civil War ancestor, with detailed sources and precise instruction for obtaining information from them. Knoxville, TN: G. K. Schweitzer, 1988.
- Library of Congress
  - U.S. Civil War Regimental Histories at the Library of Congress
- WorldCat ~ Window to the world's libraries
- U.S. National Park Service
  - The American Civil War
  - Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System ~ not yet complete
Southern States
Border States and Indian Territory
Northern States

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This page was last updated
January 09, 2008.

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