Finding Service Records

Individual Personnel Files

• The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is the official repository for records of military personnel who have been discharged from the U.S. Air Force, Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and Coast Guard.
• A veteran (or next of kin) may request his or her individual military personnel file (201 file) by sending a request to the National Personnel Records Center, Military Records Facility, 9700 Page Boulevard, St. Louis, MO 63132-5100.
• Additional information about the contents of these personnel files, instructions for submitting a request, and a downloadable PDF copy of the request form may be found on the National Personnel Records Center home page of the National Archives and Records Administration Web site.
• Personnel records of civilians who worked for the various branches of the military are also held by the National Personnel Records Center. The address to write for these records is National Personnel Records Center, Civilian Records Facility, 111 Winnebago Street, St. Louis, MO 63118-4199.

Official Unit Records and Published Unit Histories

• Official government records documenting the operations of individual units are also preserved at the National Archives and Records Administration.
• Unit records for World War I can be found in Archives I Textual Reference Branch, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC 20408; telephone (202)-501-5430.
• Unit records for World War II and the Korean and Vietnam wars are in the custody of the Archives II Textual Reference Branch, National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD 20740-6001; telephone (301)-713-7250.
• Contact the National Archives and Records Administration for information on unit records pertaining to the Persian Gulf War.
• Some published unit histories are available in the general book collections of the Library of Congress or at the military history centers maintained by the various branches of service.

Morning Reports and Rosters

• Morning reports and rosters may also be of interest.
• Unit morning reports created from 1917 to 1974 (the year they were discontinued) are in the custody of the National Personnel Records Center, Military Records Facility, 9700 Page Boulevard, St. Louis, MO 63132-5100.
• Rosters created from 1917 until the present are also located at the National Personnel Records Center or at the Army Reserve Personnel Center, both of which may be contacted at the address above.
• Additional information may be found at the National Personnel Records Center Web site.