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Filing Manuals

Are you new to archival research? Review the Getting Started pages.

These manuals outline the filing classification systems used by staff in the Army, Navy, Coast Guard, and various departments and agencies of the federal government.

• Army
• Coast Guard
• Department of the Interior
• Federal Works Agency
• Marine Corps
• National Archives and Records Administration
• Navy
• State Department
• War Department

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Army

• Correspondence Classification System for the Civil Works Records used in The Office of the Chief of Engineers, November, 1941 [17.39 MB, 219 pages]
  
  
• Adjutant General's Office (AGO) Supplement to the Revised Department of the Army Decimal File System, 1951 [11.8 MB, 220 pages]

• The Army Functional Files System (TAFFS), 1969-1979
  1. General Provisions (AR-340-18-1)
  2. Maintenance and Disposition of Planning, Programming, Management, Historical, and Combat Development Functional Files (AR-340-18-2)
  3. Maintenance and Disposition of Finance and Fiscal Functional Files (AR-340-18-3)
  4. Maintenance and Disposition of Legal and Information Functional Files (AR-340-18-4)
  5. Maintenance and Disposition of Intelligence, Security, Military, Police, and Mapping Functional Files (AR-340-18-5)
  6. Maintenance and Disposition of General Personnel Management and Safety Functional Files (AR-340-18-6)
  7. Maintenance and Disposition of Military Personnel Functional Files (AR-340-18-7)
  8. Maintenance and Disposition of Civilian Personnel Functional Files (AR-340-18-8)
  9. Maintenance and Disposition of Medical Functional Files (AR-340-18-9)
  10. Appendix: Conversion Table (AR-340-18-10)
  11. Maintenance and Disposition of Communications Functional Files (AR-340-18-11)
  12. Maintenance and Disposition of Transportation Functional Files (AR-340-18-12)
  13. Maintenance and Disposition of Research and Development Functional Files (AR-340-18-13)
  14. Maintenance and Disposition of Logistics Functional Files (AR-340-18-14)
  15. Maintenance and Disposition of Facilities Functional Files (AR-340-18-15)
  16. Maintenance and Disposition of Civil Affairs Functional Records (AR-340-18-16)
  17. TAFFS Conversion Tables of File Numbers from the AR-345-210 to the Current AR-340-18 Series, May 1982 reprint of 1969 version

      Note: AR stands for Army Regulation in the codes in parentheses above.

• The Modern Army Recordkeeping System (MARKS), 1993
  1. Pages 1-24
  2. Pages 25-54
  3. Pages 55-84
  4. Pages 85-124
  5. Pages 125-154
  6. Pages 155-184
  7. Pages 185-224
  8. Pages 225-254
  9. Pages 255-284
  10. Pages 285-324
  11. Pages 325-339

See the Research Topics page for Army Records.

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Coast Guard

The United States Coast Guard produced these filing manuals as guidance on classifying files by subject. The 1936 manual uses a decimal classification scheme; the 1950 manual uses an alpha-numeric classification scheme.

• Rules for Handling Mail and Files at the Units of the U.S. Coast Guard, 1936 [4.24 MB download, 116 pages]
  
  
• Filing Manual, Treasury Department, U.S. Coast Guard, April 1950 [6.17 MB download, 102 pages]
  
  

See the Research Topics page for Coast Guard Records.

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Department of the Interior

• Department of Interior (RG 48) Secretary of the Interior's Central Classified Files [14 pages]

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Federal Works Agency

• Subject-Numeric Classification Outline for the Classified Central Files [9 pages]

See the Research Topics page for Records Relating to the New Deal and the ARC Gallery: Federal Programs and the New Deal.

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Marine Corps

• The Ells-Dran Filing System, Records of the US Marine Corps, Record Group 127 [0.27 MB download, 95 pages]
  
  
• Navy-Marine Corps Standard Subject Classification System, October 1959 [36.56 MB download, 60 pages]
  
  

See the Research Topics page for Naval and Marine Records.

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National Archives and Records Administration

• Classified Files, Filing Plan of July 1944 (with May 1951 Revisions Incorporated), Records of the National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 64 [0.24 MB download, 10 pages]
  
  

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Navy

Navy Filing Manuals

• Navy Filing Manual, 1941 (4th Edition) [28.43 MB download, 611 pages]
  
  
• Navy Filing Manual, 1950 (5th Edition) [9.07 MB download, 140 pages]
  
  
• Bureau of Ordnance File Numbers [3.97 MB download, 86 pages]
  
  

Navy Standard Subject Identification Codes (SSICs)

• Navy Standard Subject Identification Codes (SSICs), December 1977 [67.26 MB download, 134 pages]
  
  
• Navy Standard Subject Identification Codes (SSICs), October 1987 [42.01 MB download, 72 pages]
  
  

See the Research Topics page for Naval and Marine Records.

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State Department

Central File for State Department Records (Record Group 59)

• Decimal File Filing Manual: 1910-1949 [81 pages]
  
  
• Decimal File Filing Manual: 1955-1959 [63 pages]
  
  
• Decimal File Filing Manual: 1960-January 1963 [64 pages]
  
  
• Subject-Numeric File Filing Manual: 1963-March 1965 [394 pages]
  
  
• Subject-Numeric File Filing Manual: 1965-1973
  
  

See the Research Topics page on the State Department Central Files.

Foreign Service Post Files (Record Group 84)

U.S. Embassies, U.S. Legations, and U.S. Consulates

• Filing Manual, 1912-48 [4.54 MB download size, 100 pages]
  
  
• Filing Manual, 1949-63 [88.16 MB download size, 125 pages]
  
  
• Subject-Numeric Filing Manual, 1963-March 1965 [18.72 MB download size, 394 pages]
  
  
• Subject-Numeric Filing Manual 1965-1973

U.S. Information Service (USIS) Files

• USIS Alpha-Numeric Filing Manual 1955-1960
• USIS Alpha-Numeric Filing Manual 1961-1964: Conversion Table to Subject Numeric File Filling Manual 1965-1973
• Subject-Numeric Filing Manual 1965-1973
• USIS Excerpts from Subject-Numeric Records Classification Handbook 1967-1978
• USIS Excerpts from Subject-Numeric Records Classification Handbook 1979-1986

See the Research Topics page on Foreign Service Post Files.

Agency for International Development (Record Group 286)

• 1962 AID Filing Manual - Subject File Headings
• Addendum - Major AID Subject File Headings with Later Additions, 1961-1979

U.S. Information Agency (Record Group 306)

• Subject-Numeric File Filing Manual 1965-1973
• Excerpts from Subject-Numeric Records Classification Handbook 1967-1978
• Excerpts from Subject-Numeric Records Classification Handbook 1979-1986
• Excerpts from Subject-Numeric Records Classification Handbook 1986-1999

See the Research Topics page on U.S. Information Agency Files

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War Department

War Department Decimal File System

The United States War Department produced multiple editions of the War Department Decimal File System, beginning in January 1914. The department used the system to classify correspondence, decimal files, and other records.

• War Department Correspondence File: A Subjective Decimal Classification...,
  July 1917 (Reprint of January 1914 Edition)
  [13.55 MB download, 331 pages]
  
  
• War Department Decimal File System, 1943 (Revised Edition) [20.57 MB download, 432 pages]
  
  
• Additional Classifications [15 KB download, 3 pages]
  
  

See the ARC Galleries: Military and Wars.

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