The National Personnel Records Center (NPRC)
The "New" NPRC
Media Articles:
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"Painstaking Effort To Save The Past, Korean War Veteran's File Is Pulled From Ashes of 1973 Overland Fire," St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 8, 2012
Preservation technicians with the National Personnel Records Center handle thousands of documents from a military records held in the center's burned files at the new north St. Louis County location. Millions of military personnel files were destroyed at the agency's Page Avenue building in a 1973 fire. An ambitious effort to restore millions of files that survived the fire is underway.
"Racial Strife of the 1950s Traveling Exhibit at Personnel Records Center Uses Historic Photos and Documents To Detail the Struggle for Freedom," St. Louis Post-Dispatch February 1, 2012
Baseball legend and Army veteran Jackie Robinson was court-martialed for refusing to move to the back of a bus. Ella Fitzgerald sued Pan American airline after she was not allowed to board a flight and James Meredith launched a legal fight for admission as the first African American to enroll at the University of Mississippi. Documents and photos from the National Archives at St. Louis' Documented Rights exhibition highlight various struggles for freedom.
"Records Brigade Is On The March, Computer-Assisted Planning, Old-Fashioned Manpower Move Nation's Military Records," St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 19, 2012
For months, five truckloads of 1,200 file boxes each are hauled five days a week from the old center at 9700 Page Avenue 15 miles to the National Personnel Record Center's new archival facility. Personnel files are contained in 1.8 million cardboard boxes, some weighing up to 35 pounds.
"Documents Give Glimpse of Doomed U.S. Battleship, Some Papers Recovered at Pearl Harbor Will Be Displayed Here" St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 5, 2011
Preservationists at the National Archives at St. Louis National Personnel Records Center work to reconstruct papers from the battleship Arizona, which was sunk at Pearl Harbor. Personnel files, like the military personnel file in the photo, still show signs of damage from the blaze of the attack. These military personnel files were salvaged from the ship in 1942 and are currently housed in St. Louis. The public is invited to a public lecture by local scholars commemorating the 70th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.
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KSDK-TV - St. Louis facility has many Pearl Harbor documents
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Missouri Net - Battleship Arizona records being saved in St. Louis (AUDIO)
Special Commemorative NPRC New Building Publication, St. Louis Post Dispatch, October 2011
Personnel Records Are Consolidated at New Location in St. Louis, Prologue Magazine, Fall 2011
Mission and History:
Personnel Records, Quick Find:
MILITARY PERSONNEL RECORDS | |
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If the veteran separated from military service before 1952 | If the veteran separated from military service after 1951 |
CIVILIAN PERSONNEL RECORDS | |
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If the Federal civil servant's employment ended before 1952 | If the Federal civil servant's employment ended after 1951 |
The National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) is one of the National Archives and Records Administration's (NARA) largest operations. We are the central repository of personnel-related records for both the military and civil services of the United States Government. Our mission is to provide world class service to government agencies, military veterans and their family members, former civilian Federal employees, and the general public.
The NPRC, as it exists today, is the product of several previous operations. Today's organization is the embodiment of NARA's policy that places all inactive Federal personnel records, both military and civilian, in the custody of a single administrative unit. The history of the NPRC is a rich and varied story whose roots are interwoven in the fabric of the post-World War II American Experience.
Learn more about the history of the NPRC
NPRC Records Holdings, Overview:
ARCHIVAL RECORDS | FEDERAL RECORDS |
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Official Military Personnel Files (OMPF) from all service branches for veterans with a discharge date of 1951 or prior* | Official Military Personnel Files (OMPF) from all service branches for veterans with a discharge date of 1951 or after* |
Records of Persons of Exceptional Prominence (PEP): military personnel files of Presidents, members of Congress and the Supreme Court; famous military leaders; decorated heroes; celebrities; and other cultural figures who served in the military | Military health and medical records of discharged and deceased veterans, retirees and military family members treated at military service medical facilities |
Official Personnel Folders (OPF) of former Federal civil servants whose employment ended prior to 1952 | Official Personnel Folders (OPF) of former Federal civil servants whose employment ended after 1951 |
Organizational, Auxiliary and Other records pertaining to individual military and civilian service with the government of the United States - includes Selective Service Records | Employee Medical Folders (EMF) of former Federal civilian employees |
* Records are accessioned into the National Archives, and become archival, 62 years after the service member's separation from the military. This is a rolling date; hence, the current year, 2013, minus 62 years is 1951. Records with a discharge date of 1951 or prior are archival and are open to the public. Records with a discharge date of 1951 or after are non-archival and are maintained under the Federal Records Center program. Non-archival records are subject to access restrictions.
Location:
National Personnel Records Center
1 Archives Drive
St. Louis, MO 63138
Telephone: 314-801-0800
Fax: 314-801-9195
E-mail: MPR.center@nara.gov
Check out our new Research Rooms!
Directions
Directions
The National Personnel Records center (NPRC) is located at 1 Archives Drive, Saint Louis, MO 63138 in suburban North St. Louis County, near the intersection of U.S. 367 and Interstate 270.
From Lambert St. Louis International Airport, take I-270 East, exit left onto Bellefontaine Road, and take the first left onto Dunn Road. The NPRC will be on your right, at 1 Archives Drive. The Guard at the gate will provide further information about parking and building entry. Our Research Rooms are located on the first floor.
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