Historical Military Records

Are you searching for family members' military records? Listed below are a number of Illinois and National resources to help you in your research. Most facilities can not respond to e-mail or phone inquiries and ask that you mail your request to them directly. For greater success, please include the following information in your letter: Full name (of your relative) Date and Place of Birth Time Period in Which They Served (years or war) Unit in Which They Served Social Security Number (for more recent records) If you already have this information, you may contact the Illinois Army National Guard, Historian Section by letter. The Historian section has a small staff and it may take until their first drill weekend (usually the first weekend of the month) to research and respond to your request. Inquiries are taken in the order they are received, so please be patient, as it may be over a month before the historians see your request. Some of the Illinois Adjutant General's Reports contain unit rosters for various wars. These unit rosters contain the soldier's name, rank, date of enlistment, place of enlistment, and sometimes brief remarks (discharged for disability, wounded Pea Ridge, etc). The Illinois Army National Guard Historian Section maintains the Adjutant General's Reports for the following periods: Civil War (1861-1865) Spanish-American War (1898) Mexican Border Service (1916) World War One (1917-1918) There are NO equivalent AG Reports for World War Two, Korea, Vietnam, the Gulf War, or the War on Terrorism. Brief information on the Illinois National Guard's involvement in Korea and Vietnam is available on this site. For Military Records Dating Back to the Year 1900 To release records, the individual must submit a written request. The request must include full name, SSN, approximate dates of service with the ILNG, the records being sought and the request must be SIGNED by the requesting individual. The request may either be faxed, mailed, or both. Mailing Address and fax number: Department of Military Affairs ATTN: Administrative Services, Historical Military Records 1301 N. MacArthur Boulevard Springfield, IL 62702-2399 Fax: (217) 761-3419 For Military Records Prior to 1900 including the Civil War Before writing the State Archives at the address below, try searching their veteran's databases first. You may find your relatives unit and dates of service at: http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/databases.html Once you have done this, and know your relative's unit of service, contact the Historian Section for a unit history and/or complete unit roster. Illinois State Archives Margaret Cross Norton Building Capitol Complex Springfield, IL 62756 You may also try: Illinois State Genealogical Society, http://www.rootsweb.com/~ilsgs/index.html Phone: (217) 789-1968 Email Address: ISGS Other Resources Air Force, Army, Navy, Marine Corps Military Records (Archived) National Personnel Records Center (Military Personnel Records) 9700 Page Boulevard St. Louis, MO 63132, Tel:(314) 538-4201 Coast Guard, Navy and Marine Corps, Confederate Service Records (Coast Guard (pre-1929), Marine Corps (pre-1905), and Navy (pre-1903) Military Archives Division National Archives and Records Administration, http://www.archives.gov/ Washington, D.C. 20408 Tel:(202) 501-5385 Military Service Records National Archives Building Military Archives Division Washington, D.C. 20408 Note: Order forms for records requests may be obtained by calling (202) 501-5400. You will need to complete these forms before you write the Archives for records