How can I obtain copies of my, or my relatives`, U.S. Army personnel records?
Personnel records are maintained for officers who served after 1 July 1917, and enlisted personnel in service after November 1912 and who are no longer in service, by the National Personnel Records Center. Information concerning the required procedures and forms is available through their website at www.archives.gov/facilities/mo/st_louis/military_personnel_records.html. Records for individuals who served prior to those dates are in the custody of Old Military and Civil Records Branch (NWCTB), National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC 20408. The National Archives can be contacted electronically using the form at http://www.archives.gov/contact/.
Where can I find official unit records?
Operational records of United States Army organizations created prior to 1940 are in the custody of the Military Reference Branch,National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC 20408. Requests regarding records created during World War II and the Korean War should be addressed to the Textual Reference Branch, National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD 20740-6001. Operational records of United States Army units that served in Southeast Asia are also in the custody of the Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives. You maybe able to access additional information about these holdings from the National Archives and Records Administration website.
Information relating to operational records created since1954 by those United States Army organizations that did not serve in Southeast Asia may be available through the DA Freedom of Information/Privacy ActOffice,7798 Cissna Road, Suite 205, Springfield, VA 22150-3166. You may be able to access additional information concerning policy related to these records on the website at http://www.armyg1.army.mil/foia/default.asp.
Certain Unit Rosters and Morning Reports are also in the custody of the National Personnel Records, information about these collections can be found at http://www.archives.gov/st-louis/
Where can I find historical information on the other Armed Services?
The historical offices for the other services and their websites are as follows:
- Naval Historical Center
- Air Force History Support Office
- Air Force Historical Research Agency
- U.S. Coast Guard Historian`s Office