Research by Subject: Government Publications: United States: Military History

How to search for military history documents and records

Research guides

Research Military Records
How to locate military service records held by the National Archives in Washington DC (Revolutionary War to 1912) and in St. Louis, MO (WWI - present). NARA does not hold state militia records. For these records, you will need to contact the appropriate State Archives.
Access to Military Service and Pension Records
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. Paper copies of military service and pension records can be ordered by mail from the facility which holds the records (listed in the guide).
Online Veterans and Military Documents
"While most of our holdings are not online, a variety of military records, from photos to documents to searchable databases are available. Listed below are online collections of specific interest to veterans, their families and researchers. Additional online records may be found by searching the National Archives Catalog and Access to Archival Databases (AAD) systems."--from the Web site

How to find documents and records in the Library Catalog

To locate other materials held in the main collection, use the Advanced Search form for the Library Catalog and the following strategy. Use the subject heading for the conflict your are research and the subject heading sources to identify official documents and records.

Subject headings used in the Library Catalog:

United States History Revolution, 1775-1783
United States -- History -- War of 1812
Mexican War, 1846-1848
United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865
Spanish-American War, 1898
World War, 1914-1918
World War, 1939-1945
Korean War, 1950-1953
Cuba -- History -- Invasion, 1961
Vietnam War, 1961-1975
Grenada -- History -- American Invasion, 1983
Panama -- History -- American Invasion, 1989
Persian Gulf War, 1991
Afghan War, 2001-
Iraq War, 2003-2011

1775-1783 American Revoution

Military Resources: American Revolution
Documents available from the National Archives & Records Administration; some documents are available online. Includes links to resources outside of NARA.

Naval Documents of the American Revolution
Call Number: D 207.12:v.1-12 Government Publications/US
Reprint of primary sources; maps, charts, reports.

War of 1812

Military Resources: War of 1812
Records available from the National Archives & Records Administration, including genealogical records, discharge certificates, records of impressed seaman. Also includes links outside of NARA.

1846-1848 Mexican American War

Military Resources: Mexican War 1846-1848
Documents available from the National Archives & Records Administration; some documents are available online. Includes links to resources outside of NARA.

1861-1865 Civil War

Civil War Records: Basic Research Sources
Research in Military Records: Civil War
Documents available from the National Archives & Records Administration; some documents are available online. Includes links to resources outside of NARA.

The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies
Call Number: W 45.5: Government Publications/United States
Includes battle reports and correspondence of Union and Confederate regiments.

The SDSU Library has this set in paper. Digitized copies are available from:

Official Records of Union and Confederate Navies in War of Rebellion
Call Number: N 16.6: Government Publications/United States

The SDSU Library has this set in paper. Digitized copies are available from:

1898 Spanish American War

Spanish American War Records
Links to selected online records.

1914-1918 World War I

World War I Records
Documents available from the National Archives; some documents are available online. Includes links to resources outside of the National Archives.

Handbook of Federal World War Agencies and Their Records, 1917-1921
Call Number: AE 1.6:W 19/1917-1921 Government Publications/United States
Each article treats a single agency and stands by itself. The text of the article is divided into three parts: 1. History, 2 functions, and 3. records
United States Army in the World War, 1917-1919
Call Number: D 114.8: Government Publications/United States
Offers a "widely representative selection of records...believed to be essential to the study of the history of that war."

The SDSU Library has this set in paper. Digitzied copies are available from:

HaithiTrust

World War II

World War II Records
Documents available from the National Archives; some documents are available online. Includes links to resources outside of the National Archives.
Selected Finding Aids Related to NARA's World War II Holdings
This page provides links and citations to finding aids published and/or compiled by NARA related to its extensive holdings on World War II.

1950-1953 Korean War

Korean War Records
Documents available from the National Archives; some documents are available online. Includes links to resources outside of the National Archives

1961 Bay of Pigs Invasion

Military Resources: Bay of Pigs Invasion & Cuban Missile Crisis
Documents available from the National Archives; some documents are available online. Includes links to resources outside of the National Archives.

1961-1975 Vietnam War

Research in Vietnam War Records
The National Archives has custody of a wide assortment of both textual documents and electronic records related to the Vietnam conflict
POW/MIA Databases & Documents
"In December 1991, Congress enacted Public Law 102-190, commonly referred to as the McCain Bill. The statute requires the Secretary of Defense to make available to the public--in a "library like setting"--all information relating to the treatment, location, and/or condition (T-L-C) of United States personnel who are unaccounted-for from the Vietnam War. The facility chosen to receive this information was the Library of Congress (LoC). The Federal Research Division (FRD) created the PWMIA Database, the online index to those documents. The microfilmed documents themselves are available at the Library of Congress or borrowed through local libraries."--from the Web site

Middle East conflicts

Military Resources: Gulf War/Desert Storm
Documents available from the National Archives; some documents are available online. Includes links to resources outside of the National Archives
Military Resources: Afghanistan
Documents available from the National Archives; some documents are available online. Includes links to resources outside of the National Archives
Military Resources: War in Iraq
Documents available from the National Archives; some documents are available online. Includes links to resources outside of the National Archives

Primary sources available SDSU Special Collections & University Archives

United States Civil War Collection, 1811-1987 The United States Civil War Collection contains manuscript and printed materials dating from the Civil War era, as well as later items about the war. These materials include correspondence, speeches, pamphlets, and newspapers. The bulk of the material dates from 1861 to 1865, and both Northern and Southern perspectives are represented. Highlights of the collection include an 1823 bill of sale for a slave and an 1864 diary. Also included is information pertaining to several persons of interest such as Henry Clay, Victor Hugo, Benson Lossing, James Monroe, and Henry Jackson Van Dyke.
World War II San Diego State College Servicemen's Correspondence Collection, 1941-1946
This collection consists of ten boxes of correspondence received from servicemen, servicewomen, and their families during the Second World War. The collection contains letters sent to Lauren Post for his information in compiling the San Diego State College Service Men's News Letter, which later changed its name to The Aztec News Letter. Many of the letters contain red pencil markings, indicating that a specific line or paragraph was to be included in the newsletter. By the end of the War, The Aztec News Letter was circulated to over 3,000 service and homefront readers.