A guide to researching WWII US military service put together by the Texas Military Forces Museum

2. Any information is helpful- If you only have a name, it
is still possible to go from there but the more
information you have such as serial number, place of
service, unit information, dates of service etc… can all
help you understand your relative’s WWII service.

3. “Finding Your Father’s
War” by Jonathan
Gawne is a wonderful
resource. Not only does
he explain how to find
information about
WWII military service
he explains military
organization and helps
you to decipher the
information you find.

5. The DD 214 is the discharge form which the military
uses to document a soldier’s service and it contains a
lot of useful information including unit, medals,
awards etc..

6.  It is possible to request the form from the National Archives :
http://www.archives.gov/veterans/military-service-records/
 Or you can print out a form and mail it to:
 National Personnel Records Center
1 Archives Drive
St. Louis, MO 63138
However the bad news is in 1973 a fire destroyed 80 % of all Army and
Army Air Corps records from 1912-1964. If your relative served in the
Navy, Marines or Coast Guard those records were not affected.

7.  Draft record at the National
Archives online:
http://aad.archives.gov/aad/fielded-search.jsp?dt=893
These records contain a limited
amount of information but do
include; name, serial number,
date of enlistment.
At this same location are also
POW files, casualties lists,
passenger lists, photographs
and more.
http://aad.archives.gov/aad/

8. U.S. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946
U.S. Rosters of World War II Dead, 1939-1945
World War II & Korean War Veterans Buried Overseas
nearly 160,000 listings -- Title of the records in this
database: "Register, World War II Dead Interred in
American Military Cemeteries on Foreign Soil, and
World War II and Korea Missing or Lost or Buried at Sea"
U.S. World War II Navy Muster Rolls, 1938-1949
U.S. Navy Cruise Books Index, 1918-2009

9. U.S. Marine Corps Muster Rolls, 1798-1958
U.S. World War II Cadet Nursing Corps Card Files,
1942-1948
American Jewish Historical Society WWII Jewish
Servicemen Cards, 1942-1947
World War II Prisoners of War, 1941-1946; and WWII
Prisoners of the Japanese, 1941-1945
World War II Young American Patriots, 1941-1945
World War II Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard
Casualties, 1941-1945
World War II Japanese-American Internment Camp
Documents, 1942-1946
WWII U.S. Navy Aircraft Carrier Muster Rolls, 1939-
1949

11. Local county offices, libraries , universities and
historical societies might have archived newspapers ,
documents, or photos which might help in your
search.

12. It is possible to use photographs and letters to
decipher information about unit, rank or service.
Patches on uniforms will indicate what unit the
soldier was in

13. There are numerous online and book resources for US
patches. Two examples:
“United States Military Patch Guide” by J.L. Pete
Morgan, 2002
http://www.usarmypatches.com/

14. Insignia on uniforms can give rank or branch
information. For example, crossed rifles are for
Infantry, crossed swords are Cavalry, crossed cannons
are Field Artillery, wings indicate Army Air Corps.

18. Photographs of vehicles
can provide information.
In this photograph “36-
141-1” on the left bumper
and “1HQ-6 “ on the
right indicates it
belonged to 36th
Infantry
Division, 141st
Infantry, 1st
Battalion and that it was
the 6th
numbered jeep for
the 1st
Battalion
Headquarters Company.

19. Letters and V-Mail can provide information on unit
or location . There is a book available from the U.S.
Army Heritage and Education Center which lists the
location of all APOs ( Army Post Office Number) :
“Numerical listing of APO's, January 1942 - November
1947”

20. Headstones can be a useful source
 Find A Grave: http://www.findagrave.com/

21. Once you have a unit it is possible to get copies of the
Unit Journal, Morning Reports or After Action/
Historic Reports from the National Archives.
Morning Reports are the daily history of a unit and
account for every officer or enlisted man. They are the
best source for individual soldiers. The Unit Journals
and After Action reports are more organizational and
cover battles, and movements but have very good
information on the unit as a whole.

22. All of these reports can be
found at the National
Archives. Unit Journals and
After Action Reports are
located at the College Park,
Maryland location and the
Morning Reports are
located at the St. Louis Mo.
Location. Additionally some
times they can be found at
local sources such as
libraries or archives.

23. There are online forums, websites even Facebook
pages devoted to all kinds of WWII units or
organizations. They can connect you with people who
have knowledge about the specific unit you are
researching, sometimes even the veterans themselves.
This forum for example has an excellent list of
research links with explanations:
http://www.6thcorpscombatengineers.com/engforum/ind

24. File card for soldiers who served in the 36th
Infantry
Division
Historic reports, photographs, rosters, and other
documents related to 36th
Division units
Personal accounts, mostly 36th
Infantry Division
War Department General Orders for 1941-1945
List of dead by county for Texas
Numerous unit histories in our library covering Army
and Army Air Corps.

25.  National Archives Main Site: http://www.archives.gov/
 National Archives- Online Military Records: http://aad.archives.gov/aad/
 World War II Casualties-Army, Army Air Corps:
http://www.archives.gov/research/arc/ww2/army-casualties/index.html
 World War II Casualties-Marine, Navy, Coast Guard:
http://www.archives.gov/research/arc/ww2/navy-casualties/
 American Battle Monuments: http://www.abmc.gov/search/wwii.php
 U.S. Army Center of Military History: http://www.history.army.mil/
 Presidential Unit Citations: http://www.americanwarlibrary.com/w-puc.htm
 Combined Arms Research Library:
http://www.cgsc.edu/carl/contentdm/home.htm
 Awards and Ribbons: http://armyawards.com/awards.shtml
 Research Listings:
http://www.6thcorpscombatengineers.com/engforum/index.php?
showtopic=23