Where can I look to obtain information on my Grandfather’s WWI military records?? My Mom has been searching for over 40 years, but has always been told that all of his military records were lost in a fire. She knows that he earned several Medals during his service in the Army, including a Purple Heart.

My Mom’s mother died when she was very young, leaving my Grandfather to care for my Mom and her older sister. He was in his 50s when my Mom was born, and unfortunately developed a drinking problem after my Mom’s mother died. This eventually led to my Mom and her sister being placed in, and growing up in foster care.

My Mom was in her late teens when her father passed away, but she was not notified of his passing until several months later. By then, my Mom was told that all of his personal belongings had been destroyed, including their pictures and his war medals because the State was unaware that he had any next of kin. My Mom and her sister were his only living relatives.

My Grandfather died ten years before I was born, and I’ve never seen a picture of him or my maternal Grandma. My Mom wants so much to know more about her father, and I do, too! She was always hoping to find some information about him through his military records, maybe even a picture or a listing of his medals, but all her years of research have led to one dead-end after another.

I know records weren’t kept as meticulously in the early 1900s as they are today, but I just find it so hard to believe that there is no other recordkeeping available except that which was lost in the fire.

With all the websites and information available today, I figure there’s got to be something my Mom and I haven’t checked into that will lead to some information. Is there something I can pursue?

I’m grateful for any help! Thanks!

By Ginny~moderator on Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 10:01 pm:

Start with the local VFW and see if they have any advice on what offices you should contact. Or, start with your congressperson's office. They will know who should be contacted. And yes, I have read a couple of times of a major file in some government building that destroyed a lot of records, but surely there are some auxiliary records somewhere. If he was awarded a Purple Heart, maybe the Purple Heart organization has some avenues to follow. I just made a donatoin to the Military Order of the Purple Heart Service Foundation, and their regional office number is 973-645-3973 (Delaware Valley area).

By Kaye on Thursday, June 15, 2006 - 01:47 pm:

Another option is to do a family tree search. Maybe there is another branch that has some pics or infomation. I have just done stuff on line, with general genology searches.

By Crystal915 on Thursday, June 15, 2006 - 04:19 pm:

Have you contact the Department of Veteran's Affairs? I know that seems like the obvious choice, but if you haven't talked to them, you may be able to get some leads on where to look. Another option is searching Veterans message boards. Good luck! I'll ask DH if he has any ideas when he gets home today.

By Crystal915 on Thursday, June 15, 2006 - 04:40 pm:

Ok, he just got home, he said ditto Ginny, if he got a Purple Heart, Order of the Purple Heart is a good place to start. Even if he never persued a membership, they have contact information for researching VA records. He said another option is, if you know where he was stationed, (unit information would be even better) you can contact them to try to get historical information on him. A third option is to take out an ad in the Times (Army Times, Navy Times, etc) of the branch he served in, with as much information as you have, asking any surviving family of men who served with him to contact you. This is a common thing in the Times magazines (which come out weekly). Military.com has a buddy finder and a Veterans section, you can sign up for free to access the site.

By Joy~bundles on Friday, June 16, 2006 - 10:10 am:

Thanks everyone for all the good leads! I'll be passing this information along to my Mom and hopefully we can find some new routes that she hasn't taken already. I'm welling up at the thought that we might actually find something solid this time around. Thanks so much - I greatly appreciate it, and I know my Mom will too! Thanks, again.

By Sandysmom on Friday, June 16, 2006 - 11:19 am:

When I worked for the Clerk of the Circuit Court in Elkton, MD, we kept records of DD214s, (discharge papers) We had them from wayyyyyy back, and every so often, a military person would come in to have their DD214 put on record. So try the Clerk's office. It may at least be a good start.

By Crystal915 on Friday, June 16, 2006 - 06:53 pm:

Here's one more link for you, it talks about ways to get records if the DD214 was destroyed in the 1973 fire. DD214