County records vary widely from county to county in both quality and quantity. Some have been carefully preserved while others have been much abused and neglected. Some records have simply disappeared. Other scattered records are now preserved by the Alabama Department of Archives and History, the University of Alabama Library, and the Samford University Library.
Ten Alabama counties have had significant destruction of records by fire. However, not all records were lost.
Chosse a link above to learn more about the stated records. These pages describes the type of records that can be found in Alabama research. Or you can go to a county page to learn about more localized records
Alabama Census Records
See Also Researching in Census Records - What is the name, age, sex, color, occupation, and birthplace of each person residing in this house? Which of these individuals attended school or was married within the year? Who among them is deaf and dumb, blind, insane, “idiotic,” a pauper, or a convict? Is there anyone in the household over twenty years of age who cannot read and write? What is the name of the slave owner? How many slaves belong to the owner? What is the tribe of this Indian? What were the places of birth of the person’s parents? In what year did this person immigrate to the United States and, if naturalized, what was the year of naturalization? For answers to these and other questions, researchers look to census records......
Federal Population Schedules that exist for Alabama are 1820 (Partial, see below), 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1890 (fragment, see below), 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930. The first federal census was taken in 1820. Records exist
for only eight of the thirty enumerated counties. These counties include Baldwin, Conecuh, Dallas, Franklin, Limestone, St. Clair, Shelby,
and Wilcox. Part of the 1820 state census, Lawrence County,
still exists and is also housed at the state archives. It has
been published as 1820. The only extant records for Alabama of the almost
destroyed 1890 census are portions of Perryville (Beat No. 11)
and Severe (Beat No. 8) of Perry County. There are free downloadable and printable Census forms to help with your research. These include U.S. Census Extraction Forms and U.K. Census Extraction Forms
Alabama Territorial and State census records are scant when compared with other states of the same age. There are 12 groups of census or census substitute materials for 1706 through 1816-19.
State censuses were taken sporadically, and sizable but not complete collections exist for 1855 and 1866. The originals are housed in the Alabama Department of Archives and History.
In 1907 a census was taken of Alabama's Confederate veterans.
Another census was taken in 1921 of Confederate pensioners in
Alabama.
There are many other Federal Schedules to look at when researching your family tree in the state of Alabama. There are Industry and Agriculture Schedules availible for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880. Slave Schedules exist for 1850 & 1860. The Mortality Schedules for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880.
Excerpts From the Book "Family History Made Easy"
There are numerous ways to determine the location in which to concentrate research for an ancestor. One of the most popular and productive is the census.
Alice Eichholz, Ph.D.,
In Ancestry’s Red Book: American State,County and Town Sources
Since 1790, the U.S. government has taken a nationwide population count every ten years. Unique in scope and often surprisingly detailed, the census population schedules created from 1790 to 1920 are among the most used of records created by the federal government. Over the course of two centuries the United States has changed significantly, and so has the census. From the six basic questions asked in the 1790 census, the scope and categories of information have changed and expanded dramatically.
Early censuses were essentially basic counts of inhabitants; but as the nation grew, so did the need for statistics that would reflect the characteristics of the people. In 1850, the focus of the census was radically broadened. Going far beyond the vague questions previously asked of heads of households, the 1850 census enumerators were instructed to ask the age, sex, color, occupation, birthplace, and other questions regarding every individual in every household. Succeeding enumerations solicited more information; by 1920, census enumerators asked twenty-nine questions of every head of household and almost as many questions of everyone else in the residence. (Only a very small segment of the 1890 census remains; a fire in the Commerce Department destroyed the vast majority of the original records for that year. Because of privacy considerations, census records less than seventy-two years old are not available to the general public; thus, the 1920 census is the most recent available to the public.)
Few, if any, records reveal as many details about individuals and families as do the U.S. federal censuses. The population schedules are successive “snapshots” of Americans that depict where and how they were living at particular periods in the past. Once home sources and library sources have been exhausted, the census is often the best starting point for further genealogical research. Statewide indexes (see “Indexes,” below) are available for almost every census; they are logical tools for locating individuals whose precise place of residence is unknown. While some inaccuracies are to be expected in census records, they still provide some of the most fascinating and useful pieces of personal history to be found in any source. If nothing else, census records are important sources for placing individuals in specific places at specific times. Additionally, information found in the census will often point to other sources critical to complete research, such as court, land, military, immigration, naturalization, and vital records.
The importance of census records does not diminish over time in any research project. It is always wise to return to these records as discoveries are made in other sources because, as you discover new evidence about individuals, some information that seemed unrelated or unimportant in a first look at the census may take on new importance.
When you can’t find family, vital, or religious records, census records may be the only means of documenting the events of a person’s life. Vital registration—the official recording of births, deaths, and marriages—did not begin until around 1920 in many areas of the United States, and fires, floods and other disasters since have destroyed some official government records. When other documentation is missing, census records are frequently used by individuals who must prove their age or citizenship status (or that of their parents) for Social Security benefits, insurance, passports, and other important reasons.
How to Find Census Records
All available federal census schedules (those made from 1790 to 1920) have been microfilmed and are available at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.; at the National Archives’ regional archives; at the Family History Library of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS church) in Salt Lake City and LDS family history centers throughout North America (see chapter 8, “The Family History Library and Its Centers”); at many large libraries; in genealogical society libraries; and through companies that lend microfilmed records. Some state and local agencies have census schedules for the state or area they serve. Generally, microfilm copies may be borrowed through interlibrary loan.
Starting With the Census
It is usually best to begin a census search in the most recently available census records (1920) and to work from what is already known about a family. With any luck, birthplaces and other clues found in these more recent records will point to locations of earlier residence.
See Also Research In State Court Probate - Even today, few people escape mention in court records at some time during their lives as witnesses, litigants, jurors, appointees to office, or as petition signatories. However, Americans of a few generations ago also expected to attend local court proceedings when they were in session. It was a civic duty-and they could be fined if they did not attend......
There is no effective substitute for an on-site search of county
courthouse records. County level records have not yet been centralized.
No single county's records have been significantly abstracted
or transcribed, making a courthouse visit essential. County
records vary widely from county to county in both quality and
quantity.
Ten Alabama counties have had significant destruction of records
by fire. These "burned" counties and counties that have had
less destructive fires are indicated on the chart. However,
not all records were lost. Three counties have two county seats.
The Historical Records Survey conducted a preliminary
inventory of fifteen county archives. The counties that were
surveyed include Clay, Colbert, Conecuh, Cullman, Greene, Hale,
Lauderdale, Lowndes, Madison, Marengo, Sumter, Talladega, Wilcox,
and Winston. Unfortunately, the inventory has never been updated,
revised, or expanded to include counties not originally surveyed.
The University of Alabama Library's special collections department
also has inventories of the DeKalb and Cherokee county courthouse
holdings compiled in 1979.
Court records are at the district court at the county
seat, and no survey has been completed for all counties. Land
and probate records are in the probate judge's office at the
county seat.
The records of the office of the court clerk or the circuit
court records are the most poorly organized and most frequently
missing court records. In smaller counties both chancery and
circuit court records are maintained by the same clerk. In larger
counties the records may be separated. The state administrative
office of the court oversees the maintenance of the circuit
court records.
The state-level office of the supreme court clerk has
authority over the records of the state supreme court. After
five years these records are moved to the state's archives.
Alabama's trial courts of general jurisdiction are the Circuit Courts. The Circuit Court hears all civil matters where the amount in controversy exceeds $10,000 and all criminal prosecutions involving felony offenses. The Circuit Court has concurrent jurisdiction with the District Court and in all civil matters where the amount in controversy exceeds $3,000 but does not exceed $10,000, exclusive of interest and costs. Additionally, the Circuit Courts exercise appellate jurisdiction over cases appealed from the District Courts, Probate Court, Municipal Courts and certain administrative and municipal Boards.
See Also Research In State Probate Records - Probate records include a variety of documents created to support court proceedings in the settlement of an individuals' estates. The number and type of probate records created may vary over time in different jurisdictions and due to the amount of real and personal property involved. The various documents generated in the probate process are rarely filed together......
The office of the probate judge is the county
office where the most significant genealogical records are created
and maintained in Alabama. A variety of records are housed in this
office.
These records may be labeled wills, estates,
inventories, administrations or guardian's bonds, and orphan's
court records.
Within each category there may or may not be separate volumes
labeled "record" or "minutes." The "record" volumes contain
relatively full accounts of probate proceedings, while the "minutes"
volumes normally contain only brief abstracts of the proceedings.
Early adoption records and records for the binding-out of poor
orphans are recorded here. Until the 1900s adoption records
were not filed separately. Record books and files created especially
for adoption proceedings are now closed to the public by law.
Sometimes bastardy cases and naturalization records are here.
In all cases these records are merely copies of the original
and contain only such data as the clerk thought legally important.
More significant than the clerk's ledger, the "loose papers"
contain the documents submitted to prove a will, such as the
petition to probate, which listed all heirs of the deceased.
Generally, these files are not housed in the record room. The
researcher should request these files from the probate clerk.
The office of the probate judge in Alabama also recorded other
documents intermittently in probate, deed, or commissioner's
court records. Particularly useful are proofs of freedom filed
by free blacks or natives (often with white deponents), indenture
papers, contracts for hiring military substitutes during the
Civil War, and lists of slaves brought into the state or loaned
to the Confederacy.
Excerpts From the Book "Family History Made Easy"
Even today, few people escape mention in court records at some time during their lives as witnesses, litigants, jurors, appointees to office, or as petition signatories. However, Americans of a few generations ago also expected to attend local court proceedings when they were in session. Arlene H. Eakle, Ph.D. “Research in Court Records”
In The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy
American court files mirror U.S. history. Buried away in courthouses and archives everywhere are the dreams and frustrations of millions of citizens. The chances are great that your ancestors have left a detailed record of at least some aspects of their lives in court records.
Most of us don’t think of court records as the rich source of personal history that they are. But America’s English heritage established a tradition of court processes in which the people have a right to participate actively—and we always have. With relative freedom from royal supervision and with court enforcement of religious as well as civil laws, American courts tried many matters that were not subject to court action in other parts of the British empire and that are now considered too minor to warrant criminal action.
When a person dies, every state has laws that provide for public supervision over the estate that is left, whether or not there is a will. The term “probate records” broadly covers all the records produced by these laws, although, strictly speaking, “probate” applies only when there is a will.
Family historians use probate case files far more than any other kind of court record. Probate case files are logical sources because they tend to include so much personal data, and because Americans have depended on the courts to settle their estates since North America was colonized. According to Val Greenwood in his Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy, “All records which relate to the disposition of an estate after its owner’s death are referred to as probate records. These are many and varied in both content and value, but basically, they fall into two main classes: testate and intestate” (page 255). Probate case files generally provide names, addresses, and biographical data for the deceased, but frequently provide the same information for other relatives named in the papers. Relationships, maiden names of wives, married names of daughters, past residences, and place of origin in a native country are just a few of the details that can be discovered in probate files. And probate files can be found in courthouses and archives across the United States.
When requesting probate information from the county clerk, it is important not to limit yourself by asking for a person’s “will.” The clerk will usually take you at your word and not copy other papers in the probate file that may have equally important information if there is no will.
Even if your ancestor is not mentioned in a probate case, consider all of the other procedures which might have resulted in him or her appearing in court records:
See Also Research In State Church & Cemetery Records - Church records rank among the most promising of genealogical records available. Indeed, for periods before the advent of civil registration of vital statistics (a very late development in many American states), church records rank as the best available sources for information on specific vital events: birth, marriage, and death. They are also among the most under-used major records in American genealogy. Part of the reason lies in the number of denominations-there are hundreds of them. Identifying and locating the records of these various churches makes even professional genealogists hesitate......
Baptist
The Baptists form the largest denomination in Alabama. The first Baptist church was founded 2 October 1808 on Flint River near Huntsville. The Baptists are the only denomination having some form of centralized state and congregational historic records. Their records are housed in the Samford University Library, Birmingham, Alabama. Included are not only microfilmed minutes of defunct and active congregations, but also the personal papers of many churchmen and a run of the denomination's state newspaper, the Alabama Baptist (1835-present).
Roman Catholic
The state's oldest denomination, Roman Catholic, has records dating from the coming of Iberville's colony near Mobile in 1699. Most parish records are maintained by the local parish.
Episcopal
The first ordained Episcopal minister in the state was licensed in 1764 to minister to British settlers. The WPA Historical Records Survey in 1939 compiled a volume surveying the records of the Protestant Episcopal church in Alabama. The inventory contains a brief history of each parish, a statement on extant parish records, and an index by location and by parish names. Parish records are maintained by the parish. A copy of Alabama Historical Records Survey, Inventory of the Church Archives of Alabama, Protestant Episcopal Church , is at the Birmingham Public Library.
Methodist
Methodist missionaries were sent by the South Carolina Conference into the Tombigbee area in 1809. Today, some Methodist records for north Alabama churches are housed at Birmingham Southern College, and south Alabama church records are housed at Huntingdon College, Montgomery. Birmingham Southern College has a run of the state denominational newspaper, the Christian Advocate (1880-present).
Presbyterian
The first Presbyterian church was organized in 1818 at Huntsville. Historical records for active Presbyterian churches are usually maintained by the local congregation. Some records of defunct churches are held by Samford University and the Alabama Department of Archives and History."
No statewide systematic or comprehensive inventory of cemeteries or bibliography of published transcriptions have been compiled. Scattered volumes have been published by various patriotic, historical, and genealogical societies. Many individual cemetery transcriptions have been published in periodicals.
Cemetery records and gravestone inscriptions are a rich source of information for family historians. Cemetery and other sources of information associated with death include:
See Also Researching in Land Records - Land records provide two types of important evidence for the genealogist. Prior to the Civil War, more than eighty-five percent of all Americans owned or leased land. Therefore, almost every researcher, whether a seasoned professional or weekend hobbyist, has required land records to document the existence, association, or movement of an individual or ancestral family. Most beginning genealogists underestimate the importance of using land records to pin persons to specific locales. In the South, which has far fewer vital records than New England, the land records are even more crucial to genealogical success. For answers to these and other questions, researchers look to Land records......
Most land records will be found with the county recorder’s office, the registrar’s office, or in the county court at the county seat. Despite their titles, deeds found in a county recorder’s office may include other legal documents of transfer, such as deeds in fee simple granting absolute ownership; mortgages transferring property rights as security for debts; dower releases waiving wives’ rights; quit-claim deeds releasing whatever title or right is held whether valid or not; deeds of gift transferring land without reciprocal consideration; powers of attorney appointing legal agents; marriage property settlements; bills of sale transferring property that is usually not land; and various forms of contracts, such as leases, partnerships, indenture papers, and other performance bonds. Deed books from before the Civil War and especially in colonial years were more miscellaneous in their contents, even including animal brands, occasional wills, slave manumissions, apprentice papers, petitions, depositions, tax lists, and whatever else the clerk decided to preserve on a convenient page. Through such records a researcher may trace the ownership of land, in some cases for two centuries or more.
Colonial
settlers acquired title to Alabama lands from the French,
the Spanish, the British, and the Native Americans.
Original copies of these grants from the first three
groups may be found, respectively, in the Archives Nationales
in Paris, the Archivo General de Indias in Seville,
and the Public Record Office in London. When land title
was transferred from Great Britain to the United States
in 1783, following the American Revolution, preemptive
landowners were required to file proof of their land
title with the U.S.
Title to previously ungranted lands was vested in the
federal government, and titles were conveyed to individuals
either by sale or by bounty-land warrant. The Land Act of
1800, as amended in 1803, simplified the claiming of land
titles by authorizing local public land offices to survey
and auction lands within their charge.
Sales were sanctioned through thirteen land offices including
St. Stephens (established December 1806, transferred to
Mobile 1867)
Huntsville (established at Nashville in March 1807, transferred
to Huntsville 1811, transferred to Montgomery May 1866)
Cahaba (established at Milledgeville, Georgia, August
1817, transferred to Cahaba October 1818, transferred
to Grenville 1856);
Tuscaloosa (established May 1820, transferred to Montgomery
1832)
Sparta-Conecuh
Courthouse (established May 1820, transferred to Montgomery
1854)
Montgomery (established July 1832, closed 1927)
Mardisville-Montevallo
(established July 1832, transferred to Lebanon 1842)
Demopolis (established March 1833, transferred to Montgomery
March 1866)
Lebanon (established April 1842, transferred to Centre
1858)
Elba (established April 1854, transferred to Montgomery
April 1867)
Greenville (established 1856, transferred to Montgomery
1866)
Centre (established 1858, transferred to Huntsville 1866)
Mobile
(established 1867, transferred to Montgomery June 1879).
When the land offices were closed, their original
records were sent to the Washington, D.C., office.
Tract books indicating the original sale of property
from the federal government, or the state of Alabama in case
of a sixteenth section, are housed in the county probate
judge's office. The books, arranged by legal description,
include the name of the purchaser, the amount of acres purchased,
the price, date of purchase, certificate number, and whether
or not the land was obtained under a military act. These
records do not include lands cut away to form new counties
or subsequent sales of original tracts.
All subsequent title transactions following the original title transfer from the federal government are recorded in the probate judge's records of the county in which the property lies. These records include conveyance records, which detail the transfer of property either by sale or donation.
In some counties, mortgages were recorded in the same
volumes as outright conveyance of real property, while in
others liens and deeds of trust are recorded separately
as
"Mortgages.
Prior to the Civil War, more than eighty-five percent of all Americans owned or leased land. Therefore, almost every researcher, whether a seasoned professional or weekend hobbyist, has required land records to document the existence, association, or movement of an individual or ancestral family. While many researchers may feel a sense of historical excitement when finding an ancestor in a land deed, many also fail to understand the importance of such a document and how land can be used to make vital links between generations; they are not aware that it can bridge distant origins and help solve even the most difficult problems. E. Wade Hone,
In Land and Property Research in the United States
The right to own land has always been one of the great incentives for living in the United States. Yet researchers often overlook the importance of land records as a source of family history information. Written evidence of people’s entitlement goes back in time further than virtually any other type of record family historians might use.
Land records meet the needs of researchers in different ways and contain a variety of genealogical and historical data. They are a major source of information for many family histories and provide primary source material for local history as well. They are closely related to probate and other official court records and should be investigated in connection with them. Land and property are leading issues in the settlement of estates, and the majority of civil cases in the courts deal with real and personal property. Although land records rarely yield vital statistics, in many instances they provide the only proof of family relationships. Often they include the names of heirs of an estate (including daughters’ married names and a widow’s subsequent married name) and refer to related probates and other court cases by number and court name. In some places where other records are scarce, the land records take on extra importance. Occasionally these documents disclose former residences and more often provide the new address of the grantors or heirs at the time of the sale of the property.
Land records provide two types of important evidence for the family historian. First, they often document family relationships. Second, they place individuals in a specific time and place, allowing the researcher to sort people and families into neighborhoods and closely related groups. One of land records’ most important qualities is that they are sometimes the only records that allow us to distinguish one person of a common name from another.
The National Archives has bounty-land warrant files, donation land entry files, homestead application files, and private land claim files relating to the entry of individual settlers on land in the public land states. There are no land records for the original thirteen states or for Maine, Vermont, West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, Texas, and Hawaii. Records for these states are maintained by state officials, usually in the state capital. Searching for the record of a particular land grant from the federal government requires contacting both the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the National Archives (NARA).
See Also Researching in Military Records - The uses and value of military records in genealogical research for ancestors who were veterans are obvious, but military records can also be important to re-searchers whose direct ancestors were not soldiers in any war. The fathers, grandfathers, brothers, and other close relatives of an ancestor may have served in a war, and their service or pension records could contain information that will assist in further identifying the family of primary interest.......
Alabamians have seen military service in all wars of the United States. Military records are found at both the state and federal levels. The most readily available military records for Alabama are those of the National Archives.
The Alabama Department of Archives and History has made their military service surname files available on microfilm. These files include a series for Revolutionary War veterans residing in Alabama; service in the Indian Wars of 1812, 1813, and 1814; territorial service in 1818; the Indian War of 1836; the Mexican American War (1846-1848); and the Spanish-American War in 1898. These contain a card for each soldier indicating name, military unit, rank, and the source of the information
The site U.S. Wars list conflicts dating from earliest to 1865. Wars covered that are availibele are:
Roster of Revolutionary Soldiers and Patriots Alabama lists those soldiers who lived and died in Alabama as well as some who died in other states. Data from scattered published and unpublished sources was edited and compiled. The volume includes a statement on the soldier's military service; a brief biographical sketch including the names of his parents, wife, and children; and bibliographic citations to sources.
Below is a list of online resources for Alabama in the Revolutionary War. Email us with websites containing information on Alabama in the Revolutionary War by clicking the link below:
Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783 (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents in NARA publication M246 include muster rolls, payrolls, strength returns, and other miscellaneous personnel, pay, and supply records of American Army units, 1775-83.
The state of Alabama paid its Confederate veterans a pension. The files contain the usual military pension application information: name, rank, unit, dates of service, places of enlistment and discharge, if wounded, and qualifications for pension. If the widow was making the application, she stated when and where she was born, her father's name, date and place of his death, and the date and place of her marriage. To qualify, a pensioner's annual income could not exceed $300 and his real property could not be valued at more than $400. The original files are housed in the Alabama Department of Archives and History. The applications have been microfilmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah and are available on loan through the FHL.
No comprehensive list of Alabama's Confederate or Union soldiers has been compiled. The site www.mycivilwar.com has a list of unit and histories for Alabama..
The Alabama Department of Archives and History also has scattered records of local militia units from the Civil War. Most of these files are correspondence between the governor and the county probate judge concerning militia rosters.
Southern Claims Commission from the State of Alabama (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents In the 1870s, southerners claimed compensation from the U.S. government for items used by the Union Army, ranging from corn and horses, to trees and church buildings.
Excerpts From the Book "Family History Made Easy"
Military and pension records are among the most useful sources available to genealogists because of the detail they offer. These records are important because they may provide an ancestor’s date of birth, place of residence, the names and addresses of family members, and other details that can round out a picture of his or her life. Judith Prowse Reid,
Head, Local History and Genealogy, Library of Congress
Military records have originated at the federal, state, and local levels. Whether created in time of war or in time of peace, these records provide unique facts and insights into the lives of men and women who have served in the military forces of the United States. Almost every American family, in one generation or another, has seen one or more of its members serve in America’s armed forces. From regimental histories, which provide blow-by-blow accounts of a unit’s participation in military actions, to the personal details contained in the service and pension files of individual men and women, military records provide valuable information concerning a large and significant portion of the American population. And because military records have been preserved and made available at and through a number of research institutions, much information awaits the well-prepared researcher.
How to Find Military Records
To locate military records for any individual, it is essential to know when and where in the armed forces he or she served and whether that person served in the enlisted ranks or was an officer. (If you don’t have that identifying information, some potential solutions are discussed below.)
As in any research project, it is important to study carefully whatever is already known about the subject of interest. Families and communities frequently pass down stories of military heroes from generation to generation. In most cases, these stories retain some fact, but, with the passage of years and in the process of retelling, accuracy fades. At any rate, family stories should not be overlooked for clues at the start of a military search.
When and where did the individual live? Did the family keep evidence of military service? Certificates, letters, journals, diaries, scrapbooks, newspaper clippings, photographs, medals, swords, and other memorabilia kept in private collections may provide the basic facts needed to begin searching in military record collections.
Military Time Lines
Creating a historical time line can be especially useful for determining if and when the subject might have served in the military. By compiling a chronological list of the known dates and places of residence of an individual from birth through adulthood, it is frequently easy to discover the possibility of military service. Was the individual the right age to be eligible for the draft or to serve voluntarily in the Civil War? Is it likely that the person served on the Northern rather than the Southern side, or vice versa? For records from the colonial period to more recent military engagements, the place of residence is key to finding an individual’s records.
Evidence of Military Service in Hometown Records
There are a number of public records that are potentially valuable in discovering the military history of a veteran. It has been a long-standing American tradition to foster patriotism by honoring local sons and daughters who have defended the ideals of their country. Hometown military heroes are frequently noted on public monuments, and local newspaper files may yield surprisingly detailed accounts of a community’s well-known and less-famous military personnel.
Military History
Commercial enterprises and historically oriented groups and institutions have regularly published local histories. As a rule, these histories will include glowing accounts of the area’s involvement in military activities. Some volumes provide biographical sketches of military leaders, while others attempt to list all of the community’s participants in various military conflicts. Locally focused histories have been published at various times for virtually every state and county in the United States. Do not overlook them as an important research aid. P. William Filby’s A Bibliography of American County Histories is a list of five thousand such sources.
In addition to the standard histories, local public libraries and historical societies usually preserve and make available other types of publications that document the military history of the geographical areas they serve. Historical agencies collect biographies, letters, diaries, journals, and all sorts of memorabilia from military units and servicemen and -women. The personal accounts found in some collections are a fascinating means of stepping back in time. Firsthand accounts afford a better understanding of the day-to-day drudgery, loneliness, fears, and satisfactions of military life.
Evidence of Military Service in Cemeteries
Cemeteries provide yet another local source of information regarding individuals who served in the armed forces. Almost every cemetery in the United States contains some evidence of military events and veterans. Cemetery records and grave markers frequently identify military dead by name, rank, and unit designation. If a man or woman died elsewhere while in the service, the body was frequently brought home for burial; cemetery records often note the place and date of death.
Evidence of Military Service in Court Records
Court records are yet another potential source for identifying those who served in the military. Most counties formally recorded and indexed the names of their citizens who were discharged from the military. In some local courts, “military discharges” will be found indexed separately, and in others the military records may be oddly interspersed with deeds, naturalizations, or other categories of documents. The contents of military records may vary greatly from one courthouse to another. Some will provide biographical information, while others may simply list names and the event or names and date of certificate issue.
Military Records in the National Archives
Federal military documents that have been classified as archival material are in the custody of the National Archives and Records Administration. Not all records created by military agencies are judged to be permanently valuable. Generally, only records of historical or administrative importance are kept.
A wonderful array of federal military records are available in major libraries and archives and through microfilm rental programs. (Heritage Quest, a division of AGLL, Inc., PO Box 329, Bountiful, UT 84011-0329, is a source of rental microfilms.) With sufficient identifying information, you may request a search of the registers of enlistments or the compiled military service records. The minimum information required for a search is (1) the soldier’s full name, (2) the war in which he or she served or period of service, and (3) the state from which he or she served. For the Civil War, you must also indicate whether the person served in Union or Confederate forces. A separate copy of the form must be used for military service, pension, and bounty-land warrant applications. Submit requests for information about individuals who served in the military before World War I on NATF form 80 (Order for Copies of Veterans Records). Write to the National Archives and Records Administration, General Reference Branch, Washington, DC 20408 to obtain copies of NATF form 80. Always ask for “all records” for an individual.
Make requests for information about U.S. Army officers separated from the service after 1912 on standard form 180 (Request Pertaining to Military Records) and send it to the Military Personnel Records Center, 9700 Page Boulevard, St. Louis, MO 63132.
U.S. Military Records
By far the most comprehensive study of military records and how to use them is found in James C. Neagles’s U.S. Military Records: A Guide to Federal and State Sources, Colonial America to the Present. Neagles’s guide addresses primary and secondary military sources and accessibility, including the following information-rich sources:
Records of state militias and the National Guard
Records of the army, navy, and other branches of the U.S. military
Records of the military academies
Post-service records
Pensions
Bounty-land grants
Bonuses and family assistance
Soldier’s homes
Military burials
Military installations
Censuses of veterans
Conscription
Civilian affairs
See Also Researching in Vital Records - Vital records, as their name suggests, are connected with central life events: birth, marriage, and death. Maintained by civil authorities, they are prime sources of genealogical information; but, unfortunately, official vital records are available only for relatively recent periods. These records, despite their recent creation in the United States, are critically important in genealogical research, often supplying details on family members well back into the nineteenth century.......
Facts on Birth Records - Most early birth records contain very little biographical information. Typical early New England town and church records, for example, give little information beyond the name of the child, date and place of birth, and parents’ names. Some localities listed only the name of the father.
While early birth records can be discouragingly lacking in information, by the mid-nineteenth century birth records in the United States began to include more information. Even though births were not widely recorded during the early years of America’s existence, the records that do exist may be the only source of a birth date for an individual and should always be consulted.
Delayed births are also important vital registrations that you should consider for obtaining biographical information. When Social Security benefits were instituted in 1937, individuals claiming benefits had to document their birth even if the state of their birth did not require registration when they were born. Individuals who were not registered with state or county agencies at the time of their birth often applied for a delayed birth registration. Obtaining passports, insurance, and other benefits also required proof of age.
Applications were accompanied with full name, address, and date and place of birth; father’s name, race, and place of birth; and evidence to support the facts presented. The evidence could be in the form of a baptismal certificate, Bible record, school record, affidavit from the attending physician or midwife, application for an insurance policy, birth certificate of a child, or an affidavit from a person having definite knowledge of the facts. Delayed birth records are usually filed and indexed separately from regular birth registrations, and it may be necessary to request a separate search for them.
Ordering Vital Records Online - Getting documents by mail can take a long as six weeks or more. Through VitalChek Express Certificate Service you can get Birth, Marriage, Divorce & Death Certificates Signed, Sealed, & Delivered in as few as three business days!
Ordering Vital Records by Mail - The fee to search for a birth, Marriage or Death certificate is $12.00, which includes one certified copy of the certificate or a "Certificate of Failure to Find." For each additional copy of the certificate ordered at the same time, the fee is $4.00. Checks or Money Orders should be made payable to "Vital Records." Please do not send cash. Fees are non refundable. Additional fees are required for expedited service. Mail all Applications to:
Alabama Vital Records
P. O. Box 5625
Montgomery, Al 36103-5625
You can download an application online for Birth Certificates, Marriage Certificates or Death Certificates.
Facts on Marriage Records - Because of the importance of the legal distribution and control of property, most states and counties began to record marriages before births and deaths. The recording of a marriage is a two-step process. Traditionally, couples apply for a license to marry, and the applications are usually filed loose among other applications or in bound volumes. Marriage returns are filed once the marriage has taken place. The latter document is the proof of a marriage (not the license application).
Marriage applications are often filled out by both the bride and groom and typically contain a significant amount of genealogical information. They may list full names of the bride and groom, their residences, races, ages, dates and places of birth, previous marriages, occupations, and their parents’ names, places of birth, and occupations.
Marriage certificates are issued by counties after the marriage ceremony is completed, and these are usually found among family items. While the certificates tend to have less biographical data than the application, the name of the individual officiating at the wedding may lead you to religious records by revealing the denomination. The religious records, in turn, may reveal the names of witnesses and other useful information.
Early American records sometimes include marriage bonds, which served as a protection for the future children of the marriage. A bond obligated a prospective groom to pay the bond if he were discovered to be a bigamist or imposter or otherwise ineligible to contract a valid marriage. As long as the marriage was legal, the bond was void. Bonds generally include the groom’s name, name of the surety, the sum, and the date of the agreement.
Facts on Death Records - Early death records in the United States provide little more than the name of the deceased, the date of death, and the place of death. Obituaries and cemetery, court, and other records often provide more information about the deceased than do most official death records created before the last quarter of the 1800s.
By 1900 death records included more details. They often include the name of the deceased; date, place, and cause of death; age at the time of death; place of birth; parents’ names; occupation; name of spouse; name of the person giving the information; the informant’s relationship to the deceased; the name and address of the funeral director; and the place of burial. Race is listed in some records, and modern death certificates generally include a Social Security number.
Find Obituaries in The World's Largest Newspaper Archive at NewpaperArchive.com! - Find thousands of Alabama obituaries to help you research your family history. Search for a Alabama newspaper obituary about your ancestor or a celebrity. Begin your search today and find death notices and funeral announcements printed in newspapers from Alabama.
America's Obituaries (1977 to current) at Genealogybank.com - Obituaries contain helpful information such as names, dates, places of birth, death, marriage and family information. Over 28 million obituaries make this the most complete collection from the 20th and 21st centuries - includes over 1,100 U.S. newspapers. New content added daily!
