Confederate Military Records
Researchers tracing their ancestors who fought for the Confederacy during the Civil War
have several options available for tracing their servicemen ancestors:
1. Contacting the State Archives in the state where the regiment originated.
2. Contrary to what many initially believe, the National Archives serves as an
excellent and under-utilized source for Confederate records.
3. Contact local and state genealogical/historical societies in the states and counties.
Some of these societies have conducted research and digitalizing projects in
conjunction with both the respective state archives, state historical agencies, the
United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC), and the National Archives.
Contrary to what many believe, the National Archives houses materials that have been
determined to be of historical value from a variety of government agencies. Much of this
material concerns the states that were once part of the historical Confederate States of
America. Over time, the National Archives has acquired a fairly comprehensive set of
surviving Confederate records that often supplement or exceed what is available on the
state or local level. Researchers should check both sources.
The National Archives has Confederate records for several reasons:
1. During and after the Civil War the Union armies captured many Confederate
records
2. These records were turned over to the War Department
3. Other records were donated or purchased by the Federal Government at later dates
4. When the records were transferred to the National Archives in 1938, they became
the central portion of The War Department Collection of Confederate Records,
Records Group 109.
While the majority of the Confederate records are in RG 109, researchers must be aware
that many government agencies created the same or similar types of records. For this
reason, information on Confederate soldiers will be located in a variety of places. Tow
other very popular record groups containing a large number of Confederate records are:
1. Record Group 107 (Records of the Office of the Secretary of War)
2. Record Group 393 (Records of the U.S. Army Continental Commands, 18211920)
Many officers, such as Robert E. Lee, and some enlisted men who fought for the
Confederacy were trained at West Point as members of the United States Army prior to
1861. The Confederate Army and governmental structure, during and after the Civil War,
benefited from their organizational skills in much the same manner as their Union
counterparts. Both the Union and Confederate armies maintained many of the same types
of records of interest to genealogists. Examples of these types of records would include:
1. Compiled military service records
2. Enlistment records
3. Muster rolls
4. Pay rolls
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5.
6.
7.
8.
Vouchers
Hospital records
Post returns
Discharge records
Researchers often discover to their surprise, that the indexing for many of these surviving
Confederate records is superior to what is found in many Union records. Financial
considerations played a role in the federal government’s interest in these records. The
Federal government wished to avoid paying claims to anyone that could have aided the
Confederate States. They had a major vested interest in weeding these people out. Since
fraud was prevalent throughout the southern states in the aftermath of the Civil War, the
federal investigators had to be able to sort through the evidence in a timely manner.
Compiled Military Service Records are considered by many to be the most effective
starting point for research. However there are other options that should be explored:
1. Check home sources. This is very important because you must determine what
state the soldier was living in and his approximate age before his service.
a. It’s unlikely that a 13 or a 60-year-old would have served, but it did
happen.
b. If, you have a 10 or a 70-year-old, the chances are considerably less that
he actually served in the military, but he might have helped the war effort
in other ways.
c. Some regiments may have gone by local names even if in official records,
there was another official designation.
d. Official regiments were usually numbered and were made up of
companies that were designated by a letter. There were also Confederate
regiments known by the name of their officer, for example Capt. Clark’s
Independent Company, Cavalry.
2. Check Family Bibles. While you may not find as detailed information as would
be the case in official records, some researchers have found reliable clues
recorded by family members. Some have contained original or copies of
documents that were issued to the veteran.
3. Checking Confederate bibliographical sources. Many of these finding aides and
explanatory sources will help you identify the official designations and related
sources for further research.
4. The National Archives series M253, The Consolidated Index to Confederate
Compiled Military Service Records. Is an excellent starting point for research in
their records. This index includes all of the separate state indexes as well as
M818, Index to Troops Raised Direct by the Confederate Government and
General and Staff Officers and Non Regimental Enlisted Men. The Consolidated
Index includes all soldiers who served from all Confederate states.
The Confederate Army had regiments that were raised directly by the government rather
than by the states, and several of these regiments were considered the Confederate
Regular Army. These are also indexed on M818. Designations differed slightly in that the
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regiments had names like 1 st Confederate Cavalry and 1 st Confederate Infantry, rather
than a state designation in the title, like the 1st Virginia Infantry. This series also indexes
the general and staff officers and the non-regimental enlisted men. Soldiers in the
Confederate Army were often only identified by their initials. Indexes must be checked
not only for alternate or phonetic spellings of the surname but also for initials.
Compiled Military Service Records for Confederate soldiers are on microfilm and may
include personal papers. Each state has a separate microfilm publication number for the
index and the service record. Regiments are arranged in the following manner:
1. First by state
2. Then by branch of service (Artillery, Cavalry, Infantry)
3. Then by regiment number
4. Then alphabetically by soldier’s name
5. The descriptive pamphlets that accompany the microfilm publications list all the
regiments from a particular state.
6. Some of the states have a miscellaneous listing and some include a heading
“Personal Papers.”
Confederate records consists of a jacket envelope and long narrow abstract cards. These
card abstracts were done in the 1890s and early 1900s by a group of men under the
command of Brigadier General Fred Ainsworth. Ainsworth was the head of the Record
and Pension Office of the War Department. These War Department documents were
stamped with the words “Rebel Archives,” and once they were abstracted they were then
stamped “carded” with the date. These abstracts from the original muster rolls, pay
vouchers, clothing receipts, prisoner of war rolls, etc., make up the bulk of what are
called the Compiled Military Service Record.
The abstract cards for each soldier were stamped on the back with a date and a number.
These were then put together in a heavy manila envelope. The envelope has the soldier’s
name, his company and regiment, his rank when he enlisted, and his rank when he was
discharged. There is a line for the number of medical cards and for personal papers. If
there are any cross references to another regiment it will be in the “see also” line. There is
less cross referencing for Confederate soldiers than for Union soldiers. If any loose
papers could be attributed to a particular soldier, they were included in his service record.
The numbers listed on the jacket envelope will not lead to anything additional. They refer
to the number stamped on the reverse side of the abstract card. It was a housekeeping
method to determine which card belonged to which soldier. Some of these files may
have taken years to compile from a variety of sources.
Information of the abstract cards usually provide the following information:
1. Name of soldier
2. Name of his captain
3. Name of his regiment as well as the numerical designation
4. They state when and where he enlisted, by whom, and for how long.
5. There will be the bimonthly information on the soldier, obtained from the muster
rolls, if the original information was available.
4
6. If the company or regimental rolls were missing then there will be gaps in the
information.
7. There may be an age, a physical description, and medical information.
8. There may be an abstract of his medical record or his prisoner of war file.
9. The card will give a source citation for the information such as “Company
Muster Roll” or “Receipt Roll.” These abstracts were very carefully checked for
accuracy.
10. There will be a name at the bottom of the abstract card. This is the name of the
clerk who did the abstract for that particular card.
These records will contain cards done by a variety a copyists. Researchers should
carefully analyze all data. This information will hopefully, lead to other sets of records.
Medical cards can provide information such as:
1. What hospital the soldier was in
2. When he was admitted
3. How long he stayed
4. If he was discharged, transferred, or died
5. The source of the information is located on the bottom of the card.
6. These usually are listed as “Confed. Arch., Chap., File No.,” and possibly a page
number. This translates to “Confederate Archives, Chapter, and Volume number.”
This series contains the original books created during the war, and have not been
microfilmed. The abstracting was so well done that there is little reason to request the
original documents. Many of the prisoner of war records that were used for the
abstracting are no longer available. Records were lost before the National Archives was
built in 1934.
Confederate Pension Records
Pension records often play an important role in genealogical research. Mre than a few
brick walls concerning relationships, and places of residence, etc., have been solved by
information found in pension records. Confederate pension records are an important
record type that can only be found in the state archives. None of these records are
currently available at the National Archives.
Pensions for Confederate soldiers were issued by the states well after the war was over.
Most of the Confederate States granted pensions to soldiers living in that state when they
applied, regardless of the state that they served from. The Family History Library in Salt
Lake City has microfilmed many of the Confederate pension files and some of the states,
such as Virginia, have digitized the documents and put them online.
Confederate pensions were seldom as large as those for Union soldiers. The pension
records are seldom as detailed or informative as those for Union soldiers. If a
Confederate soldier served in the Union Army after the war, as a Federal Soldier in the
War with Mexico, or in the Regular Army either before or after the Civil War, he might
5
have applied for and been granted a Federal pension as well as one from the state
government for his Confederate service.
Compiled Military Service Records are just one small part of the records available at the
National Archives to use when researching a Confederate soldier. Once they have been
examined and analyzed, it’s time to move to Regimental histories, correspondence
records, prisoner of war records, and records created by the Confederate Army or later
historians who specialize in Confederate history. Your bibliography will include sources
for additional research.
Fort Myers-Lee County Library Genealogy Collection Holdings
General Collection
The titles listed below are in our genealogy collection under holdings. Additional titles
will be found under the various state collections. See our genealogy collection shelf list
for additional information. The Civil War call number in all collections will be 973.7 and
any related variation.
973.7 BLA
973.7 BRO
973.7 CON
973.7 CON
973.7 CON
973.7 CON
973.7 DAV
973.7 FRE
973.7 HER
973.7 INF
973.7 KLU
973.7 LONG
973.7 MUS
973.7 MUS
973.7 NAT
973.7 PAY
973.7 PLO
973.7 REE
973.7 ROS
973.7 ROS
973.7 SCH
Black, Sarah. United States Civil War Center: Researching People of the Civil
War Era, n.c.d.
Brothers, Ron. Organization of Civil War Armies, c1998.
Evans, Clement A. Confederate Military History; Navy in the Civil War, v.7.,
c1975.
Evans, Clement A. Confederate Military History: Secession and the Civil War,
v.1., c1975.
Evans, Clement A. Confederate Military History: South After the Civil War,
v.13., c1975.
Confederate Veteran. Library has miscellaneous issues: 1997-1999.
Davis, Robert S. Southerner’s Guide to Civil War Research., c1995.
French, General Samuel G. Two Wars., c1901.
Heritage Quest Magazine. Finding Your Civil War Ancestors., c1997.
Infobahn Outfitters: Genealogy & the American Civil War., n.c.d.
Kluskens, Claire Prechtel. Wagonmasters Serving During the Civil War., n.c.d.
Long, E.B. The Civil War D ay by Day : An Almanac 1861-1865. c1971.
Musick, Michael P. Civil War Records: An Introduction & Invitation., c1995.
Musick, Michael P. Honorable Reports: Battles, Campaigns, & Skirmishes –
Civil War Records & Research., c1995.
National Archives & Records Administration. Little Regiment: Civil War Units
& Commands, c1995.
Payne, Ron. A Listing of RUCKERS Who Served in the Armed Forces of the
Confederate States of America, n.c.d.
Plowman, Robert J. An Untapped Source: Civil War Prize Case Files, c1989.
Reed, Rowena. Combined Operations in the Civil War, c1978.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865: Michigan.,
c1998.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865: Minnesota,
Iowa., c2000.
Schneider,Carol W. Jewish Confederates, c1984.
6
973.7 SHE
973.7 SIF
973.7 SIF
973.7 SWA
973.7 SWI
973.7 UNI
973.7 WAR
973.7 WIL
973.7016 AME
973.7016 BEE
973.7016 COO
973.702 CIV
973.703 BOA
973.71 VAR
973.71 WIL
973.715 WAK
973.73 HEN
973.O’SH
973.73 JOHN
973.73 JON
973.73 MAC
973.73 REE
973.73 ROM
973.74 ROS
973.74 ROS
973.74 SPE
973.74 UNI
973.741 ROS
973.741 ROS
Sherman, William T. Memoirs of General William T. Sherman, c1957.
Sifakis, Stewart. Who was Who in the Confederacy: A Biographical
Encyclopedia of more than 1,000 Confederate Participants, c1988.
Sifakis, Stewart. Who was Who in the Union: A Biographical Encyclopedia of
more than 1,500 Union participants, c1988.
Swanberg, W.A. First Blood, c1957.
Swinton, William. Decisive Battles of the Civil War, c1986.
United States Quartermaster’s Department: Roll of Honor. Library has: v.12
(1949) - v.43 (1980); v.48 (1985) - v.55 (1992).
Ward, Joseph R. Jr. An Enlisted Soldier’s View of the Civil War: The Wartime
Papers of Joseph R. Ward Jr. - 39th Illinois Volunteer Infantry, c1981.
Williamson, James J. Mosby’s Rangers, c1895.
Woodworth, Steven. (Editor). The American Civil War: Handbook of
Literature and Research., 1996.
Beers, Henry Putney. The Confederacy: A Guide to the Archives of the
Government of the Confederate States of America, c1998.
Cooling, B. Franklin. U.S. Army Military History Research Collection Series
#11 Carlilse Barracks, c1974.
Bowman, John S. The Civil War Almanac., c1992
Boatner, Mark M. The Civil War Dictionary., c1959.
Varhola, Michael J. Everyday life during the Civil War, c1999.
Williams, Greg H. Civil War Suits in the U.S. Court of Claims: Cases Involving
Compensation to Northerners and Southerners for Wartime Losses., c2006.
Wakeman, Sarah Rosetta. An Uncommon Soldier: The Civil War Letters of
Sarah Rosetta Wakeman Alias Pvt. Lyons Wakeman, 153rd Regiment, New York
State Volunteers: 1862-1864, edited by Lauren Cook Burgess., c1994.
Henderson, G.F.R. The Civil War: A Soldier’s View., c1958.
O’Shea, Robert K. American Heritage: Battle Maps of the Civil War., c1992.
Johnson, Rossiter. Campfire and Battlefield: The Classic Illustrated History of
the Civil War, c1978.
Jones, Wilmer L. Generals in Blue and Gray: Volume One: Lincoln’s Generals;
Volume Two: Davis’s Generals., c2004.
Macdonald, John. Great Battles of the Civil War, c1988.
Reed, Rowena. Combined Operations in the Civil War., c1978.
Roman, Alfred. Military Operations of General Beauregard: Volume One.,
c1994.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865: Indiana. 2v.,
c1999.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865: New Jersey,
Delaware., c1998.
Spencer, James. (Compiler). Civil War Generals: Categorical Listings and a
Biographical Directory, c1986.
List of (Civil War) Pensioners on the Roll: 1883. 5v., c1970.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865: Missouri,
Kansas, Arkansas, Louisiana, North Carolina, Texas, Alabama, Florida, Georgia,
and Mississippi. 2v., c1998.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865: Nevada,
Washington, Oregon, Arizona, Dakotas, Utah, Nebraska, New Mexico, California,
Colorado, and the Regular Army (Officers and Enlisted Men). 2v., c2000.
7
973.7415 ROS
973.7415 ROS
973.742 ROS
973.742 SIF
973.742 SIF
973.744 ROS
973.7441 ROS
973.7443 ROS
973.7447 ROS
973.7448 ROS
973.745 MIL
973.7469 ROS
973.7471 ROS
973.7473 ROS
973.7475 ROS
973.75 POR
973.757 AND
973.757 CAM
973.757 SCH
973.77 BRO
973.771 McE
973.772 JOS
973.781 DEF
973.781 PAR
973.782 CLA
973.783 COO
973.7852 STE
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865: United States
Colored Troops v.1 Aanderson, Henry to Jonte, Peter., c1997.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865: United States
Colored Troops v. 2 Joost, John to Zumwalt, Levi., c1997.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Confederate Soldiers 1861-1865. 16v.
NOTE: Volumes are in alphabetical order by soldier’s name. c1995,1996.
Sifakis, Stewart. Compendium of the Confederate Armies: KY; MD; MO; The
Confederate Units & The Indian Units., c1995.
Sifakis, Stewart. Compendium of the Confederate Armies: SC and GA., c1995.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865: Rhode Island,
Connecticut., c1997.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865: Maine, New
Hampshire., c1997.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865: Vermont,
Massachusetts. 2v., c1997.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865 : New York.
5v., c1997.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865: Pennsylvania,
Maryland, District of Columbia. 4v.,c1998.
Mills, Gary B. Southern Loyalists in the Civil War: The Southern Claims
Commission., c1994.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865 : Kentucky,
Tennessee, c2000.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865: Ohio, West
Virginia, Virginia. 4v., c1999.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865: Illinois. 3v.,
c1999.
Hewett, James B. (Editor). Roster of Union Soldiers 1861-1865: Wisconsin.,
c2000.
Porter, David D. Naval History of the Civil War., c1984. **NOTE: Currently
in Storage Collection.
Anderson, Bern. By Sea and By River., c1962.
Campbell, R. Thomas. Fire and Thunder : Exploits of the Confederate States
Navy., c1997.
Scharf, J. Thomas. History of the Confederate States Navy., 1977.
Brockett, L.P. & Mrs. Mary C. Vaugh. Women’s Work in the Civil War. 2v.,
c1993.
McElroy, John. Andersonville. 2v., c1993.
Joslyn, Mauriel Phillips. Immortal Captives: The Story of 600 Confederate
Officers and the United States Prisoner of War Policy., c1996.
DeForest, John William. A Volunteer’s Adventure: A Union Captain’s Record
of the Civil War., c1996.
Partridge, George W. Letters from the Iron Brigade: George W. Partridge, Jr.
(1839-1863), Civil War Letters to his Sisters., c1994.
Clark, Willene B. (editor). Valleys of the Shadow: The Memoir of Confederate
Captain Reuben G. Clark., c1994.
Cooper, Alonzo. In and Out of Rebel Prisons., 1888.
Stern, Philip Van Doren. Secret Missions of the Civil War., c1990.
8
Bibliography
American Records and Research: Focusing on Families-Course One. Salt Lake City,
UT: Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy, Coordinator-Paula Stuart Warren.
Contributors-D. Joshua Taylor, Elissa Scalise Powell, William M. Litchman, and
Birdie Monk Holsclaw, c2007. Genealogy Ref. 929.1 SALT
American Records and Research: Focusing on Families-Course Two. Salt Lake City,
UT: Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy. Coordinator-Paula Stuart Warren.
Contributors- Chuck Knuthson, Marianne Crump, Thomas McGill, Anne Wuehler,
Anne Roach, Ruth Maness, John Phillip Colletta, Kory Meyerink, Judith W.
Hansen, and Birdie Monk Holsclaw, c2008. Genealogy Ref. 929.1 SALT
Guide to Genealogical Research. 3rd Edition. Washington, DC: National Archives,
c2000. Genealogical Ref. 929.373 UNI
Land and Court Records. Salt Lake City, UT: Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy.
Coordinator-Patricia Law Hatcher. Contributors-Lloyd de Witt Bockstruck,
Michael J. LeClerc, Rhonda McClure, Gordon L. Remington, and Paula Stuart
Warren, c2006. Genealogy Ref. 929.1 SALT.
Military Service Records: A Select Catalog of National Archives Microfilm
Publications. Washington, DC: National Archives Trust Fund Board, National
Archives and Service Administration, c1985, 1996.
Genealogy Ref. 016.355 NAT
Tracing Immigrant Origins. Salt Lake City, UT: Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy, Kory
Meyerink-Coordinator, Contributors- John P. Colletta, Jeanette K.B. Daniels,
Richard W. Dougherty, Gerald Haslam, Larry O. Jensen, Marie Melchiori, John
Kitzmiller, c2001.
Genealogy Ref. 929.1 SALT
Bentley, Elizabeth Petty. Genealogist’s Address Book. 4th edition. Baltimore, MD:
Genealogical Publishing Company, c1998. Genealogy Ref. 929.102 BEN
Croom, Emily Anne. Genealogist’s Companion & Sourcebook. Cincinnati, OH:
Betterway Books, c1994. Genealogy Ref. 929.1 CRO (*Note: We also have a
circulating copy)
Denney, Robert E. Civil War Prisons and Escapes: A Day-by-Day Chronicle. New
York, NY: Sterling Publishing Company, c1993. 973.77 DEN
Groene, Bertram Hawthorne. Tracing Your Civil War Ancestor. Winston-Salem, NC:
Blair Publishing, c1995. Genealogy Ref. 929.1 GRO
9
Greenwood, Val D. Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy. 3nd edition.
Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2001. Genealogy Ref. 929.1
GRE (*Note: We also have a circulating copy of the 2nd edition of this title)
Hattaway, Herman. Shades of Blue and Grey: An Introductory Military History of the
Civil War. Columbia, MO: University of Missouri Press, c1977. 973.73 HAT
Hesseltine, William Best. Civil War Prisons. Kent, OH: Kent State University Press,
1962. 973.77 HES
Miller, Francis Trevelyan. Photographic History of the Civil War. New York, NY:
Reviews of Reviews, Company, 1911. 10v. set. Genealogy Ref. 973.7 MIL
(*Note: We also have a circulating set)
Neagles, James C. U.S. Military Records : A Guide to Federal and State Sources,
Colonial America to the Present. Salt Lake City, UT: Ancestry Publishing,
c1994. Genealogy Ref. 929.373 NEA
Speer, Lonnie R. Portals to Hell : Military Prisons of the Civil War. 1st edition.
Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, c1977. 973.771 SPE
Stockwell, Foster. Sourcebook For Genealogical Research: Resources Alphabetically
By Type & Location. Jefferson, NC: McFarland Publishing, c2004. Genealogy
Ref. 929.1 STO
US Army Military History Research Collection. The Era of the Civil War: 1820-1876.
Carlisle Barracks, PA: US Army Military History Research Collection, 1974.
Genealogy Ref. 973.7016 COO
NOTE: This study guide is meant to serve as an overview or outline for patrons
using the genealogy collection at Fort Myers-Lee County Library. The compiler
emphasizes that the information contained in this study guide should not serve as a
substitute for taking the time to read one of the books or articles cited in the
bibliography, or attend lectures given by the subject specialists cited as authors.
Compiled by Bryan Mulcahy, Reference Librarian, Fort Myers-Lee County Library,
9/4/2008.