Tip: WWI Draft Registration Cards

[johnnyonthespot]

It took a bit of searching, but last week I found WWI Draft Registration Cards for both my grandfathers at ancestry . com. In both cases, the legibility was very poor; barely good enough to ensure that I had found the correct cards.

A little further research led me to the National Archives branch in Morrow, GA, where apparently all 24 million of these cards are on file. I filled out two request forms ( http://friendsnas.org/pdf_files/militar ... equest.pdf ), one for each grandfather, and mailed them off on Saturday, February 20 along with two $10 checks - one for each request.

On Wednesday morning, I received a telephone call from the archivist at NARA telling me she had located the records and would be mailing them out to me. Also, that the cost per record had been reduced to $5, so she would cash just one of my checks and return the other. The envelope arrived today, and as you can see by the example below, the copies received are much more legible than the ancestry downloads.

So, just a quick tip: if you have an illegible WWI Draft Registration Card and really need to know what it says or simply want a better copy for your document collection, give the NARA $5 special a shot.

[Romano1970]

Looking my families information up right now. Good advice John.

Thank you

[DeFilippis78]

Wow! What a difference. I especially love these draft forms because in my notebooks I like to write a description of what my relatives looked like and these are a great starting point. Being I cant find a draft card on some of my relatives Im going to try. Thanks a bunch!

Alicia

[Romano1970]

I do have my grandfathers card, but as john states they are fuzzy. Very undetailed in the writing. One of the cards states that my grandfather was missing a joint on one of his fingers. Not until I met up with my Aunt (his daughter) she told me his nickname was nubby because of it. Also the way it happened was at his grocery store. He cut off part of his point finger when slicing cheese.

[DeFilippis78]

Its a mix for me, I have it for some men and others I cant find but they should have filled one out. One grandfather's is also so fuzzy I can barely read it. So this will help a lot. Gotta watch out for that mozzeralla, lol!

Alicia

[carolinechurch]

I love the English ones - along with the physical description they have chest measurement expanded and relaxed - my grandfather had 2.5 inches (which doesn't seem very much, I can do 4.5) and weren't they all so short!

[DeFilippis78]

Carmine,

Do you know if this is available for WWII draft cards? After looking over my files, those are the ones I really need.

Alicia

[johnnyonthespot]

Carmine,

Do you know if this is available for WWII draft cards? After looking over my files, those are the ones I really need.

Alicia

It is not at all clear to me what is available for WWII. However, while looking for the WWI cards, I came across this Selective Service website http://www.sss.gov/RECORDS2.HTM and used the "Record Request Form" to request copies of my own Vietnam era Selective Service ("Draft") records. Can't wait to see what I get from them!

The form says it is for "Years of birth prior to 1960". How much prior, I don't know.

[DeFilippis78]

If you dont mind me asking, were you drafted? I love and pray for our military (including your son) always. My husband was a Marine and in my house we are proud of all military past and present.

The site says for pre 1960 you have to go through archives. they only have 1960 and after.

Alicia

[johnnyonthespot]

If you dont mind me asking, were you drafted? I love and pray for our military (including your son) always. My husband was a Marine and in my house we are proud of all military past and present.

At the time, once a year the Selective Service people would drop 365 balls, one for each day of the upcoming year, into a drum and draw them out one at a time in a "draft lottery". Then, during the upcoming year, men were drafted based on the order in which their birthdays had been drawn. My birthday was the 50-something'ish number drawn for a year in which they ultimately drafted into the mid-120 numbers. See http://www.sss.gov/lotter1.htm for more info.

At any rate, no one was more surprised than I when I was called up for a physical examination and failed! I was classified "4-F" meaning I was unfit for military duty, based on something I had always considered a very minor and unnoticeable abnormality (which I eventually had surgically corrected).

So, to answer your question, no, I did not serve during Vietnam.

The site says for pre 1960 you have to go through archives. they only have 1960 and after.

Correct. The form linked to near the bottom of the web page (""Record Request Form" http://www.sss.gov/PDFs/Record%20Request.pdf ) is the one you fill out and mail to the National Archives branch in St. Louis, MO.

PS: Thank you for thinking of my son and keeping him in your prayers.

[johnnyonthespot]

Carmine,

Do you know if this is available for WWII draft cards? After looking over my files, those are the ones I really need.

Alicia

Alicia, this NARA site may be of interest.

Following the directions in the article, I went to the Archival Database page ( http://aad.archives.gov/aad/ ) and put my father's name (FIRSTNAME LASTNAME) in the Search box. On the next page, just one record was found (it is the database which contains actual records). Click the "View records" button which loads another page with a list of matching names (just one, in my case). Click the page icon in the first column labelled "View Record" and you get something like this randomly chosen "John Smith" record:

Field - Title - Value Meaning
ARMY SERIAL NUMBER 01025730 01025730
NAME SMITH#JOHN############## SMITH#JOHN##############
RESIDENCE: STATE 51 INDIANA
RESIDENCE: COUNTY 097 MARION
PLACE OF ENLISTMENT 7087 PETERSON FIELD COLO SPRINGS COLORADO
DATE OF ENLISTMENT DAY 05 05
DATE OF ENLISTMENT MONTH 10 10
DATE OF ENLISTMENT YEAR 45 45
GRADE: ALPHA DESIGNATION M#SG Master Sergeant
GRADE: CODE 1 Master Sergeant
BRANCH: ALPHA DESIGNATION AC# Air Corps
BRANCH: CODE 20 Air Corps
FIELD USE AS DESIRED # #
TERM OF ENLISTMENT 3 Enlistment for Hawaiian Department
LONGEVITY ### ###
SOURCE OF ARMY PERSONNEL 3 National Guard in Federal Service, within 3 months of Discharge
NATIVITY 51 INDIANA
YEAR OF BIRTH 97 97
RACE AND CITIZENSHIP 1 White, citizen
EDUCATION 0 Grammar school
CIVILIAN OCCUPATION 000 Undefined Code
MARITAL STATUS 6 Single, without dependents
COMPONENT OF THE ARMY 1 Regular Army (including Officers, Nurses, Warrant Officers, and Enlisted Men)
CARD NUMBER 1 1
BOX NUMBER 0023 0023
FILM REEL NUMBER 1.23# 1.23#

[DeFilippis78]

I will check out that website because I know my grandfather was drafted. All 5 of his brothers and cousins were sent over seas but he was also a 4F for a heart murmur. He was one of the few men who didnt fight in WW II.Its funny because thats when he married my grandma and there whole wedding party was missing because all the men were serving in the military. His brothers made it home safe but his cousin was killed in combat.Ill take a look!

Alicia

[Sal]

Alicia, it will be hit and miss as to what records you can get for WW II. The NARA site has the basic info that Johnny found. A couple years ago I sent for records for my uncle, who served in WW II. What came back was basic info. In July 1973 there was a bad fire at the records center and almost 22 million military records were destroyed. So, unless there are more records with family, I am at a dead end regarding details of his military service.
Take a look at http://www.archives.gov/veterans/evetrecs/index.html for obtaining records.
Info about the fire and what info is possibly available can be seen at
http://www.archives.gov/veterans/resear ... -nprc.html

Johnny - my story of the lottery --- I was drafted in 1966 for two years. Later, when the lottery numbers came out, I saw I would have been in the 300s .

[lilbees]

My uncle's records were lost in that fire in 1973.

He was in the Army throughout WW II. All I have for him is his mustering out pay record. Everything else was destroyed. Believe me, he had a lot of medals. He drove an ammo truck throughout Africa, through Italy and then on into France and Germany surviving it all.

lilbees