Continuing on the theme of (unusually-named) specialty units that served in the U.S. military, this time we look at the artificers who supported the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. Simply put, artificers were skilled artisans and mechanics who kept military equipment in good working order so the troops could operate effectively. They typically served … Continue reading Family Tree Friday: Artificers in the Revolutionary War
In my last post, I talked about the Sea Fencibles, a unique fighting unit from the War of 1812. I thought it would be interesting to continue that trend, moving on this time to introduce the Regiment of U.S. Voltigeurs and Foot Riflemen from the Mexican War. Voltigeurs, you may ask?!? What in the world … Continue reading Family Tree Friday: U.S. Voltigeurs in the Mexican War
There will be an open forum researchers' meeting tomorrow, September 29, 2010 at Archives II in College Park, MD. Archivist of the United States, David Ferriero, will be attending, so be sure to come by with your questions. We will meet in lecture rooms A and B at Archives II at 1 pm. The agenda … Continue reading Attention All Researchers: Open Forum Tomorrow!
In the NARA Coast-to Coast post last week, we discussed the general process for naturalization. This week we will focus on some of the exceptions to the normal process for minors, women, and aliens serving in the U.S. military. Naturalization and Minors (Children) Minor children were granted derivative citizenship when their father, or after 1922 … Continue reading NARA Coast to Coast: Naturalization, part 2
With all the hype ramping up for the approaching 150th anniversary of the Civil War next year, which is expected to continue over the next five years, I've heard a few concerns that another major milestone might be overshadowed--the bicentennial in 2012 of the beginning of the War of 1812! Lest we forget about our … Continue reading Family Tree Friday: Who were the Sea Fencibles in the War of 1812?
On December 12, 1942, 2nd Lt. Jack E. Williams and his crew were flying over the coast of France when, according to his report, “We hit the ground; that is, made a crash landing, at 12:40, after having been violently attacked by fighters.” The actions of Williams and his crewmates following the crash are documented … Continue reading World War II Escape and Evasion Reports are now available online
For the next two NARA Coast-to-Coast features we are going to write about naturalization records. This week we will discuss naturalization in general and the records you may be able to find at the National Archives. Next week we will discuss naturalization for minor children, women, and aliens in the U.S. military. Naturalization is the … Continue reading NARA Coast to Coast: Naturalization, Part 1
The National Archives recently created a new "Inside the Vaults" video about our citizen archivist initiative. The video features Archivist of the United States David S. Ferriero discussing the contributions of the public to the National Archives as well as two citizen archivists, researcher Jonathan Webb Deiss and educational cartoonist Jon White, discussing their work … Continue reading Are you a citizen archivist?
When I started this series of blog posts on immigration records, I mentioned that the Federal government began documenting alien arrivals in 1820, in fulfillment of the requirements of the Steerage Act of 1819. So, can you still find any information in federal records about alien arrivals PRIOR to 1820? As a matter of fact, … Continue reading Family Tree Friday: Landing reports of alien immigrants, 1798-1828
Special acknowledgment goes to Steve Spence, Archives Specialist at the National Archives at Kansas City, for his assistance in writing this post. Bank robbers! Prohibition gangsters! Con men! Wartime spies! Your great uncle Charlie? This week’s post features records that combine criminal activity and family history, giving genealogists access to the shady underside of their … Continue reading NARA Coast to Coast: Discovering Black Sheep in the Pen!
