A source of military records that is unorthodox but interesting, and potentially extremely rewarding, is old newspaper records. It was not uncommon during times of war for local newspapers to publish...
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A Closer Look at Military Records #3
Draft cards are excellent sources of information on your military-aged ancestor. Drafts were used in most US wars and military conflicts until the end of the Vietnam War. Digitized draft cards from...
A Closer Look at Military Records #2
The Civil War presents a unique case in military records for the United States. This is because only Union records were kept by the federal government for decades. It was the early twentieth century...
A Closer Look at Military Records #1
Military service is built into this country’s history. The service of hundreds of thousands of people over the past two and a half centuries has generated records that can be used to improve one’s...
Alaska: The State Capitals #2
Alaska is a harsh, inhospitable land to those who are unfamiliar with it, and it is for this reason that it took Europeans so long to even explore it, much less colonize it. As with many things among...
Alabama: The State Capitals #1
Are you curious about how state capitals got their beginnings? Most have fascinating origin stories. Take Montgomery, Alabama, for example. With a history going back thousands of years, but only...
Samuel Adams: The Signers of the Declaration of Independence
Samuel Adams was the second cousin of US President John Adams, and like his cousin, he served at the Continental Congress and was instrumental in America gaining independence. In fact, Samuel was...
Eliza McCardle Johnson: America’s First Ladies #17
Eliza McCardle was the wife of Andrew Johnson and our 17th First Lady. Though she came from an impoverished background and was ill for years during her marriage, she still managed to be an involved...
Mary Todd Lincoln: America’s First Ladies #16
Mary Todd Lincoln is one of the most famous of the First Ladies. Hers is an interesting tale, sometimes thrilling, sometimes tragic, but always adventurous and captivating. Here is her true tale, the...
The Fighting American Doughboys
The term ‘doughboy’ is one which remained a popular nickname for US servicemen for almost 100 years and which almost certainly had its origins in the Mexican-American War of 1846-1848.