Alabama Civil War Service Records of Confederate Soldiers - FamilySearch Historical Records

What is in This Collection?
The collection consists of Confederate service records of soldiers who served in organizations from Alabama for the years 1861 to 1865. The records include abstracts of entries relating to the soldiers as found in the following original records:


 * Muster rolls
 * Returns
 * Rosters
 * Payrolls


 * Appointment books
 * Hospital registers
 * Union prison registers and rolls
 * Parole rolls
 * Inspection reports

For each military unit, the service records are arranged alphabetically by the soldier's surname. The Military Unit field may also display the surname range (A-G) as found on the microfilm. This collection is a part of RG 109, War Department Collection of Confederate Records and National Archive Microfilm Publication M311. Index courtesy of www.fold3.com (previously known as Footnote.com). Service records were kept for each Confederate soldier. Those records, or their abstracts, were compiled into individual files. Each envelope/jacket contains information and cross references to original records relating to the soldier.

What Can These Records Tell Me?
The following information may be found in these records:
 * Soldier’s name
 * Age
 * Rank
 * Military unit(s) served in
 * If imprisoned, where and when captured
 * If deserted, when received and when discharged and by whom one was discharged
 * If died where and when death occurred

How Do I Search This Collection?
Before searching this collection, it is helpful to know:
 * The name of the individual
 * The age or birthdate

How Do I Analyze the Results?
Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images.

I Found the Person I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * Add any new information to your records
 * Use the age to calculate a birth date and to find other records such as birth, christening, census, land and death records
 * Use the information to find additional family members. Witnesses or bondsmen were usually relatives
 * Repeat this process with additional family members found, to find more generations of the family

I Can’t Find the Person Who I’m Looking For, What Now?

 * Collect entries for every person who has the same surname. This list can help you identify possible relations that can be verified by records
 * If you cannot locate your ancestor in the locality in which you believe they lived, then try searching records of a nearby locality in an area search
 * Standard spelling of names typically did not exist during the periods our ancestors lived in. Try variations of your ancestor’s name while searching the index or browsing through images
 * Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names

Research Helps
The following articles will help you in your research for your family in the state of Alabama.
 * US Military Basic Search Strategies
 * Beginning Research in United States Military Records
 * Beginning United States Civil War Research
 * Locating a Confederate Civil War Soldier (1861–1865)
 * Alabama Guided Research
 * Alabama Record Finder
 * Alabama Research Tips and Strategies
 * Step-by-Step Alabama Research, 1880-Present

Other FamilySearch Collections
These collections may have additional materials to help you with your research.

FamilySearch Catalog
Local Publications
 * J. H. Segars, In search of Confederate ancestors : the guide Madison, Georgia : Southern Lion Books, c2005 FHL 973 D27seg 2005
 * James C. Neagles, Confederate research sources : a guide to archive collections 2nd ed. Ancestry Publishing, c1997 FHL 973 A3ne 1997
 * Compiled service records of Confederate soldiers who served in organizations from the state of Alabama, NARA publication M311
 * Negroes in the Confederate Army, 1860-1907
 * Compiled records showing service of military units in Confederate organizations Alabama Rolls 1-5 NARA publication M861
 * Applications for relief by maimed Confederate soldiers
 * Alabama. Pension Commission. Alabama Confederate Pensions
 * Confederate service record, 1861-1865
 * Administrators of Confederate soldiers, 1862-1864
 * Parents of Confederate soldiers, 1862-1864
 * Widows of Confederate soldiers, 1862-1864
 * Crenshaw County, Alabama, Confederate Soldiers, Sailors and Widows Relief Fund,1863-1898

FamilySearch Historical Records

 * Unfiled Papers of Confederate Soldiers
 * Alabama, Census of Confederate Veterans, 1907, 1921, 1927
 * Alabama, Confederate Pension Applications, ca. 1880-1930's

FamilySearch Digital Library

 * Brief historical sketches of military organizations raised in Alabama during the Civil War. reproduced from Willis Brewer. Alabama : her history, resources, war record, and public men, from 1540 to 1872.Montgomery, Alabama : Barett & Brown, Printers, c1872.
 * Walter L. Fleming, Civil War and reconstruction in Alabama Reprint of the original work published: New York : Macmillan, 1905, Spartanburg, South Carolina : Reprint Co. Publishers, 1978
 * Army regulations, adopted for the use of the Army of the Confederate States .. Richmond, Virginia : West & Johnson, 1861
 * The compilation of narrative histories or historical sketches of Alabama commands in the War between the States, 1861-1865

Citing This Collection
Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.

Alabama, registros de servicio de la guerra civil de soldados confederados (Registros históricos de FamilySearch) Alabama, registros de servicio de la guerra civil de soldados de la Unión (Registros históricos de FamilySearch)