Vermont, Enrolled Militia Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Record Description
The records are in good condition and are composed of the following groups of records:


 * Registers - Arranged by town, then grouped in rough alphabetical order by first letter of the last name
 * Personal War Sketches - Authored by the company historian and usually indexed
 * Record of burials
 * Certificates of appointment and commendation

The images in this collection are from the following offices:


 * Waltham, Vermont Town Clerk
 * Woodford, Vermont Town Clerk
 * Glastonbury, Vermont Unorganized Town Supervisor
 * Tinmouth, Vermont Town Clerk
 * Winhall, Vermont Town Clerk
 * Richmond, Vermont Town Clerk
 * Bolton, Vermont Town Clerk
 * Hinesburg, Vermont Town Clerk/Treasurer
 * Westmore, Vermont Town Clerk/Treasurer
 * Huntington, Vermont Town Clerk
 * Charlotte, Vermont Town Clerk/Treasurer
 * Essex, Vermont Town Clerk/Treasurer
 * Belvidere, Vermont Town Clerk
 * Waterville, Vermont Town Clerk
 * Cambridge, Vermont Town Clerk
 * Johnson, Vermont Town Clerk/Treasurer
 * Richford, Vermont Town Clerk
 * Fairfax, Vermont Town Clerk

On an annual basis, per the Act of 1844, listers in each town were to enroll every male liable to enrollment, between the ages of 18 and 45, who were not members of uniformed companies (for the time period of these records every male between 18 and 45 was to be listed). Duplicate copies of the enrollments were to be given to the town clerk who in turn would send one of the copies to the adjutant and inspector general. The records identify thousands of men from the state of Vermont who served in the military or who were eligible for service during the time period 1861-1867.

This collection contains militia records for the years 1861 through 1867.

The record was created to provide a list of those men in the state of Vermont who were eligible to serve in the military.

The records are fairly reliable; however, the records are only as accurate as the knowledge of the individual who provided the information and the accuracy of the individual who recorded it.

Record Content
Registers usually list:


 * Name
 * Age
 * Occupation
 * Remarks. This section may contain any of the following:


 * Injuries, illnesses, disabilities and nature of disability
 * Death or burial date
 * Exemptions and nature of the exemption
 * Substitutes furnished and commutations paid
 * Change of residence and often name of new residence
 * Enrollment and discharge dates along with length of service
 * Service in US military
 * Color or Race
 * Salary paid
 * Military unit served in

Personal War Sketches usually contain


 * Name
 * Birth date
 * Birth place
 * Mustering in date and place
 * Discharge date and place
 * Details of service such as companies served in; battles fought in; injuries sustained
 * Captures and confinements in prison
 * Rank and offices held
 * Pensions, bounties, and payments received
 * Death date and place
 * Burial date and place
 * Names of close relatives and/or friends
 * Photographs
 * Date war sketch was made
 * Author of sketch

Burials usually contain


 * Name
 * Rank
 * Company
 * Arm of service
 * Death date
 * Burial place
 * Remarks

Certificates usually contain


 * Name
 * Post number
 * Reason for certificate
 * Date

How to Use the Records
To begin your search it is helpful to know


 * Soldier's name
 * Identifying information such as age, occupation or birth place

Search the Collection
To search the collection by name fill in your ancestor’s name in the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about those in the list to what you already know about your own ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person.

If you did not find the person you were looking for, you may need to search the collection image by image. ⇒Select the "Browse" link in the initial search page ⇒Select the "Town, County" category ⇒Select the "Year range" category which takes you to the images

Search the collection by image. Again you will need to compare the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine which one is your ancestor.

Be aware that with either search you may need to compare the information about more than one person to make this determination. Keep in mind:


 * There may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * You may not be sure of your own ancestor’s name.
 * Your ancestor may have used different names or variations of their name throughout their life.
 * If your ancestor used an alias or a nickname, be sure to check for those alternate names.
 * Even though these indexes are very accurate they may still contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings, misinterpretations, and optical character recognition errors if the information was scanned.

For tips about searching on-line collections see the on-line video at FamilySearch Search Tips.

Using the Information
When you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors. Add this new information to your records of each family. This information will often lead you to other records. For example:


 * Death dates may lead to death certificates, mortuary, or burial records.
 * Use the age to calculate an approximate birth date.
 * Use the birth date or age along with the residence or place of birth of the deceased to locate census, church, and land records.

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * Compile the entries for every person who has the same surname as the deceased, this is especially helpful in rural areas or if the surname is unusual.
 * Continue to search the records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives who may have been seeking the pension.
 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.

Unable to Find Your Ancestor?

 * Look for variant spellings of the names. You should also look for nicknames and abbreviated names.
 * Look for a different index. Local genealogical and historical societies often have indexes to local records.
 * Search the indexes and records of nearby counties.
 * Try alternative search methods such as only filling in the surname search box (or the given name search box) on the landing page leaving the other box empty and then click on search. This should return a list of everyone with that particular name. You could then browse the list for individuals with the same family number.

Related Websites

 * Vermont State Archives Militia and Other Military Collections
 * Vermont state Archives Civil War Research Guide

Related Wiki Articles

 * Vermont in the Civil War
 * Vermont Military Records
 * Vermont

Citations for This Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image. Collection Citation: Record Citation (or citation for the index entry): Image citation: