Florida, World War I Service Cards - FamilySearch Historical Records

What Is in the Collection?
This collection is an Index to a card roster of Floridians who served in the United States Army, Navy, Coast Guard, or Marines during World War I from 1917–1919. Each soldier has one or two cards giving information on his/her military service, such as name, serial number, residence, place and date of birth, military organizations he/she served in, rank, engagements participated in, wounds or injuries received, dates serving overseas, discharge date, percentage disabled, and additional remarks. The cards were created by the staff of the Dept. during a project in 1924. This Index collection is Series Number S 1204 which was created by and located at the State Archives of Florida in Tallahassee.

World War I Service Records

The United States declared war on Germany and her allies on 6 April 1917 entering a conflict that began in August 1914. Millions of American men and women served their nation in the Great War. Congress ordered that a service record for each person serving between April 6, 1917 and November 11, 1918 be created and provided to the Adjutant General of each state from which that person entered the service. This record took the form of a card that contained information digested from the service record dossier of each veteran. Clerks in the Department of War (Army) and the Department of the Navy (Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard) executed the work.

The cards were sent to the Adjutant General of each state. The Adjutant General of Florida directs the Department of Military Affairs and is the uniformed officer in charge of the National Guard units in Florida. The Department of Military Affairs is located at the St. Francis Barracks in Saint Augustine Florida.

The same card form (Form No. 724-1, A.G.O.) was used for members of both the Marine Corps and the Army. These cards contain a paragraph which states "Except the data contained on the first four lines and that relating to battle casualties and physical disability, this statement is prepared as far as practicable from the service record, and no effort has been made to compare data obtained from the service record with other records, except where an error or discrepancy is patent." The Navy card does not contain this statement.

For each person, the cards provide name; age; serial number; race; place of birth; and residence at time of entering service. Some cards also provide the organizations/ships served (with dates of beginning and transfer); engagements; wounds/injuries sustained in action; time served overseas; discharge notations; and general remarks. The Navy cards note the sailor's rate as well as rank.

As noted previously the clerks made no effort to correct information unless the error was "patent" or obvious. Therefore, if there is a question as to the correctness or completeness of the information contained on any of these cards the individual's service record should be checked. These records are generally available from the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis Missouri:

National Personnel Records Center Military Personnel Records 9700 Page Avenue St. Louis, MO 63132-5100

What Can These Records Tell Me?
The following information may be found in these records:


 * Name
 * Military Service Branch
 * Serial Number
 * Residence
 * Date and place of induction
 * Place of Birth
 * Birth date or age
 * Rank
 * Discharge of Discharge

How Do I Search the Collection?
Before searching this collection, it is helpful to know:


 * The Name of your ancestor
 * The place where your ancestor lived

View the Images
You can browse through the images in this collection at the State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory website: Florida World War I Service Cards Browse

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?

 * Copy the citation below, in case you need to find this record again later. You may also wish to view the original record.  These records are available on the Florida World War I Service Cards Browse
 * The index contains only basic identifying information for a person; the original record therefore may contain more information not found in the index.
 * Use the name, place of residence and birth date to obtain their military file from the National Archives
 * Use the estimated age to calculate a birth date.
 * Use the soldier's age and residence to find his family in census, church, and land records.

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

 * Indexes and transcriptions may not include all the data found in the original records. You could browse through the original record collection at the Florida World War I Service Cards Browse which may help you find who you are looking for or provide additional leads.
 * If your ancestor does not have a common name, collect entries for every person who has the same surname. This list can help you find possible relatives.
 * If you cannot locate your ancestor in the locality in which you believe they lived, then try searching records of a nearby town or county.
 * Try different spellings of your ancestor’s name.
 * Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names. Try searching for these names as well.
 * Check the info box above for additional FamilySearch websites and related websites that may assist you in finding similar records.

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

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