Arizona Military Records

United States U.S. Military  Arizona  Military Records



For each war listed below, additional federal sources are listed in U.S. Military Records. It contains search strategies and information to guide you to the best records for your objective.

Many military records are found at the Family History Library, the National Archives, and other federal and state archives. For Arizona the following sources are also very helpful:

Forts and Camps
Military forts and camps were established by the military authorized by the federal govenment, built to house and maintain the military who were to assist in maintianing the peace by enforcing treaties and providing protection to settlers. (See Arizona - Native Americans)


 * Fort Apache-- Textual records of this fort, 1870-1920, including registers, reports, and correspondence, are in the National Archives and are described in Records of United States Army, Continental Commands, 1821-1920, under the section entitled Records of Posts, 1820-1940 (Record Group 393.7).
 * Fort Barrett -- Textual records of this fort, 1862, including registers, reports, and correspondence, are in the National Archives and are described in Records of United States Army, Continental Commands, 1821-1920, under the section entitled Records of Posts, 1820-1940 (Record Group 393.7).
 * Fort Bear Springs
 * Fort Bonito
 * Fort Bowie-- begun in 1862 as a post for the U.S. Army in its battles against the Chiricahua Apaches, led by Cochise and Geronimo. One of its major functions was to protect the spring at Apache Pass. The fort was abandoned in 1894. It is currently a National Historic Site. Textual records of this fort, 1862-1894, including registers, reports, and correspondence, are in the National Archives and are described in Records of United States Army, Continental Commands, 1821-1920, under the section entitled Records of Posts, 1820-1940 (Record Group 393.7).
 * Fort Breckinridge1860 - was first called Fort Arivaypa, but soon changed to Fort Breckinridge. It was later called Fort Stanford.Then in the Civil War it was called Fort Grant.
 * Fort Buchanan1856
 * Camp Calabasas
 * Fort Crittenden
 * Fort Defiance 1851 (Fort Camby) -- (For additional history of this fort, see its history online.)
 * Camp Douglasor Camp Harry J. Jones
 * Camp Emmet Crawford (1886)
 * Fort Fauntleroy -- Original name of Fort Lyon. Also known as Fort Wingate.
 * Fort Goodwin
 * Fort Grant-- Textual records of this fort, 1869-1905, including registers, reports, and correspondence, are in the National Archives and are described in Records of United States Army, Continental Commands, 1821-1920, under the section entitled Records of Posts, 1820-1940 (Record Group 393.7).
 * Camp Hualapai
 * Fort Huachuca -- built in 1877 to counter the attacks upon settlers by the Chiricahua Apaches, led by Geronimo (1877-1886). It was a forward post during the Pancho Villa Expedition in 1916-1917. It was the home for the Buffalo Soldiers for twenty years. The fort remains in service as a post of the U.S. Army. (For additional history of this fort, see the Fort Huachuca Historical Museum site and its National Parks site.) Textual records of this fort, 1878-1913, including registers, reports, and correspondence, are in the National Archives and are described in Records of United States Army, Continental Commands, 1821-1920, under the section entitled Records of Posts, 1820-1940 (Record Group 393.7).
 * Fort Lowell -- Textual records of this fort, 1865-1891, including registers, reports, and correspondence, are in the National Archives and are described in Records of United States Army, Continental Commands, 1821-1920, under the section entitled Records of Posts, 1820-1940 (Record Group 393.7).
 * Fort Lyon- Also Fort Fauntleroy and Fort Wingate.
 * Fort McDowel -- in California
 * Fort Mason
 * Fort Mojave 1859 -- Textual records of this fort, 1859-1890, including registers, reports, and correspondence, are in the National Archives and are described in Records of United States Army, Continental Commands, 1821-1920, under the section entitled Records of Posts, 1820-1940 (Record Group 393.7). Letters sent from Fort Mojave, 1859-1880, have been microfilmed on 2 rolls and are part of National Archives Microcopy T838.
 * Camp Newell- also known as Camp Naco.
 * Post of San Carlos -- Textual records of this fort, 1874-1900, including registers, reports, and correspondence, are in the National Archives and are described in Records of United States Army, Continental Commands, 1821-1920, under the section entitled Records of Posts, 1820-1940 (Record Group 393.7).
 * Fort Thomas -- Textual records of this fort, 1876-1891, including registers, reports, and correspondence, are in the National Archives and are described in Records of United States Army, Continental Commands, 1821-1920, under the section entitled Records of Posts, 1820-1940 (Record Group 393.7).
 * Camp Tucson - Renamed to Camp Lowell
 * Fort Verde-- Textual records of this fort, 1866-1891, including registers, reports, and correspondence, are in the National Archives and are described in Records of United States Army, Continental Commands, 1821-1920, under the section entitled Records of Posts, 1820-1940 (Record Group 393.7). These records have been microfilmed on 11 rolls and are part of National Archives Microcopy M1076. Available through the Family History Library Film 169552 (first film of 11)
 * Fort Wallen
 * Whipple Barracks -- Textual records of this fort, 1863-1898, including registers, reports, and correspondence, are in the National Archives and are described in Records of United States Army, Continental Commands, 1821-1920, under the section entitled Records of Posts, 1820-1940 (Record Group 393.7).
 * Fort Wingate -- in New Mexico
 * Fort Yuma -- in California

Mexican War (1846-1848)
The Mexican War was caused by the annexation of Texas by the United States in 1845. Most volunteer regiments were from southern states. Records of Mexican War veterans might exist in a state where the veteran later resided.


 * United States. Adjutant General’s Office. Compiled Service Records of Volunteer Soldiers Who Served during the Mexican War in Organizations from the State of Tennessee. Washington D.C.: National Archives, 1965. . This includes regimental returns, a record of events during the war, and company muster rolls.


 * Mexican War Index to Pension Files, 1887–1926. (NARA T317). Alphabetically arranged and includes the veteran’s name, rank, and unit; names of dependents; date of filing and application; certificate numbers; act filed under; and state from which application was made. Also available at:


 * (FamilySearch) Free digital copy. (Learn more.)


 * Robarts, William Hugh. Mexican War Veterans : A Complete Roster of the Regular and Volunteer Troops in the War Between the United States and Mexico, from 1846-1848… Washington, D.C. : Brentano’s, 1887. Digital version available at Internet Archive.

Click on these links to learn more about the Mexican War and about Mexican War pension records.

Civil War (1861 to 1865)
See Arizona in the Civil War for information about Arizona Civil War records, web sites, etc. with links to articles about the Arizona regiments involved in the Civil War.

The regimental pages often include lists of the companies with links to the counties where the companies started. Men in the companies often lived in the counties where the companies were raised. Knowing a county can help when researching more about the soldiers and their families.

The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System allows name searching for soldiers. The result set gives the regiments for the soldiers. Then you can check the Wiki regiment pages to determine counties. Often knowing the counties that had men in a regiment will help you determine if a soldier was your ancestor.

Also check: Arizona Service Records of Confederate Soldiers of the Civil War at Family Search

Indian Wars (1780s-1890s)
Soldiers who served at military posts can be located by searching Registers of Enlistments in the United States Army, 1798-1914. These enlistment registers are available at the Family History Library (beginning with Family History Library ). These include data on the soldier's name, physical description, age, occupation, and birthplace.

Two indexes are available for pension records: Old War Pension Index (1815-1926) and Index to Indian Wars (1892-1926). Both of these indexes are available at the Family History Library and at the National Archives. These indexes are listed in the Family History Library Catalog under UNITED STATES - MILITARY RECORDS.


 * A history of military forts is Ray Brandes, Frontier Military Posts of Arizona. Globe, Arizona: Dale S. King, 1960. (Family History Library ). There is a map of army installations, 1849-1886, on Family History Library.

World War I (1917-1918)

 * United States. Selective Service System. Arizona, World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918. National Archives Microfilm Publications, M1509. Washington, DC: National Archives, 1987-1988. (On Family History Library ) These cards have been digitized and are searchable online. See WWI Draft Records for more information.

Additional Military Records
Additional military records are at the Department of Libraries, Archives and Public Records.

The Arizona Rangers

Web Sites

 * Veterans Service Records at National Archives
 * Arizona Memory Project at Arizona Department of Libraries, Archives and Public Records. The Arizona Memory Project provides access to the wealth of primary sources in Arizona libraries, archives, museums and other cultural institutions. Visitors to the site will find some of the best examples of government documents, photographs, maps, and objects that chronicle Arizona's past and present.