United States World War II Prisoners of War of the Japanese - FamilySearch Historical Records

Record Description
This collection is an index of military personnel and civilians who were prisoners of the Japanese during World War II acquired from the National Archives "Access to Archival Databases" (AAD). The index includes name, rank, service number, branch of service, source of information, unit information as available from parent unit to subordinate unit and notes. This collection covers the years 1941 to 1945.

Record Content
The records usually have the following information:


 * Name
 * Service number
 * Rank
 * Unit
 * Arm of Service
 * Subordinate Unit, Assigned Unit and Parent Unit
 * POW camps notes
 * Event type

How to Use the Record
To begin your search it will be helpful to know:


 * Name of soldier
 * Other identifying information such as service number or service unit

Search the Collection
To search the collection fill in the requested information in the boxes on the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the individuals in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. You may need to look at the information on several individuals comparing the information about them to your ancestors 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 article FamilySearch Search Tips and Tricks.

Using the Information
When you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. Download a copy of the record, or extract the genealogical information needed. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details. Add this new information to your records of each family. The information may also lead you to other records about your ancestors. For example use the name, rank and service number to obtain a copy of their complete military file.

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * The index entries contain minimal details so it can be easy to confuse individuals with similar names.
 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
 * Be aware that, as with any index, transcription errors may occur.

Unable to Find Your Ancestor?

 * Look for variant spellings of the names. You should also look for nicknames and abbreviated names.
 * 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
NARA Access to Archival Databases

Related Wiki Articles

 * United States World War II Prisoner of War Records
 * United States

Citations for This Collection
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information; that is, cite your sources. This will help people find the record again and evaluate the reliability of the source. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records. Citations are available for the collection as a whole and each record or image individually.

Collection Citation:

Record Citation (or citation for the index entry):