World War I United States Military Records, 1917 to 1918

United States U.S. Military  World War I The United States entered World War I in April 1917. Over 4.7 million men and women served in the regular U.S. forces, national guard units, and draft units. There were 53,402 killed in action, 63,114 deaths from disease and other causes, and about 205,000 wounded. New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Ohio furnished the most soldiers.

Research Tools

 * BYU WWI Document Archive. This archive is international in focus
 * Online World War One Indexes and Records
 * 1917-1918 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Websites

 * HistoryGuide.org. Contains photographs, cemeteries & obituaries, land records, wills, and newspapers; along with a Soldier's Memorial searchable database.
 * Chronology of the first World War
 * Heritage of the Great War
 * Navy Uniforms in WWI
 * The United States World War One Centennial Commission

State World War I Records
The Family History Library has some indexes and records from county courthouses, state archives, and state offices of the adjutant general. For example, the library has the following:


 * Missouri State Archives and FamilySearch. Pre-WWII Adjutant General Enlistment Contracts, 1900-1941. Digital images of general enlistment contracts from counties in Missouri.

Similar collections are described in the military sections for the various states under STATE NAME - MILITARY RECORDS.

Awards

 * Navy WWI Victory Medal


 * Information on the issuance or replacement of military service medals, decorations and awards.

Women

 * Women and War
 * Women in World War One
 * Women and the US Navy, WWI Era
 * Female Yeoman

Sources for Further Reading

 * Controvich, James T. United States Army Unit Histories:  A Reference and Bibliography. Manhattan,  Kansas: Kansas State University, n.d.
 * Davis, Henry Blaine, Jr. Generals in Khaki. Raleigh, N.C.: Pentland Press, 1998. (Family History Library book 973 D3dav.) Contains biographical sketches of the generals in the United States army during World War I.
 * Enser, A.G.S. A Subject Bibliography of the First World War: Books in English, 1914-1978. London: A. Deutsch, 1979.
 * Hart, Albert B. America at War: A Handbook of Patriotic Education References. New York: George H. Doran Co., 1918.
 * Knapp, Michael G. “World War I Service Records.” Prologue: Quarterly of the National Archives 22. (Fall 1990): 300–2. (Family History Library book 973 B2p.)
 * Knapp, Michael G., and Constance Potter. “Here Rests in Honored Glory: World War I Graves Registration.” Prologue: Quarterly of the National Archives 23. (Summer 1991): 190–4. (Family History Library book 973 B2p.)
 * Leland, Waldo G. and Mereness, Newton D. Introduction to the American Official Sources for the Economic and Social History of the World War. London: Oxford University Press, 1926.
 * McKinley, Albert E. Collected Material for the Study of the War.  Philadelphia: McKinley Publishing, 1918.
 * New York Public Library. Subject Catalog of the World War I Collection.  Boston: G.K. Hall, 1961.
 * Schaefer, Christina K. The Great War. A Guide to The Service Records of All The World’s Fighting Men and Volunteers. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1998. (Family History Library 940.41 Sch13g.) The United States is covered on pages 123 to 156.
 * Yockelson, Mitchell. “They Answered the Call: Military Service in the United States Army during World War I, 1917–1919.” Quarterly of the National Archives and Records Administration 30. (Fall 1998): 228–34. (Family History Library book 973 B2p.)