United States Military Unit Histories

United States U.S. Military  Types of Military Records  Unit Histories

Unit Histories
Histories of military units may contain biographies of officers, rosters of soldiers in the unit, and clues to where the soldiers were living when they enlisted. They may also provide dates of death of veterans or their place of residence after their service. It is best to look in the Author/Title search of the Family History Library Catalog on microfiche under the name of the author.

Air Force
For information regarding official military unit histories, contact:

U.S. Air Force Historical Research Agency 600 Chenault Circle Maxwell AFB, AL 36112-6424 Telephone: (334) 953-2395

Army
For information regarding official military unit histories, contact:

U.S. Army Center of Military History 103 3rd Avenue Fort Lesley J. McNair, DC 20319-5058 Telephone: (202) 685-4042

Navy
For information regarding official military unit histories, contact:

U.S. Naval History &amp; Heritage Command Washington Navy Yard, Bldg 57 (3rd Floor) Washington, DC 20374 Telephone: (202) 433-3224

Marine Corps
For information regarding official military unit histories, contact:

U.S. Marine Corps History Division 3078 Upshur Avenue Quantico, Virginia 22134 Telephone: (703) 432-4877

Coast Guard
For information regarding official military unit histories, contact:

U.S. Coast Guard Historian’s Office Commandant (CG-09224) U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters 2100 Second Street SW Washington, D.C. 20593

Other Resources
Civil War unit histories are described in detail on the Civil War Union and Confederate Wiki pages. The following sources are helpful for finding histories of regiments and divisions that participated in World War I, World War II, the Korean War, or the Vietnam War:


 * Controvich, John T., comp. United States Army Unit Histories: A Reference and Bibliography. Manhattan, Kansas: Military Affairs/Aerospace Historian, Eisenhower Hall, Kansas State University, 1983. (FHL book 973 M23cj.) Also includes brief lineages, campaign participation credits, order of battles, and commanding generals.
 * Pappas, George S., et al., comp. United States Army Unit Histories. 2 vols. Rev. ed. Carlisle Barracks, Pa.: U.S. Army Military History Institute, 1971–78. (FHL book 973 B4ua no. 4.) Bibliography of unit histories from 1914 to 1971 for regular Army, National Guard, and Reserve organizations. Regular Army histories of units active prior to 1914 are also included. Entries give title, author, publication information, number of pages, and are arranged by military unit.

Unit Histories by Conflict

 * Colonial Wars, 1607 to 1763
 * Revolutionary War, 1775 to 1783
 * War of 1812, 1812 to 1815
 * Mexican War, 1846 to 1848
 * Civil War, 1861 to 1865
 * Indian Wars, 1780's-1890's
 * Spanish-American War, 1898
 * Philippine Insurrection, 1899 to 1902
 * World War I, 1917 to 1918
 * World War II, 1941 to 1945
 * Korean War 1950 to 1953
 * Vietnam War 1964 to 1972