United States Civil War, 1861-1865

Getting Started with Civil War Research

 * Beginning United States Civil War Research
 * Getting started with Union records
 * Getting started with Confederate records
 * Civil War Basic Research Sources - National Archives
 * Civil War Genealogical Research 46 min. video
 * Military Records: Civil War 35 min. video
 * Identifying Civil War Ancestors in Your Tree by David Lambert, 9 min. video

Nationwide Databases

 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1861-1865 - United States, Records Of Confederate Prisoners Of War, 1861-1865 at findmypast - Index
 * 1861 - 1866 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1864-1866 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1862-1874 - at FamilySearch — images
 * 1879-1903 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System is searchable by soldier's name and state. It contains basic facts about soldiers on both sides of the Civil War, a list of regiments, descriptions of significant battles, sources of the information, and suggestions for where to find additional information.
 * LSU United States Civil War Center at the Louisiana State University focuses on Civil War records and research. LSU has many Civil War related books and manuscripts. Its Index of Civil War Information Available on the Internet has links to many interesting websites.


 * New York Public Library, "USSC Civil War Search for Soldiers" on the U.S. Sanitary Commission collection of records of over 9,000 sick, wounded, or missing Union servicemen to answer inquiries from their relatives.


 * The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. No serious study of the American Civil War is complete without consulting the Official Records. Affectionately known as the "OR", the 128 volumes of the Official Records provide the most comprehensive, authoritative, and voluminous reference on Civil War operations.


 * U.S., Civil War Roll of Honor, 1861-1865 ($), Index and images.

History
The American Civil War began on 12 April 1861 when troops in South Carolina fired on Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor. Also called the "War between the States" and the "War of Secession", the Civil War lasted until 1865. Approximately 3.5 million soldiers fought in the war resulting in almost 600,000 deaths.
 * American Civil War Battles, 1861-1865

Army

 * U.S. War Department. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. 70 Volumes in 127 parts. 1880–1900. Reprint, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania: The National Historical Society, 1985. National Archives Microfilm Publication M262. (FHL book 973 M29u; films 0845306–426.) This is an FHL filming of the original volumes. (Also available on CD #51 and #52.) The four series of this compilation, known as the Official Records (OR), contain correspondence, battle reports of officers, information on prisoners, and activities of the war departments of both governments. The Official Records are arranged chronologically within regions. An online version is available at Cornell University Library's "Making of America" site.

A supplement to the official records is also available:


 * Hewitt, Janet B., et. al., editor. Supplement to the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Part I Reports, Part II the Record of Events. Wilmington, North Carolina: Broadfoot Publishing, 1994–. (FHL book 973 M29u.) Part II the Record of Events is a transcription of the National Archive Microfilm Publication M594 (Union) and M861 (Confederate) Compiled Records Showing Service of Military Units in Volunteer Organizations. For more information see the unit histories sections for Union and Confederate military units.

The following is an index to this set:


 * Ainsworth, Fred C., and Joseph W. Kirkley. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. . . . General Index and Additions and Corrections. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1901. (FHL book 973 M29u index; film 0430054.) Contains names of officers who submitted reports and the names of military units. The names of individual soldiers who were killed, captured, wounded, missing, drafted, and pensioned and the names of political prisoners are not found in the index. You must search the index under the names of battles, regiments, prisons, government agencies, and bureaus for such lists. References to the OR series number (a Roman numeral) are followed by the number of the volume (an Arabic number). You must then refer to the index in that volume to get the page number.

Navy

 * American Civil War Union Ships
 * U.S. Navy Department. Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion. 30 Volumes. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1894–1922. National Archives Microfilm Publication M275. (FHL book 973 M2unr; films 1490058–88.) Similar to the official records of the armies, it is known as the ORN (Official Records . . . Navy). Its two series contain reports and correspondence on the Northern blockade of Southern ports and on matters concerning the Confederate Navy. Volume 1, series II has an index to Union and Confederate ships, statistical data, and muster rolls of confederate vessels.

The following is an index to this set:


 * Knox, Dudley W. Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion . . . General Index. . . . 1927. Reprint, New York, New York: Antiquarian Press, 1961. (FHL book 973 M2unr index; film 0924604 item 2.) Alphabetically arranged with reference to series and volume number. The page number is located by searching the index in the specific volume referred to in the general index.

A reference aid to the Official Records is:


 * Aimone, Alan C., and Barbara A. Aimone. User’s Guide to the Official Records of the American Civil War. Shippinsburg, Pennsylvania: White Maine Publishing, 1993. (FHL book 973 M29ua.) Provides a history of the compilation of the official records.