Military Records
Research Guides
About the Records
Military service records are federal records generally found at the National Archives and Military Personnel Records Center. The Utah State Archives holds a large collection of military records that includes original territorial militia and some later National Guard records as well as service cards and burial data compiled from newspapers and official records.
Military Records section chief: Robert Inscore
From 1949 to 1965 the man in charge of investigating, compiling, and registering veterans' graves was Robert W. Inscore. Inscore was born in Nephi, Utah in 1922 and himself served in World War II, a private first class in the United States Army. In a newspaper article in 1950 he described himself as a "connoisseur of graveyards." With the assistance of Mrs. Lee Eire, Inscore researched veteran service records both for grave registration and to assist next of kin in obtaining headstone from the Federal government. This business is documented in the Military records section correspondence series, and the results are found in "Veterans with Federal Service Buried in the State of Utah" (1965) and an early computer database, now only existing on microfiche (Series 8490).
| State Archives and Records Service | |
| Veterans' Burial Locations Cards and Forms, ca. 1950-1990 | Series 5339 |
| Veterans' Burial Location Data, [territorial]-1986 | Series 8490 |
| Veterans with Federal Service Buried in the State of Utah Report, 1965- | Series 1560 |
Records of Wars and Conflicts
These military records are relevant to various wars and conflicts with some historical background for those events, especially as they affected the collection and preservation of records.
Sec. 1. Be it enacted by the Governor and Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah, That the Militia of the Territory of Utah shall consist of one legion, to be called the Nauvoo legion.
Utah Territorial Militia (Nauvoo Legion) and Indian Wars
A heritage of the Mormon settlers' time in Illinois, the Nauvoo Legion was designated to serve as the territorial militia in the 1851 Laws of Utah.
The Territorial Militia Records, Series 2210, however began in 1849 when the Nauvoo Legion was reconstituted under the State of Deseret.
The members of the Nauvoo Legion were called to service in conflicts such as the Utah War, 1857-58, and between settlers and Indians (including the Black Hawk War, 1865-72). In the early 20th century, veterans of "Indian Wars" were able to claim a pension after providing proof of service with an affidavit submitted to the Commissioner of Indian War Records.
Throughout the 1870's and 1880's, the Nauvoo Legion became entangled in political struggles between territorial officials appointed by the federal government and local (often Mormon) leaders. Finally, in 1887, the Nauvoo Legion was disbanded as part of the Edmunds-Tucker Act.
Between that time and the creation of the Utah National Guard in 1894, there was no official territorial militia, though several groups did march in parades and otherwise try to maintain the spirit of a local militia.
| State Archives and Records Service | ||
| Territorial Militia Records, 1849-1877, 1905-[1917] | Series 2210 | |
| Territorial Militia Service Cards, 1850-1880 | Series 6195 | |
| Commissioner of Indian War Records | ||
| Militia Name List, 1909-1918 | Series 6330 | |
| Indian Wars Service Affidavits, 1909-1919 | Index | Series 2217 |
| Secretary of State | ||
| Indian War Veteran Medal Records, 1905-1940 | Series 2220 | |
| Secretary of the Territory | ||
| Territorial Executive Papers, 1850-1896 | Series 241 | |
| Board of Examiners | ||
| Indian War Veterans' Fund Records, 1918-1928 | Series 323 | |
Civil War, 1861-1865
The Territorial Militia was given federal duty to guard mail and freight routes. See Series 2210.
| State Archives and Records Service | |
| Territorial Militia Records, 1849-1877, 1905-[1917] | Series 2210 |
Spanish-American War, 1898
| State Archives and Records Service | |
| Spanish American War Service Cards, 1898-1899 | Series 10318 |
| Spanish American War and Philippine Insurrection Service Cards, 1898-1902 | Series 24048 |
| Military Service Cards, 1898-1975 | Series 85268 |
| National Guard | |
| Spanish American War and Philippine Insurrection Muster Rolls, 1898-1899 | Series 10320 |
| Adjutant General's Records, 1895-1965 | Series 6308 |
| Governor (1896-1905 : Wells) | |
| Spanish American War Scrapbook, 1898-1899 | Series 84193 |
Philippine Insurrection, 1899-1902
| National Guard | |
| Spanish American War and Philippine Insurrection Muster Rolls, 1898-1899 | Series 10320 |
| State Archives and Records Service | |
| Spanish American War and Philippine Insurrection Service Cards, 1898-1902 | Series 24048 |
| Military Service Cards, 1898-1975 (few records) | Series 85268 |
Mexican Border Campaign, 1916-1917
| State Archives and Records Service | |
| Mexican Border Campaign Service Cards, 1916-1917 | Series 6131 |
| Military Service Cards, 1898-1975 | Series 85268 |
| National Guard | |
| Mexican Border Campaign Records, 1916-1917 | Series 6305 |
| Mexican Border Campaign Muster Rolls, 1916-1917 | Series 10319 |
| Adjutant General's Records, 1895-1965 | Series 6308 |
World War I, 1917-1918
| Councils of Defense | ||
| Ogden City War Activities Committees records, 1917-1919 | Online | Series 10324 |
| Tooele County Council of Defense Honor Roll, 1914-1919 | Online | Series 29647 |
| Washington County Council of Defense records, 1917-1919 | Online | Series 29641 |
| State Archives and Records Service | ||
| World War I Service Records, 1914-1925 | Series 2793 | |
| Military Service Cards, 1898-1975 | Series 85268 | |
| Military Separation Forms and Benefit Records, 1917-1979 | Series 2794 | |
| World War I Draft Board Registers, 1917-1918 | Online | Series 2229 |
| State Historical Society | ||
| World War I Service Questionnaires, 1914-1918 | Online | Series 85298 |
| World War I Records, 1917-1923 | Online | Series 6307 |
| World War Military Listings, 1917-1951 | Online | Series 19959 |
| National Guard | ||
| Adjutant General's Records, 1895-1965 | Series 6308 | |
| 145th Field Artillery Scrapbook, 1917-1918 | Online | Series 10339 |
World War II, 1941-1945
| State Archives and Records Service | ||
| Military Service Cards, 1898-1975 | Series 85268 | |
| Military Separation Forms and Benefit Records, 1917-1979 | Series 2794 | |
| Veterans' Educational Benefits Records, 1944-1964 | Series 2789 | |
| Military Death Certificates, 1941-1953 (servicemen who died overseas) | Online | Series 3769 |
| State Historical Society | ||
| Selective Service Cards, 1940-1957 | Series 85289 | |
| World War Military Listings, 1917-1951. | Online | Series 19959 |
| National Guard | ||
| World War II Records, 1941-1945 | Series 10327 | |
| Adjutant General's Records, 1895-1965 | Series 6308 |
Korean War, 1950-1953
| State Archives and Records Service | ||
| Military Separation Forms and Benefit Records, 1917-1979 | Series 2794 | |
| Military Service Cards, 1898-1975 (few records) | Series 85268 | |
| Veterans' Educational Benefits Records, 1944-1964 | Series 2789 | |
| Military Death Certificates, 1941-1953 (servicemen who died overseas) | Online | Series 3769 |
| State Historical Society | ||
| Korean War Scrapbooks, 1950-1954 | Series 10342 | |
| World War Military Listings, 1917-1951 | Online | Series 19959 |
| National Guard | ||
| Korean Conflict Index, 1950-1954 | Series 6109 |
Vietnam War, 1964-1972
| State Archives and Records Service | |
| Military Service Cards, 1898-1975 (few records) | Series 85268 |
Modern Service Records
Find records regarding recently separated veterans through services provided by the Utah Department of Veterans and Military Affairs and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
| State Historical Society | |
| Selective Service Cards, 1940-1957 | Series 85289 |
| State Archives and Records Service | |
| Veterans' Educational Benefits Records, 1944-1964 | Series 2789 |
| Military Separation Forms and Benefit Records, 1917-1979 | Series 2794 |
| Military Service Cards, 1898-1975 (few records) | Series 85268 |
| Office of Veterans' Affairs | |
| Veterans' Case Files, 1973-1979 | Series 2255 |
| Discharged Veterans List, 1976-1979 | Series 10343 |
| National Guard | |
| Adjutant General's Records, 1895-1965 | Series 6308 |
| Duty Performed Reports, 1926-1941; 1947-1950 | Series 6347 |
| Biennial Reports, 1896-1956 | Series 10347 |
| Secretary of State | |
| Public Document Serial Set, 1896-1956 | Series 240 |
Burial Listings
Sources
"An act to amend an act entitled 'An act to amend section fifty-three hundred and fifty-two of the Revised Statutes of the United States, in reference to bigamy, and for other purposes,' approved March twenty-second, eighteen hundred and eighty-two." [Edmunds-Tucker Act]. United States Statutes at Large, Volume 24, p. 635. Accessed from https://archive.org/details/usstat/024_statutes_at_large/page/n657/mode/2up on November 24, 2023.
Acts, resolutions, and memorials : passed by the first annual, and special sessions, of the Legislative Assembly, of the Territory of Utah, begun and held at Great Salt Lake City, on the 22nd day of September, A.D., 1851 : also the Constitution of the United States, and the act organizing the Territory of Utah. Published by authority of the Legislative Assembly, Great Salt Lake City, 1852, p. 144-159. Accessed from https://collections.lib.utah.edu/details?id=716838 on November 24, 2023. Also part of Utah State Archives and Records Service, Legislature, Laws of Utah, Series 83155.
Roberts, Richard C. "The Utah National Guard and Territorial Militias," The Utah History Encyclopedia. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1994. Accessed from https://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/u/UTAH_NATIONAL_GUARD.shtml on November 24, 2023.
Page Last Updated April 2, 2019.
About this Guide
Major revisions by Ray Matthews in 1998 and Gina Strack in 2009.