New Hampshire Military Records

United States U.S. Military New Hampshire Military Records

Military records identify millions of individuals who served in the military or who were eligible for service. Evidence that an ancestor actually served may be found in family traditions, census records, naturalization records, biographies, cemetery records, and records of veterans’ organizations. In addition to his record of military service, military records can give birth, marriage, and death dates, names of spouse and children, and localities of residence.

Early military records are generally known as militia records, and many of these can be found in the individual town records. These include muster rolls and payrolls and may list the battles fought. There is a comprehensive listing of federal military records available in the National Archives and other federal archives. For information on these records, consult the United States Military Records Wiki article.

For a military history of New Hampshire, see:

Potter, Chandler Eastman. The Military History of the State of New Hampshire. Concord, N.H.: McFarland & Jenks, 1866. (Family History Library film 1033664; fiche 6046858.) This history comprises events from the first settlements in New Hampshire to the rebellion in 1861. It includes biographical notices of many of the officers and explanatory notes.

Forts

Fort Constitution 1808-68

Fort William and Mary

Fort Stark

Fort Washington

Fort Dearborne

Colonial Military Records (1600s–1775)

New Hampshire Provincial and State Papers, 40 vols. (See "New Hampshire Court Records for the full citation. Family History Library book 974.2 N2nhp, vols. 5, 6, 14, 16.) French and Indian War records (1754–1763) can be found in volume 5, film 1033735; volume 6, film 1033736; volume 14, film 983564; volume 16, film 983565. These volumes each have a name index.

Indian and French Wars and Revolutionary Papers. Salt Lake City: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1975. (Family History Library films 983571–72.) These papers comprise four volumes of records and papers. The index to the papers is in volume one, and the papers are found in volumes 1–4.

Revolutionary War (1775-1783)

If a person supported the Revolution, he may be mentioned in records as a rebel, patriot, or Whig. Those who opposed the Revolution were loyalists or Tories.

Patriots

Service and pension records and indexes for patriots are available on film at the National Archives and the Family History Library. See the United States Military Records Wiki article for these sources. Sources including information specifically about New Hampshire soldiers are:

• United States. War Department. Revolutionary War Rolls 1775–1783. National Archives Microfilm Publications, M0246. Washington D.C.: National Archives, 1957. (On 138 Family History Library films beginning with 830280.) These films contain the jackets (compilation of records) for each soldier. The index for all years is on film 830280. The films listing the jacket numbers of the records are arranged by state. New Hampshire records are found on films 830322–33.
• New Hampshire Provincial and State Papers, 40 vols. (See New Hampshire Court Records for the full citation. Family History Library book 974.2 N2nhp vols.14–17 and 30.) Rolls and documents relating to soldiers in the Revolutionary War are found in volumes 14–17 and 30. Volumes 14 and l5 are on film 983564; volume 16, film 983565; volume 17, film 983566; volume 30, film 983567. Volumes 14 through 17 deal with miscellaneous records for 1775 through 1782. Volume 30 pertains specifically to New Hampshire records. They are all fully indexed. An index to volumes 14–17 is:
• New Hampshire Historical Society. Card Index to Revolutionary and Other Military War Rolls Listed in the New Hampshire State Papers, vols.14–17. Salt Lake City, Utah: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1975. (Family History Library films1001450– 53.) These are films of the original records at the New Hampshire Historical Society in Concord, New Hampshire. The cards are arranged alphabetically by the first letter of the surname.
• Draper, Mrs. Amos G. New Hampshire Pension Records, 1776–1850. Salt Lake City, Utah: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1971. (On 25 Family History Library films beginning with 879672.) These are films of the originals records at the DAR Library in Washington, D.C. The names are alphabetically arranged through volume 99. Volume 100 is an alphabetical listing of miscellaneous names that were missed in the original listing.
• Revolutionary Pensioners Records of New Hampshire: With a Brief Abstract Showing Names of their Wives and Residence. Salt Lake City, Utah: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1951. (Family History Library films 15469–94.) These pensions are arranged alphabetically by surname.

The 1835 Pension Roll

On June 5, 1834, the U.S. Senate required the Secretary of War to submit a statement showing the names of pensioners who were on the pension rolls or had previously been on the pension rolls. For more information on the 1835 Pension Roll see Revolutionary War Pension Records. The pension Roll for New Hampshire is available online.

• Report from the Secretary of War... Vol. I (Google Books)
• New Hampshire Pensioners, 1835 (Ancestry) ($)
• The Pension Roll of 1835, Vol. I (Ancestry) ($)

Additional resources for the Revolutionary War are found in the United States Military Records Wiki article.

Loyalists

Loyalists were those colonists who were loyal to Britain during the American Revolution. Their lives were no different from the patriots. They were farmers, traders, merchants, lawyers, and clergymen who were content under the British rule and saw no reason for change. The loyalists were persecuted by the patriots because of their loyalty, and they were driven from their homes. The records that were kept of their lives and their escape to Canada provide good genealogical information on the families of the loyalists. Following the war, the loyalists filed claims for return of their land. These records are held in the National Archives in Ottawa, Canada, and in London, England. Many of these records have been filmed by the Public Records Office in London, and most are available on microfilm at the Family History Library:

• American Loyalist Claims, AO 12. London, England: Public Records Office, 1972. (On 32 Family History Library films beginning with 1401498.) These films are series one, volumes1–112, and have been indexed by the name of the claimants. They contain original handwritten claims submitted to the British government by citizens in America for losses sustained during the American Revolution as they remained loyal to the Crown.
• American Loyalist Claims, 1730–1835. London, England: Public Record Office, 1960–1962. (Series 13) (On 189 Family History Library films beginning with 944044.) These records consist of bundles of memorials, certificates, accounts, and vouchers of loyalist claims as presented to the commission established to inquire about the claims.
• Bunnell, Paul J. The New Loyalist Index. Bowie, Maryland., Heritage Books, 1989. (Family History Library book 973 M2bun.) This index is a comprehensive list of loyalists in the Revolutionary War. Each entry provides name, regiment, and rank along with brief data on residence, birth, marriage, or death. Some have additional information.

For other loyalist records, see the Canada Military Records Wiki article.

You may also use the Family History Library Catalog Subject Search under:

AMERICAN LOYALISTS

UNITED EMPIRE LOYALISTS

War of 1812 (1812–1815)

The Family History Library has indexes to the federal service and pension files for the War of 1812. See the United States Military Records Wiki article for details and sources.

Civil War (1861 to 1865)

Fort Constitution, New Castle, New Hampshire

See New Hampshire in the Civil War for information about New Hampshire Civil War records, web sites, etc. with links to articles about the New Hampshire regiments involved in the Civil War. The regimental pages often include lists of the companies with links to the counties where the companies started. Men in the companies often lived in the counties where the companies were raised. Knowing a county can help when researching more about the soldiers and their families.

The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System allows name searching for soldiers. The result set gives the regiments for the soldiers. Then you can check the Wiki regiment pages to determine counties. Often knowing the counties that had men in a regiment will help you determine if a soldier was your ancestor.

World War I (1917-1918)

World War I draft registration cards for men age 18 to 45 may list address, birth date, birthplace, race, nationality, citizenship, and next of kin. Not all registrants served in the war. For New Hampshire’s cards see:

United States. Selective Service System. World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917–1918. National Archives Microfilm Publications, M1509. Washington, D.C.: National Archives, 1987– 1988. (On 17 Family History Library films beginning with 1711715.) The cards are alphabetical for each county or registration district. The records include the date of birth and may mention the name of a close relative.

When searching for a person’s registration card, it helps to know his name and residence at the time of registration. The cards are arranged alphabetically by county, within the county by draft board, and then alphabetically by surname within each draft board. Most counties had only one board, large cities had more. Finding an ancestor’s street address in a city directory will help you determine the board number if he lived in a large city.

Haller’s Army. During World War I, the Polish Army in France, commonly called Haller’s Army, recruited about 20,000 soldiers from among Poles living in the United States. Two forms that contain genealogical information were filled out by the recruits. Form A contains each volunteer’s name, address, marital status, number of children, American citizenship status, age, physical description, signature, and recruiting station and the date. Form C contains additional information such as the volunteer’s birth date and place, the address of his closest relative in America and closest relative in Poland, his previous military service, and remarks. All volumes of the collection are available through:

PGS of America
ATTN: Haller’s Army Request
984 N. Milwaukee Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60622

A name index is on the Internet at:

"Haller’s Army Index." In Polish Genealogical Society of America. [Chicago, Illinois: PGSA], 1998 [cited 17 July 1999]. Available at www.pgsa.org/haller.htm.
You can search by surname and first name. The index shows the volunteer’s surname and given name, town and state where he volunteered, his form (form A or C described above, or L, that is, loose papers), and page number.

A microfilm copy of Form A records only is:

United States (with some from Ontario, Canada) Recruits for the Polish Army in France, 1917– 1919: States Represented most Frequently are New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Connecticut, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Delaware, Nebraska & Kansas (for Complete Breakdown See Film Inventory). Salt Lake City: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1995. (On 11 Family History Library films beginning with 1993525.) The forms are in Polish, but at the beginning of each film is a blank form printed in English. The records are not organized by locality and New Hampshire recruits are listed on almost every film. There is, however, an alphabetical list of volunteers for each item.

More military records and sources can be found in the Family History Library Catalog by using a Locality Search under:

NEW HAMPSHIRE- MILITARY HISTORY

NEW HAMPSHIRE- MILITARY RECORDS

NEW HAMPSHIRE, [COUNTY]- MILITARY RECORDS

NEW HAMPSHIRE, [COUNTY], [TOWN]- MILITARY RECORDS

References

New Hampshire Research Outline. Salt Lake City, Utah: Intellectual Reserve, Inc., Family History Department, 1998, 2001.

NOTE: All of the information from the original research outline has been imported into this Wiki site and is being updated here, as time permits.

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