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| The Revolutionary War began with the confrontation between British troops and local militia at Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts, on 19 April 1775. Throughout the war, state troops and local militias supplemented the Continental (Federal) Army. The total number of men who served is not known. | | The Revolutionary War began with the confrontation between British troops and local militia at Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts, on 19 April 1775. Throughout the war, state troops and local militias supplemented the Continental (Federal) Army. The total number of men who served is not known. |
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| === Service Records ===
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| The National Archives Building, Washington, D.C., holds records relating to:
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| * Volunteer enlisted men and officers whose military service was performed during an emergency and whose service was considered to be in the federal interest, 1775 to 1902
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| Please Note: Most of the records of the American Army from the Revolutionary War era that were in the custody of the War Department were destroyed by fire in 1800 or in 1814. The War Department's Collection of Revolutionary War Records was begun in 1873 by means of purchase, gifts, or transfers from other agencies. The compilation of military service records was begun in 1894, under the direction of the War Department's Record and Pension Office. Information about individual soldiers was meticulously copied onto cards as a means of consolidating information about individuals, as well as preserving the original source documents, including muster rolls, pay rolls, returns, and other records.
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| When researching volunteers, start with the compiled military service records. A volunteer's compiled service record consists of an envelope containing card abstracts taken from muster rolls, returns, pay vouchers, and other records. The abstracted information may include references to wounds, hospitalization, absence from the unit, courts-martial, and death.
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| The general name index and compiled service records for Revolutionary War soldiers are both available on microfilm at the National Archives:
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| * M881, Compiled Service Records of Soldiers who Served in the American Army During the Revolutionary War
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| * M860, General Index to Compiled Military Service Records of Revolutionary War Soldiers.
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| *Beutrich, Mabel E., and Howard N. Wehmann. ''War Department Collection of Revolutionary War Records''. Revised edition. PI 144. Washington, D.C.: 1970. | | *Beutrich, Mabel E., and Howard N. Wehmann. ''War Department Collection of Revolutionary War Records''. Revised edition. PI 144. Washington, D.C.: 1970. |