Civil War Service Records

Civil War Soldier Records

More than 6 million individual Civil War service records survive, covering both Union and Confederate soldiers with their regiment, rank, side, and state of enlistment. Every Aubrey report surfaces the soldiers who enlisted near a searched location, alongside the regiments and engagements tied to that ground.

Research a location

Search the service records

Find a real soldier by surname across both armies. Each result links to the soldier’s record on the National Park Service Civil War database.

Searches 6.27 million real Union and Confederate service records by surname, scoped to state of enlistment.

What the records contain

Name

Last, first, and middle name as recorded on the soldier's service record.

Regiment and company

The unit a soldier served in, with company and arm of service, linking each man to a regimental history.

Rank

The rank recorded against the service record, from private through commissioned officer.

Side

Union or Confederate, with United States Colored Troops (USCT) units identified separately.

State of enlistment

The state a soldier enlisted from, the key to placing them near a researched location.

County of enlistment

Where recorded, the county of enlistment, narrowing a soldier to a local community.

Pension files and detailed records

Union soldiers who survived the war could apply for federal pensions. Pension application files are among the richest genealogical records from the Civil War era, often containing physical descriptions, injury accounts, and family information.

Pension files, compiled military service records, and regimental descriptive books are held by the National Archives. Many can be ordered online or viewed at regional facilities.

Browse regiment records ›View LOC photographs ›Civil War battles ›

Common questions

How do I find Civil War soldier records?
More than 6 million individual Civil War service records survive, covering both Union and Confederate soldiers. Each record carries the soldier's name, regiment and company, rank, side, and state of enlistment.
What information is in the soldiers database?
Each record includes the soldier's name, side (Union or Confederate), state and regiment, and often additional details such as rank, enlistment date, and discharge or casualty information.
Are Confederate soldiers in the database?
Yes. The database includes records for both Union and Confederate soldiers. Confederate records are compiled from available muster rolls and regimental histories, though coverage is less complete than Union records.
What is a pension file and how do I find it?
Union soldiers who survived the war could apply for federal pensions. Pension files often contain detailed personal information including physical descriptions, injury reports, and family details. They are held by the National Archives and can be requested online.
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Everything a full the United States report reveals

Pick any location and Aubrey pulls together 18 strands of its history, each drawn from the record:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with historic sites, battles and Native heritage plotted, and its full story era by era.
The Land
The historic sites and place names around the location, and how this land was settled and used.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back millions of years.
LiDAR Terrain
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks and old features hidden in the landscape.
Conflict & War
The battles, raids and skirmishes fought near here, across every era of American conflict.
The Civil War
The Civil War on this ground, 1861 to 1865: who held it, and the battles, camps and regiments nearby.
The Soldiers
The men who marched from here in the Civil War, named and traced where the record allows.
Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
Who claimed and held this ground, from Indigenous homelands through the colonial powers to the United States.
The Community
How the town grew, who came, and what kind of place it became, traced through the census record.
Rivers & Rail
The rivers, canals and railroads that connected this place between 1830 and 1911.
Notable People
The people born, buried or genuinely tied to this exact place, with their stories.
Historical Maps
Historic maps of the location layered over how it looks today.
Finds & Access
Museum objects tied to the area, and the laws on searching, collecting and access here.
Literature
The old books, county histories and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Points of Interest
The most significant historic sites and landmarks near the location, and why they matter.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from first peoples to the present day.
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