Military
Records: World War II & Korean Conflict Overseas Interments
1. What is the original source of the data on this CD-ROM?
2. What historical background should I know to use this
data?
3. Why are there discrepancies between the number of records
shown here and
war statistics on file elsewhere?
4. How can I obtain copies of these records ?
1. What is the
original source of the data on this CD-ROM?
This CD-ROM is
comprised of the service records of more than 160,000 American patriots who
were stationed around the world and interred outside the continental United
States between 1940 and the early 1990s.
Each entry gives the soldier’s name, rank, unit, place of induction into
the service, death date, location of interment, and a list of awards received
from the military. These records are
also preserved in the National Archives.
2. What historical background
should I know to use this data?
You really
don’t need to be familiar with any specific historical information to use this
CD-ROM. Some helpful facts and battle
dates of US involvement in the war are listed below (dates can be useful as a
“cross-reference” if you know which conflicts your ancestors were involved in):
1932
·
November 8 - Franklin Delano
Roosevelt elected President of the US.
1934
·
August 2 - German President
Hindenburg dies; Adolf Hitler becomes the Fuhrer.
1939
·
September 1 - Germany invades
Poland. World War II officially begins.
·
September 5 - Roosevelt issues
neutrality proclamations. Increase in all armed forces’ enlistment and
authorization of retired officers, men and nurses to be called to Navy and
Marines active duty.
·
November 4 - Neutrality Act of
1939. Arms embargo repealed.
1940
·
May 7 - Pacific Fleet ordered
to remain indefinitely in Hawaiian waters by Roosevelt.
·
July 10 - Battle of Britain
begins.
·
September 16 - Roosevelt signs
Selective Training & Service Act; 16 million register for draft.
·
November 5 - Roosevelt
re-elected.
1941
·
March 11 - Lend-Lease Act.
1939 Neutrality Act changed to allow aid to Allies.
·
June 12 - All members of the
Naval Reserve not in deferred status are called to active duty.
·
December 7 - Surprise attack
on US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor—360 Japanese aircraft sink 6 ships and
damage 12 others. US aircraft carriers were not present at Pearl Harbor,
escaping the attack. Japanese declaration of war reaches Washington; Roosevelt
orders mobilization.
·
December 8 - US and Britain
declare war on Japan.
·
December 11 - Germany and
Italy declare war on the US; US declares war on Germany and Italy.
·
December 31 - Japanese
submarines shell Kauai, Maui and Hawaii.
1942
·
March 17 – In agreement with
Allied gov’ts, US responsible for defense of entire Pacific Ocean.
·
May 4-9 - Battle of Coral Sea.
·
June 4-6 - Battle of Midway.
·
November 12-15 - Naval Battle
of Guadalcanal. (US and Japan)
1943
·
March 2-3 - Battle of Bismark
Sea. (US/Australia & Japan) [Many battles vs Japan all year.]
1944
·
January 27 - Siege of
Leningrad ends after 900 days.
·
June 6 - D-Day. Allied Exped.
Force under command of US Gen. Eisenhower invades W. Europe.
1945
·
April 12 - President Roosevelt
dies; Vice President Harry S. Truman becomes President.
·
April 30 - Hitler commits
suicide as Russian troops reach the Reichstag.
·
May 5 - Cease fire issued on
the Western Front.
·
May 8 - V-E Day is declared.
·
August 8 - "Fat Man"
atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Kyushu, Japan.
·
August 14 - Japan accepts
provisions of the Potsdam Declaration and agrees to surrender.
·
August 15 - V-J Day declared.
3. Why are there discrepancies
between the number of records shown here and war statistics on file elsewhere?
This
product contains only records for
overseas interments for World War II and the Korean Conflict, so the ratio of
records to total deaths for these events is not likely to be high. According to Mr Alan Aimone, Archivist of
the Military Academy at West Point,
“Incomplete U.S. Marine Corps
and U.S. Navy personnel World War II capture
records will account for some
of the discrepancy. Some military
figures are
educated guesses for planning
purposes and estimating various contingencies.
Sometimes reporters,
historians, media information gatherers etc. see these
estimated figures and take
them as actual numbers. Also,
information is given
with clarification and
published or broadcast material gets out without the
clarification statements.”
4. How can I obtain copies of these records?
The data in this compilation was collected from
the National Archives. For more
information on how to get copies of individual records, visit
http://www.nara.gov/research/
or send a specific e-mail message to inquire@nara.gov
or write to get details on obtaining the forms
necessary to request records at
National Archives and Records
Administration
General
Reference Branch, Attn: NWCTB
700
Pennsylvania Ave NW
Washington,
D.C. 20408-0001
(Note: When writing to request further
information, be sure to describe the type of record you are looking for and
which war corresponds to it. If you
know the state you need, include that as well.
For the data you find on this CD-ROM, you will most likely require NATF Form 80.)