Tagged: #musterrolls

It’s no secret that military service generated records. When genealogists think of military records, the first type that usually comes to mind is pension records. Why? Because of all military records, the pension application doesn’t simply reveal a soldier’s military service; it also gives critical genealogical information about the applicant, who could be the soldier, his widow, his children, or other legal claimant to a military pension. In some cases, a pension file can contain applications by one or more of these persons. The muster roll, however, is different, and often overlooked. This is because muster rolls are thought of as just lists of names of men who served in military units under certain officers, something akin to a schoolroom roll call. But they can be much more than that, and should be on your research checklist when you have ancestors who served in the military. Before You Start To...