Search U.S. Colored Troops Military Service Records, 1861-1865

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Description:

This database contains Compiled Military Service Records of several Colored Troops that served in the American Civil War. Compiled Service Records can contain a variety of records and include such information as name of solider, age, birthplace, enlistment date, and enlistment location.

This database contains Compiled Military Service Records for the following Colored Troops that served in the American Civil War:

  • Volunteer Union soldiers of the 55th Massachusetts Infantry
  • Volunteer Union soldiers of the 1st through 5th United States Colored Cavalry, the 5th Massachusetts Cavalry, and the 6th United States Colored Cavalry
  • Volunteer Union soldiers of artillery units
  • Volunteer Union soldiers of the 1st United States Colored Infantry, 1st South Carolina Volunteers, and Company A, 1st United States Colored Infantry (1 Year)
  • Volunteer Union soldiers of the 14th through 19th infantry units
  • Volunteer Union soldiers of the 2nd through 7th Colored Infantry, including 3rd Tennessee Volunteers, 6th Louisiana Infantry, and 7th Louisiana Infantry
  • Volunteer Union soldiers of the 8th through 13th Infantry Organizations
  • Volunteer Union soldiers of the 20th through 25th Infantry Organizations
  • Volunteer Union soldiers of the 26th through 30th Infantry Organizations
  • Volunteer Union soldiers of the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment
  • Volunteer Union soldiers of the 31st through 35th Infantry Organizations

All of these units were part of the United States Colored Troops (USCT). The USCT was comprised of:

  • 7 numbered cavalry regiments
  • 14 numbered artillery regiments
  • 144 numbered infantry regiments
  • Brigade Bands No. 1 & 2 (Corps d’Afrique and U.S. Colored Troops)
  • Powell’s Regiment Colored Infantry
  • Southard’s Company Colored Infantry
  • Quartermaster Detachment
  • Pioneer Corps, 1st Division, 16th Army Corps
  • Unassigned Company A Colored Infantry
  • Unassigned USCT

The Compiled Service Records consist of service cards that contain information extracted from muster rolls, regimental returns, descriptive books, and other records. A new card was created each time a soldier’s name appeared on a new document. The Compiled Service Records also consist of original documents that pertain to individual soldiers. These documents could include enlistment papers, casualty sheets, death reports, and correspondence, among others. A typical packet for each soldier will include a jacket-envelope that lists his name, rank, unit, and card numbers, followed by the extract cards and original documents. A section called “bookmark” may also be included. This “bookmark” was used to cross reference the packet with other related records.

Miscellaneous cards not associated with a packet are also included. These records were collected with the intent that they would become part of the Compiled Service Records. However, insufficient or contradictory information made it difficult to link these records to a particular soldier.

What information is included in this database:

The amount of information included in this database varies according to the type of records included in each packet. However, when available, the following pieces of information are provided:

  • Name of soldier
  • Age
  • Birthplace
  • Enlistment date
  • Enlistment location

Additional information about a soldier, such as a physical description, may be found by viewing the associated images.

Some of the above information was taken from the Publication Details of National Archives Microfilm Publications M1801, M1817-M1824, M1898, and M1992, National Archives, Washington, D.C.

Source Information:

Ancestry.com. U.S. Colored Troops Military Service Records, 1861-1865 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2007. Original data:

  • Compiled Military Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers Who Served with the United States Colored Troops: 55th Massachusetts Infantry (Colored); (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1801, 16 rolls); Records of the Adjutant General’s Office, 1780’s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  • Compiled Military Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers who Served with the United States Colored Troops: 1st through 5th United States Colored Cavalry, 5th Massachusetts Cavalry (Colored), 6th United States Colored Cavalry; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1817, 107 rolls); Records of the Adjutant General’s Office, 1780’s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  • Compiled Military Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers Who Served with the United States Colored Troops: Artillery Organizations; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1818, 299 rolls); Records of the Adjutant General’s Office, 1780’s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  • Compiled Military Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers Who Served with the United States Colored Troops: 1st U.S. Colored Infantry, 1st South Carolina Volunteers (Colored) Company A, 1st U.S. Colored Infantry (1 Year); (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1819, 19 rolls); Records of the Adjutant General’s Office, 1780’s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  • Compiled Military Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers Who Served with the United States Colored Troops, 2nd through 7th Colored Infantry including 3rd Tennessee Volunteers (African Descent), 6th Louisiana Infantry (African Descent), and 7th Louisiana Infantry (African Descent); (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1820, 116 rolls); Records of the Adjutant General’s Office, 1780’s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  • Compiled Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers Who Served with the United States Colored Troops: Infantry Organizations, 8th through 13th, including the 11th (new); (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1821, 109); Records of the Adjutant General’s Office, 1780’s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  • Compiled Military Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers who Served with the United States Colored Troops, Infantry Organizations; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1822, 105 rolls); Records of the Adjutant General’s Office, 1780’s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  • Compiled Military Service Records of Volunteer Soldiers Who Served with the United States Colored Troops: Infantry Organizations, 20th through 25th; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1823, 98 rolls); Records of the Adjutant General’s Office, 1780’s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  • Compiled Military Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers with the United States Colored Troops: Infantry Organizations, 26th through 30th, Including the 29th Connecticut (Colored); (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1824, 108 rolls); Records of the Adjutant General’s Office, 1780’s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  • Compiled Military Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers who Served with the U.S. Colored Troops, 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment (Colored); (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1898, 20 rolls); Records of the Adjutant General’s Office, 1780’s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  • Compiled Military Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers Who Served with the United States Colored Troops: Infantry Organizations, 31st through 35th; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1992, 86 rolls); Records of the Adjutant General’s Office, 1780’s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
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