Filed under Army Service Records: A Method Guide
What to check first in this record
Copies depend on the holder and on the rules for records of deceased persons, which may ask for proof of death. This site does not request records for you; it explains the holder's process so you can approach the holder directly.
Do not trust a result because it is the only result. A single result with one matching filter is a lead that needs a second record, not a conclusion. Start from the person, not from the record type, and fix name, number, unit and dates as firmly as you can before you open anything.
Making sense of what you find
Do not modernise a place name, a rank or a trade in your notes without keeping the original wording alongside it. The original wording is what the next search needs. Read appendices, maps and marginal notes as part of the entry, not as extras. An appendix can settle a place name, a date, or a name that the daily text leaves vague. Ranks, trades and roles should be read with their dates, because acting rank, temporary postings and reorganisations all leave traces that look like contradictions.
Common traps in this record type
The dead end that matters most is the one you do not notice: a near match quietly adopted, a date quietly rounded, a spelling quietly modernised. The most expensive dead end is a wrong person adopted early. Everything after that looks consistent, because it was built on the wrong foundation. If two records give the same person different numbers, do not pick one and discard the other. Numbers change on transfer, on re-enlistment, and on reorganisation.
Working through it in order
The work goes better in small, dated steps than in broad sweeps. Each step below is small on purpose, and each one makes the next one possible. A step that involves another person, a holder, an archive, or a relative, should be prepared before it is taken. Unprepared requests get vague answers. Work forward through time, not backwards, unless a later record is the only one that names the earlier period. Forward is the direction records explain.
| Step | What to do |
|---|---|
| 1 | Fix the service dates first, so you know which holder is likely to hold the file. |
| 2 | Note the regiment or corps and the service number together, exactly as written. |
| 3 | List postings and transfers in date order, and treat each transfer as a new thread to check. |
| 4 | Test every later record, medal, casualty or war diary entry, against the personal file before adding it to the timeline. |
What should you check next?
Cross-check, rather than collect. One record confirmed by a second, independent record is worth more than five records that all repeat the same source. The end of a guide is a good place to review the timeline for unreferenced entries. Remove them, or mark them, before they harden into facts.
If you have reached the end of what this record type can show, say so in your notes, and name the record type that takes over from here. Research done slowly, with references, outlasts research done quickly, with enthusiasm. Choose the slower kind.
Primary sources for this guide
This guide keeps its claims general and points to the official holders, so the holder itself is the place to check the current position. It is general educational information only, not personal professional advice, and it offers no record lookup service and no determination of any individual's service.