How Do I Read Navy Discharge Papers?

Where should you start looking?

Discharge papers summarise service, character, rating and medals at the leaving date. They are a summary, so check each claim against the fuller service record.

A record that names the right person in the wrong unit, or the right unit on the wrong dates, is a lead, not a match. Keep a note of every filter combination you try, including the ones that failed. A failed search is only useful if you can prove you already tried it.

How do you read what you find?

Read the file backwards as well as forwards. A later sheet often explains an earlier entry that looked, at first reading, like an error. Ranks, trades and roles should be read with their dates, because acting rank, temporary postings and reorganisations all leave traces that look like contradictions. The absence of an entry where the form expects one is worth noting. A blank column can mean not applicable, not recorded, or not surviving, and each means something different.

What are the common dead ends?

A search that returns nothing proves only that nothing matched those terms in that catalogue on that day. It does not prove the record does not exist. Do not confuse a record that is hard to find with a record that does not exist. Difficulty is a property of the search, not of the record. The most common reason a search fails is a date filter that is too tight. Widen the range by a year on each side before you conclude anything is missing.

The order to work in

A method that works is a slow one. Each step below earns the next, and skipping a step does not save time, it creates a check you will have to do later. 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. Do not skip the step that checks the filters. It feels redundant when the filters seem obvious, and it is the step that catches wrong persons. If the same step keeps producing the same wrong person, the filters are wrong, not the record set. Stop and re-fix the person before repeating the step.

1. Fix the service dates first, so you know which holder is likely to hold the file.
2. Note the service number and the rating or rank together, exactly as written.
3. List ships and shore establishments in date order, and treat each draft as a separate check.
4. Test every later record, log entry or casualty entry, against the personal file before adding it to the timeline.

What should you check next?

If the next step is unclear, return to the timeline and find its weakest link. The weakest dated entry, not the most interesting gap, is what to strengthen next. Where the next step involves a different holder, take the reference with you. A holder approached without a reference can only offer general guidance. Keep the person, the number and the dates together, and the rest of the chain follows.