Reference Collection: Military Research
Colonial Wars
Revolutionary War (1775-1783)
War of 1812
Mexican War (1845-1848)
Civil War (1861-1865)
Post-Civil War
Introduction
The Reference Division has a variety of registers for Rhode Islanders in the military from the colonial period through the Civil War.
For the post-Civil War period up through World War II, the Reference
Division has regimental histories that may include rosters of soldiers.
Sources for post-World War II conflicts may be relatively limited; our
extensive collection of Rhode Island
newspapers may be the best resource. The newspaper collection
could also be a highly valuable source for contemporary accounts of any
conflict from the Revolutionary period to the present.
Official Rhode Island military records:
the best places to search for official records for Rhode Islanders in the
military from the Revolutionary period to the present are the Rhode Island State
Archives or the National Archives and
Records Administration (NARA). However, records for the Revolution
and the Civil War can also be found in our Manuscripts Division's
Revolutionary War
Military Records (MSS 673, subgroup 2) and
Civil War Military Records (MSS 673,
subgroup 4). Manuscripts also has records
relating to the colonial wars, the War of 1812, and peacetime militia
units. Please visit the Government
Records page for more information.
Military Research Resources: Reference
Colonial Wars
The Reference Division has histories, regimental
histories, and/or registers of Rhode Island or New England soldiers for the following wars.
The amount of material available for each war varies.
King Philip's War (1675-1676)
King William's War (see also Quebec Expedition, 1690)
Queen Anne's War (1702-1713)
King George's War (1744-1748)
French and Indian War (Seven Years’ War)
(1755-1762)
Additionally, Manuscripts
has a small
collection of Colonial
militia records (MSS 673, subgroup 1). A published list of pre-1850 Rhode Island military
and civil officers,
Joseph Jenckes
Smith's Civil and Military List of Rhode Island,
1647-1850, is located in the first floor reading room.
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Revolutionary War (1775-1783)
There is no single published source
that lists all Rhode Island Revolutionary War soldiers. For a discussion
of Rhode Island Continental troops, Anthony Walker's So Few the Brave
(Newport, RI: Seafield Press, 1981) is a useful source. The Reference
Division also
has lineage books and yearbooks of the Daughters of the American
Revolution (DAR), as well as the following sources:
- DAR Patriot Index (Centennial Edition)
- Genealogical Abstracts of Revolutionary War
Pension Files (compiled by Virgil D. White)
- Spirit of ‘76 in Rhode Island
(Cowell)
-
Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolutionary War
-
Historical Register of Officers of the
Continental Army
(Heitmann)
Additionally, Manuscripts
contains an important collection of original
muster rolls and clothing reports in the Revolutionary War Military
Records (MSS 673, subgroup 2). For a list of Revolutionary-era Rhode Island military
and civil officers, please see
Joseph Jenckes
Smith's Civil and Military List of Rhode Island,
1647-1850. This source and titles in the above list are available in the
first floor Reading Room.
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War of 1812
The Reference Division's selection of sources about the War of 1812
includes Index to War of 1812 Pension Files, transcribed by Virgil
D. White (Waynesboro, TN: National Historical Publication Co., 1989).
Please check our card catalog for additional titles. There is also a small
collection of records from this war in Manuscripts in War
of 1812 Military Collection, (MSS
673, subgroup 3).
Mexican War (1845-1848)
In addition to contemporary Rhode Island
newspapers, the Reference Division's sources on the Mexican War
include a small number of general histories.
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Civil War
The main
Reference source listing Rhode Island men who served in the Civil War is Annual Report of the Adjutant General of the State of Rhode Island and
Providence Plantations For the Year 1865
(1893). Each volume of this two-volume set is indexed with the
soldier's name and the regiment and company / battery in which he served.
The records include rank, place of residence, date of enlistment, details
of service, and conditions under which the soldier's service ended. The Report
also includes brief regimental histories. The Reference Division also
has personal narratives and other regimental histories for Rhode Island
Civil War units, as well as an extensive collection of
Rhode Island newspapers, which could
be an invaluable source for contemporary accounts of the war.
For official Civil War records, please
contact the National Archives and Records
Administration or the
Rhode Island State Archives.
Some Rhode Island records, such as muster rolls and clothing lists, may
also be found in our
Manuscripts collection of Civil War Military
Records, (MSS 673, subgroup 4).
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Post-Civil War
For official military records for post-Civil War conflicts, please
contact either the
Rhode Island State Archives
or the National Archives and Records
Administration. The Reference Division's resources for wars after
1865 may include registers, personal narratives, regimental histories, or
general histories. Additionally, our extensive collection of Rhode
Island newspapers can be a valuable source for contemporary accounts
of wars from the late-19th century to the present day, as well as
obituaries or articles concerning Rhode Island soldiers or medical
personnel.
Our Manuscripts
collection may also have papers or records for post-Civil War
conflicts.
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