Post edited 3:40 pm – May 9, 2011 by cmccune

Daniel H. Reigle, Ohio Civil War Genealogy Journal,  Originally published in Volume X, #3, 2006.  Revised March 2008. All rights reserved.

In most Civil War genealogy research cases, the individual's Compiled Military Service Record (CMSR) or pension file (if any) are basic source  documents.   The National Archives and  Records Administration has now made it possible to order the CMSR or pension  file online with these fees:   Compiled  Military Service Record, $25; basic pension documents package, $25; complete  pension file, $75. (The $75 for the complete pension file covers up to 100  pages; additional pages can be ordered at $0.65 per page.)

If you want the pension documents, your basic decision will be whether  to spend $25 for the "basic pension documents" packet, or $75 for the  "full pension file".   The risk  is that sometimes there is not much difference between the two, especially if  there were no extenuating circumstances to the application, such as contested  medical conditions, difficulty providing proof of marriages, etc.   This decision should be driven by your degree  of interest in the person; if you are looking for general information only or  are not sure this is even the correct person, the Basic package will be  sufficient; you can order the complete file later if it seems worthwhile. If this is a person for whom you want to know  every available bit of information, then save the interim step and order the  complete file.

Here's how to do it:

1. Go to the NARA website,  
2. Pick  "Order Copies", on the left side, under Research & Order,
3. Under  "What Do You Want To Order", pick "Military Service  Records"
4. Under  "Military Service Records", pick "pre WW-I Service  Records"
5. Under the  green bar, select the option you want to order (Military Service Record or  Pension Claim File) and pick "Order Online" for that option.
6. Select the  bar to "Proceed To Order Online"
7. Under the  heading "Archival Records & Microfilm", select "Made To Order  Reproductions"
8. Under the  heading "Archival Record Reproductions"   in the middle of the page, pick "Military Service And Pension  Records"
9. This page  offers you the choice of the basic pension file, complete pension file, or  compiled military service record.   Make this new page a "Favorites", so you can go straight  to it in the future
10. Select one of  the three options of basic or complete pension file, or CMSR.
11. Pick  "add to cart".
12. Go through  the registration as a new user
13. You will then  have an application form to fill out.   Put everything in about the individual that you know.   If you are ordering a pension file and  have found an entry for your soldier and/or widow in the pension
    index,   include all of the numbers  on the index card, both applications and certificates, soldier and widow
    and minors) in the comments section.
14. Complete the  order with your credit card instructions and shipping instructions.

I have been getting these back in about a month, although NARA doesn't promise that  timing.   I think it helps to conduct a  thorough name search in the pension index (Ancestry.com), so that you can  determine if there is a pension file in existence, if the name is spelled  correctly, and if so, include all application and certificate numbers on pension  file orders.   It also helps to conduct a  thorough name search on the CMSR index, using the Civil War Soldiers &  Sailors System, to identify the correct person and unit, with the spelling as  it is used on the service record.

For more information, see "Resources for  Getting Started on Civil War Genealogy Research" in OCWGJ Vol. IX (2005), Issue 4, pp. 166-169.