Revolutionary War

The American revolutionary era started in 1763 after the British triumphed over the French military threat to their North American colonies, which led to the belief that the colonies should pay an increased share of the associated costs. Britain imposed a series of direct taxes and laws to show their authority, which were considered illegitimate and a violation of the colonists’ rights as Englishmen since they lacked elected representation in the British Parliament. Colonists established Committees of Correspondence, leading to their Provincial Congresses that rejected Parliament and replaced the British ruling apparatus in the colonies, culminating in the First Continental Congress in 1774. British attempts to assert authority in Boston resulted in the Colonies mobilizing their militias, leading to fighting in 1775. Although initially loyal to King George III, the Congress’s pleas for royal intervention resulted in the King’s declaration that the states were “in rebellion,” and Congress members were traitors. In 1776, the Second Continental Congress unanimously adopted a Declaration of Independence, which established the United States as a loose confederation governed through representative democracy selected by state legislatures, rejecting the British monarchy and Parliament.

Pensions and Pension Applications

  • Listings By State
  • 1840 Pensioners Census
    The information contained in this 1840 Pensioners Census database is a compilation of the data on the Revolutionary War pensioners gathered from the 1840 census returns. The information is organized by place – state, county, then township. It also lists the name and age of the veteran, and the name of the head of household with whom the pensioner resided on the census date.

Records at Fold3

Revolutionary War Pensions – $
This collection of records includes digital images of the entire pension file for soldiers and sailors who served during the Revolutionary War. These records reveal more details about the veteran’s history and service unlike selected service records chosen for genealogical content. They also contain more specific information about a soldier’s family, state of health, and life after the war.

Revolutionary War Service Records $
Found here are digital images of the compiled service records for the regular soldiers of the Continental Army, and also for the militia, volunteers and other who served alongside them. The records contained here are arranged under the designation “Continental Troops” by state name, then organization, and then alphabetically by the soldier’s surname. Records consist of card abstracts of entries relating to a soldier from original records. Also found here are regimental lists including muster rolls, pay lists, and caption cards.

Revolutionary War Rolls $
These digital image rolls should be browsed by state and then name of the organization (regiment, battalion, guard, company, etc. Here you will find names of soldiers with the help of annotations supplied by other users and you will be able to add your own. 138 rolls of microfilm contain thousands of records and provide the names and details of the men who fought for independence.

Databases at Ancestry

Biographies of Soldiers in the Revolutionary War

Records for the Revolutionary War

Military Cemeteries

Revolutionary War Records by State

You should check the following sites for County information for Service Records, Pension, Unit Histories, Census, Cemetery and History.

Alabama Revolutionary War Records

Connecticut Revolutionary War Records

  • Record of Service of Connecticut Men in the War of the Revolution
    The several rolls and lists in the following pages have been arranged chronologically according to the description of the service in which the troops engaged. Thus, after the first alarm, the Continental soldiers are classified in the order in which they were called out, then the State troops, and finally the Militia, with special lists following.
  • A Historical Collection From Official Records, Files, &C., Of The Part Sustained By Connecticut, During The War Of The Revolution
    This book discusses a historical collection that documents Connecticut’s involvement in the Revolutionary War. The compiler of this collection faced a challenging task of sifting through poorly preserved records and files to compile an accurate history of the state’s contribution. Despite the difficulty, the compiler believes that the collection will provide readers with new and interesting facts about their ancestors’ deeds during the war. The collection includes a general history of Connecticut’s involvement, as well as an epitome of all the acts of the General Assembly and the Governor and his Council of Safety or Council of War until May 1778. The compiler has faithfully followed the language and orthography of the original records. Additionally, the article notes that Connecticut’s contributions to the war have not been fully recognized in historical accounts, and the compiler seeks to highlight the state’s importance in the revolutionary struggle. Finally, the manuscript is indexed starting at page 629 and mentions prominent men who participated in the war.
  • Chapter Sketches, Connecticut Daughters Of The American Revolution, Vol 1, Patron Saints
    Memoirs of the women standing beside their men during the Revolutionary War. As a state, Connecticut had less reason to complain of the mother-country than had Massachusetts. Its charter made it substantially a self-governing, free state and its rights were not threatened, and, after the repeal of the stamp act, there was no overt act at which it could take alarm for itself. Its people joined the cause largely from principle and sympathy, yet it furnished as large a quota in proportion to its population as did any other state. The characteristic of the Revolutionary spirit in Connecticut, that it was more than elsewhere a matter of principle — even of sentiment — makes the part that women bore in it more significant in our own state than it was elsewhere.
  • Chapter Sketches, Connecticut Daughters Of The American Revolution; Patriots’ Daughters
    Just a word is needed in volume second of Chapter Sketches in explanation of its title, — Patriots’ Daughters — also called Real Daughters and True Daughters. (See the first volume, Patron Saints).The women whose biographies are here presented are the daughters of men who served in the American Revolution and they are honorary members of Connecticut chapters and of the National Society, D. A. R. As a testimonial of this membership the National Society presents to each Real Daughter, all over the country, the highly-prized souvenir gold spoon.
  • Connecticut Military Record, 1775-1848
    Connecticut Military Record, 1775-1848 is a short title given to a longer manuscript awkwardly titled Record of service of Connecticut men in the I. War of the Revolution, II. War of 1812, III. Mexican War. The title is so done as the book comprises two distinct volumes in one book, the first on the Revolutionary war, and then the second combines the War of 1812 and the Mexican war records into one volume. If you believe your ancestor who resided in Connecticut served in the Revolutionary War, War of 1812, or Mexican War, than this book should include them. The list of men is quite exhaustive.
  • Huntington Papers
    The Huntingtons of Norwich are one of the noted families of Connecticut, and the period of the Revolution is recognized as one of the most important in the history of this country. The correspondence here published, consisting as it does of letters written in large part by and to two Huntington brothers during the Revolutionary War, when one of them was in active service in field and camp and the other, perhaps no less active, in the necessary occupations of home pursuits and business affairs, relating in part to the war, makes a volume of wide and lasting interest and value.
  • Lists And Returns Of Connecticut Men In The Revolution
    The major part of Lists and Returns of Connecticut Men in the Revolution, as its title might indicate, is composed of officially written lists and returns of soldiers who were serving in the Continental regiments of the “Connecticut Line.” There are also some rolls of companies in service which had not previously been printed, particularly in 1782 and 1783. Comparatively few new names of soldiers or additional records of service are printed in this volume. Its chief value will be found to consist in the addition in the case of a great majority of the soldiers, of the name of the town from which the soldier came. This will supply much sought for information, and in many cases will doubtless serve to identify the soldier.
  • Orderly Book And Journals Kept By Connecticut Men
    From 1860-1932 the Connecticut Historical Society published a series of books they called “Collections.” Volume VII of this work was published in 1899 and contains the Orderly Book and Journals kept by Connecticut Men while taking part in the American Revolution 1775-1778. This collection of journals consists of 9 distinct journals and orderly books. An index to this work starts on page 371.
  • Rolls And Lists Of Connecticut Men In The Revolution
    This book introduces a supplement to the 1889 volume “Record of Service of Connecticut Men in the War of the Revolution,” edited by Prof. Henry P. Johnston, which includes new rolls and additional information not found in the original volume. The arrangement of the material closely follows the original volume, and some companies credited to the Militia may prove to have served as State Troops. The supplement is essentially a list of soldiers who served, along with an account of their service and records to aid in identifying them. The index lists all names spelled exactly as they appear in the text, with a few exceptions for abbreviations and misspellings. The supplement omits irrelevant information such as the cost of equipment and the total amount disbursed by a captain for the wages and expenses of the men in his company. The manuscript of each roll’s location is given, allowing interested readers to find additional information by referring to the originals.
  • The Tories Of Chippeny Hill, Connecticut
    The Tories of Chippeny Hill, Connecticut; a Brief Account of the Loyalists of Bristol, Plymouth and Harwinton, Who Founded St. Matthew’s Church in East Plymouth in 1791.
  • Yale And Her Honor-Roll In The American Revolution, 1775-1783
    In the Yale and her honor-roll in the American revolution, 1775-1783, including original letters, record of service, and biographical sketches are compiled the missing record, so far as Yale’s part is concerned, of it’s members involvement with the Revolutionary War. The first part includes an outline of the operations in each year of the war, showing the situation wherever graduates were present, and in connection with which some original letters written by them from field and camp are inserted. In the second part will be found the Roll of Honor, or list of all known to have been engaged during the war, with biographical sketches added. Authorities and sources of information are indicated in footnotes, and in an introductory note to the second part.
  • Colonial Wars, 1675-1775 (hosted at Connecticut State Library)
  • Connecticut Men in the Revolutionary War $ (Ancestry.com)

Delaware Revolutionary War Records

Florida Revolutionary War Records

Georgia Revolutionary War Records

Illinois Revolutionary War Records

Kentucky Revolutionary War Records

Maine Revolutionary War Records

Maryland Revolutionary War Records

Massachusetts Revolutionary War Records

New Jersey Revolutionary War Records

New York Revolutionary War Records

North Carolina Revolutionary War Records

Ohio Revolutionary War Records

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Pennsylvania Revolutionary War Records

Rhode Island Revolutionary War Records

South Carolina Revolutionary War Records

Tennessee Revolutionary War Records

Vermont Revolutionary War Records

Virginia Revolutionary War Records

Revolutionary War Maps

Revolutionary War Subscription Databases

Suggested Offline Reading on Revolutionary War Records

Battles Of The Revolutionary War: 1775-1781 – The Americans did not simply outlast the British in the Revolutionary War, contends this author in a groundbreaking study, but won their independence by employing superior strategies, tactics, and leadership.

A Narrative of a Revolutionary Soldier – In this first-hand account of the Revolutionary War, Joseph Plumb Martin narrates his true adventures as an eighteen-year-old private in the Continental Army-and gives a rare glimpse of the earthy beginnings of our nation’s history.

Topics:
Revolutionary War,

Collection:
US Military Records. A directory of resources providing online access to military records. Copyright 1999-2020, AccessGenealogy.

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