Source Information

Ancestry.com. Utah, U.S., Military Records, 1861-1970 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.
Original data:
  • Utah State Historical Society World War I Service Questionnaires [1914-1918]. Series 85298. Microfilm, 25 reels. Utah State Archives and Records Service, Salt Lake City, Utah.
  • Department of Administrative Services. Division Archives and Records Service Military Service Cards [ca. 1878-1975]. Series 85268. Microfilm, 116 reels. Utah State Archives and Records Service, Salt Lake City, Utah.
  • Governor Wells Spanish American War Scrapbook [1898-1899]. Series 84193. Microfilm, 1 reel. Utah State Archives and Records Service, Salt Lake City, Utah.
  • Department of Administrative Services. Division Archives and Records Service Spanish American War, Philippine Insurrection Service Cards [1898-1902]. Series 24048. Microfilm, 1 reel. Utah State Archives and Records Service, Salt Lake City, Utah.
  • Department of Administrative Services. Division Archives and Records Service Utah Indian Wars, Territorial Militia Service Cards [1850-1880]. Series 6195. Microfilm, 1 reel. Utah State Archives and Records Service, Salt Lake City, Utah.

About Utah, U.S., Military Records, 1861-1970

This database contains military records on Utah servicemen and women created or collected by various state government agencies. They include questionnaires, index cards, photographs, and newspaper clippings going back to the days of Utah’s territorial militia.

World War I Service Questionnaires, 1914-1918

The Utah State Historical Society sent these questionnaires to Utah World War I veterans and their families shortly after the war in an attempt to compile a history of the war as it related to the state. The four-page questionnaires were filled out by the veteran or a family member and asked for both personal and military information, including

  • name
  • home address
  • birth date
  • race
  • parents’ names
  • education
  • occupation (and name and address of employer)
  • marital status
  • wife’s name
  • number and names of children
  • induction details (date, service, unit, training camps and time spent there)
  • oversea service details
  • promotions (rank, dates, discharge, citations)
  • casualty information (wounded, killed, accident; dates; places)

Respondents were also asked to provide a photograph and other clippings or relevant materials.

Military Service Cards, ca. 1878-1975

In 1942 the Utah State Historical Society began creating a record of Utahns’ military service in World War II. In 1957, the scope was broadened to encompass all Utah veterans, and this collection includes sets of index cards extracting records from the Spanish-American War through Vietnam, though cards for Korean and Vietnam are not comprehensive. Veterans may be found in more than one card set.

Card sets include

  • World War I
  • Red cards (died in service)
  • World War II
  • Peacetime service
  • Indices to newspaper articles
  • Spanish-American War
  • Other veteran and nonveteran cards
  • Korean War
  • Vietnam War

Some cards may list as little as a name and address, while others include extensive personal and military service information: birth dates, marital status and wife’s name and address, next of kin, burial place, unit information, places and dates of enlistment and service, discharge details, etc.

Governor Wells Spanish-American War Scrapbook, 1898-1899

This scrapbook was compiled by the governor’s office during the Spanish-American War and documents events related to Utah and the war with newspaper clippings.

Spanish-American War, Philippine Insurrection Service Cards, 1898-1902

This card file was created between 1957 and 1965 by the Military Records Section of the Utah State Historical Society to document the service of Utahns in the Spanish-American War and Philippine Insurrection. Cards include

  • name
  • unit
  • enlistment date
  • discharge date

Utah Indian Wars, Territorial Militia Service Cards, 1850-1880

Information about members of the territorial militia, also known as the Nauvoo Legion, was extracted by the Military Records Section of the Utah State Historical Society. Cards list

  • name
  • rank
  • company
  • captain’s name
  • dates of service
  • payroll number (on some cards)

Other details, such as a pension claim number or burial information, are sometimes included as well. The cards are not a comprehensive list of all members of the territorial militia.

Records in this database can be searched by

  • name
  • county
  • dates of military service
  • birth date
  • birthplace
  • father’s name
  • mother’s name