Alabama Mexican War Volunteers Service Cards
Arranged alphabetically by surname. On microfilm.

W. B. Cooke, Third Dragoons Recruiting Papers, 1847-49, SPR345

Alabama Governor Joshua L. Martin, Militia files

The ADAH maintains a number of original and secondary materials on the Civil War to aid patrons in conducting historical and genealogical research. Among the secondary sources of interest to one researching Alabama's part in the Civil War are Walter L. Fleming's Civil War and Reconstruction in Alabama (1905),Willis Brewer's Alabama: Her History, Resources, War Record, and Public Men (1872), and The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Other sources of information include:

Alabama Confederate Service Cards. On-line database, also available on self-service microfilm. This series contains information about individual soldiers from Alabama and was compiled from original sources such as muster rolls, pension files, and records at the National Archives. Service cards typically include the name of the soldier, his home county, his age at the date of his enlistment, the date and place of enlistment, and the company and regiment. Cards may also include a list of the engagements the soldier took part in; whether he was killed, captured, or wounded; and date of parole. The source of information is often cited. Arranged alphabetically by surname.

Index cards to the Confederate Marines, 1861-1865. This series consists of printed index cards, 3 3/8 inches wide by 8 1/2 inches high, with information typed on them about individuals in the Confederate States Marine Corps. These cards contain information on enlistment and/or parole information. Other information detailed includes the rank, company, regiment, type of source (such as a list of paroled prisoners), the place where the action such as enlistment or parole occurred, along with remarks (which often detail actions in which the Marine was involved) and the source of the information. All of these cards were compiled by David M. Sullivan, mostly from Record Group 45 in the National Archives and Records Administration, but also from some published sources such as Thomas L. Schraft, The History of the Confederate States Navy.

National Archives Compiled Service Rolls Index. Available on self-service microfilm. This series consists of an index of Confederate and Union soldiers from Alabama who have National Archives service files. Note: this is an index and not the complete record. Arranged alphabetically by surname.

Confederate Military Unit History Files. This series contains information on individual units from Alabama including manuscript and published histories (particularly Willis Brewer's) of regiments and often the companies that comprised them; rosters of soldiers; correspondence of ADAH Director Thomas M. Owen with veterans; and newspaper clippings. Arranged numerically by regiment.

Confederate Muster Rolls. These original muster rolls, photostats, and transcripts of muster rolls are arranged numerically by regiment, thereunder by company. A container listing is available in the repository.

Civil War and Reconstruction Subject Files. This series consists of secondary information compiled by the ADAH staff consisting of topical information about the Civil War generally and Alabamians' participation specifically. Includes narrative accounts of campaigns, biographies of general officers and notable personalities, and information on a wide variety of topics including African Americans, women, regimental flags, prisoners of war, etc. Arranged alphabetically by topic. A container listing is available in the repository.

Confederate Pension Files. Available on self-service microfilm. This series consists of applications and supporting documentation submitted by veterans or their widows in order to receive pensions from the state of Alabama. Information includes the veteran's name; often his date of birth; residence at time of enlistment; company; regiment; a synopsis of his military career, including a list of campaigns in which he participated and whether he was killed, captured, or wounded; and his or his widow's financial status at the time of the application. Supporting documentation includes affidavits attesting to the veteran's military service. Arranged alphabetically by surname.

1907 Census of Confederate Soldiers in Alabama. Available on self-service microfilm. This series consists of a census of Confederate veterans in Alabama who were still alive in 1907. Included are the veteran's name; residence; pension roll number; place and date of birth; military history (place and date of enlistment, rank and branch of service, company, regiment, names of battles participated in, whether he was wounded, captured, paroled, imprisoned, discharged or transferred); his marital status and vital information about his wife; his current occupation; and the names of any living children. Arranged alphabetically by county, thereunder alphabetically by surname.

1921 Census of Confederate Soldiers in Alabama. Available on self-service microfilm. This series consists of a census of Confederate veterans in Alabama who were still alive in 1921. Included are the veteran's name; residence; pension roll number; place and date of birth; military history (place and date of enlistment, rank and branch of service, company, regiment, names of battles participated in, whether he was wounded, captured, paroled, imprisoned, discharged or transferred); his marital status and vital information about his wife; his current occupation; and the names of any living children. Arranged numerically by regiment, thereunder alphabetically by surname.

Contemporary Newspapers. Alabama newspapers published between 1861 and 1865 provide a good source of information about the formation of military companies--often listing the names of recruits--and accounts of specific campaigns. The Montgomery Advertiser is available on self-service microfilm.

Alabama Governors' Records. These series consist of administrative, correspondence, and appointments files of Alabama's wartime governors, Andrew B. Moore, John Gill Shorter, and Thomas Hill Watts. Included is information about the formation of Confederate units and Home Guard militia units, letters from individuals seeking military exemptions and aid to indigent families of Confederate soldiers, as well as a variety of other topics pertaining to the home front.

Loyalty Oaths. In order to regain their voting rights under the Reconstruction Acts of 1867, men who had borne arms against the United States or otherwise actively supported the Confederacy were required to swear an oath of loyalty to the government of the United States. This series consists of bound volumes of the loyalty oaths from each county and from the major cities in the state. The oaths contain the voter's name, county of residence, his oath swearing loyalty to the United States government, his voting precinct, and the voter registrar's name. Arranged alphabetically by county. Some volumes are closed due to their fragile condition.

1867 Voter Registration Lists. Available on self-service microfilm. This series was created in accordance with an act passed on March 2, 1867, "to provide for a more efficient government of the rebel States," and particularly to extend suffrage to the millions of freedmen across the south. All adult black and white males who had sworn an oath of loyalty to the United States were eligible to register to vote. Included is the person's name, race, length of residence in the state, county and precinct, the book and page where his oath is recorded, naturalization information, and reasons for rejecting some registrants. Arranged alphabetically by county, thereunder chronologically by date of registration.

Letters, Diaries, and Manuscripts. In addition to manuscript collections created by or about specific individuals, i.e. Raphael Semmes, Joseph Wheeler, John Pelham, and William Lowndes Yancey, the ADAH maintains a number of artificial collections pertaining to the Civil War, such as Civil War Collection of Records, Civil War Soldiers Letters, and Confederate Prisoner-of-War Collection. Container listings are available in the repository.

Documenting the Civil War Period Flag Collection at the Alabama Department of Archives and History. This report, completed in 1997, details efforts to document and preserve the Department's Civil War flags. Included are brief histories and color photographs of each flag. In a few cases no photos are available due to the deteriorated condition of the flag. This report is periodically updated to include newly discovered information.

Confederate Officers Photograph Album. This collection contains one hundred and ninety-two cartes-de-visite photographs of officers who served in the Confederate army. The majority of the officers served as either major generals or brigadier generals in the Confederate forces. The collection includes the photographs of many lesser known officers as well as the famous; such as Robert E. Lee, Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard, John Tyler Morgan, Stonewall Jackson, and JEB Stuart. An index is available in the repository. Original photographs are restricted.

Photographs. Among the ADAH's Photographs--Persons--Vertical files may be found many images of Civil War soldiers in uniform. The photo vertical files are arranged loosely alphabetically by surname. Also are a few more specific photograph collections. Container listings are available in the repository.

Maps. The ADAH has a wide variety of maps pertaining to the Civil War. In addition to several original hand drawn maps of specific campaigns, there are numerous photostatic and photocopies of published maps that appeared in publications such as Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper and The Atlas to Accompany the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. A container listing is available in the repository.

Pamphlets. Among the ADAH's pamphlets collections may be found a number of pamphlets pertaining to issues such as states rights, abolition, secession, specific military campaigns, and Reconstruction. A container listing is available in the repository.

Other Civil War links