Defense Attaché Office

U.S. Army Records Centers

Please note that, at the present time, some .mil web addresses are only accessible to users from a .mil address.

National Archives & Records Administration
Archives I, 700 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington DC 20408-0001
Tel: (202) 501 5400 (general inquiries); (202) 501 5410 (genealogy staff)
Website: http://www.archives.gov

[NB: NARA Archives I holds textual & microfilm records on pre-World War II military and naval/maritime-related matters. Related special media and non-textual records, such as still and motion pictures, electronic, cartographic records, etc are located at Archives II.]

Attn: Textual Reference Branch (NNR 1) Room 13W

• Military Service Records for individuals who left the Army between 1789 - Oct 1912 (enlisted), - Jun 1917 (officers)
• Morning reports, pre 1917
• Unit rosters, pre 1917
• Unit operational records, pre 1939
• Confederate States Army personnel records 1861-1865

National Archives & Records Administration
Archives II, 8601 Adelphi Road
College Park MD 20740-6001
Tel: (301) 713 6800
Website: http://www.archives.gov

[NB: NARA Archives II maintains cartographic/architectural holdings; electronic records; still and motion picture, sound and video records; and textual records on military-related matters dating from World War II onwards.]

Attn: Textual Reference Branch
Tel: (301) 713 7250

• Unit operational records 1939-1954 (all units), and 1954- present (units serving in SE Asia)

Attn: Still Pictures Branch, Special Archives Division
Tel: (301) 713 6660

• Photos - Official Army Photograph repository, 1861-the last eight years

Attn: Motion Picture, Sound & Video Branch, Special Archives Division
Tel: (301) 713 7060

• Motion Pictures - Official Army repository, 1898-present

National Personnel Records Center
9700 Page Avenue
St Louis MO 63132-5100
Website: http://www.archives.gov/facilities/mo/st_louis.html

Attn: Military Personnel Records
• Official Military Personnel Files for individuals who left the Army since Nov 1912 (enlisted), since Jul 1917 (officers)
  (NB - The major portion of the Army's service records dating from 1912-1959 were destroyed by fire in 1973, when some 17 million personnel files were lost.)
  (NB - the above information is available only to the veteran his/herself or, if deceased, next-of-kin. Requests must be made in writing, signed & dated, on the appropriate forms.)
• Morning reports, November 1912-1974 (& PDC cards 1974 onwards)
• Unit rosters, 1912-1974 (excluding 1944, 1945, 1946) Regular Army

U.S Army Human Resources Command
Hoffman Building I
2461 Eisenhower Avenue
Alexandria VA 22331-0301
Tel: (703) 325 5303
Website: https://www.hrc.army.mil/

Attn: Casualty & Memorial Affairs Ops Cntr (TAPC-PEC)

• Location details for Army members buried in overseas U.S. Military cemeteries (post 1941)

U.S Army Human Resources Command
Hoffman Building II
200 Stovall Street
Alexandria VA 22332-0400
Tel: (703) 325 8699/8700
Website: https://www.hrc.army.mil

Attn: Freedom of Information Act & Privacy Division (Room 7N53)

• Unit operational records, 1954-present (units not serving in SE Asia)
• Organizational history files, 1955-1979
Attn: Military Awards Branch (TAPC-PDA)
• Awards information for individuals still on active duty

U.S. Army Reserve Personnel Center
9700 Page Avenue
St Louis MO 63132-5200
Website: http://www.army.mil/usar/arpercen/arpercen.htm

Attn: ARPC-SFS-E (Soldier Family Support - Entitlement Directorate)
• Replacement awards - requests must be made in writing along with supporting evidence (ie copy of citation, etc).
  (NB - replacement awards are issued from a separate office and can take between 12-18 months to arrive)

Attn: ARPC-SFR-SSD

• Unit rosters, etc, 1917-present, Army Reserve (for individual requesting his/her own file)

Attn: APRC-IMP-F (FOIA OFFICE)
Tel: (314) 538 2974
Fax: (314) 538 3567
• Unit rosters, etc, 1917-present, Army Reserve (for requests from the general public - submit written request under Freedom of Information Act)

Attn: ARPC-SF-C, Tel: (314) 263 6951/2/3; (800) 318 5298 (Customer Services)
• To contact individual personnel on the Army Ready Reservist list (written requests only)

Attn: ARPC-SFE (Veterans' Services Directorate)
• Award information for individuals no longer in the Service
  (written requests, signed & dated, must include name, service/soc. sec. no., & return address)

Attn: General Officers' Management Branch
Tel: (314) 538 3550
• Reserve personnel records of O-7 and above officers

Attn: National Guard Personnel Office
Tel: (314) 538 3594/2939
• Army National Guard personnel records

U.S. Army Active Personnel Locator
U.S. Department of the Army, Worldwide Locator
Fort Benjamin Harrison IN 46249-5301
Tel: (317) 542 4211 (rec'd); 542 4198; (703) 325 3732 (Washington, DC, rec'd)

• To contact active duty Army personnel. See Tracing Missing Persons for further details

U.S. Army Center of Military History
1099 14th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20005-3402
Tel: (202) 761 5413
Website: http://www.army.mil/cmh

Attn: Organizational History Branch
• Organizational history files, 1980-present
• Information regarding unit lineages and honors

U.S. Army Military History Institute
Carlisle Barracks PA 17013-5008
Tel: (717) 245 3611
Website: http://carlisle-www.army.mil/usamhi/

• General historical inquiries
• Selected official & unofficial papers (ie unit histories, personal papers and diaries)

U.S. Army Publishing Agency
2800 Eastern Boulevard
Baltimore MD 21220-2896
Tel: (410) 671 2272
Website: http://www.usapa.army.mil

• Official U.S. Army publications

U.S. Army Institute of Heraldry
9235 Gunston Road, Room S-112
Fort Belvoir VA 22060-5579
Tel: (703) 806 4968/4969

• Information regarding insignia, uniforms, flags, etc

Department of Defense Visual Information Center (DVIC)
1363 Z Street, Bldg. 2730
March Air Field CA 92518-2073
Tel: (909) 413 2522 (still photos), 413 2515 (motion media)
Website: http://www.dodmedia.osd.mil

• Official photographs and videos pertaining to the U.S. Army within the last eight years

(NB: Fees are charged for all DVIC products)

NB:   U.S. Army morning reports and PDC cards contain names and service numbers of individuals entering or leaving the unit on a given day; U.S. Army unit rosters contain details of everyone attached to the unit on a given day.

back to top ^