VGS Latest News and Tips: May 29, 2017

Thank You For Your Service

Gen News:

Logan’s General Order No. 11

Memorial Day
"HEADQUARTERS GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC
General Orders No.11, WASHINGTON, D.C., May 5, 1868"
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8 Things You May Not Know About Memorial Day:

History
"For nearly 150 years, Americans have gathered in late spring to honor the sacrifice of those who have given their lives in service to their country. What began with dozens of informal commemorations of those killed in the Civil War has grown to become one of the nation’s most solemn and hallowed holidays. From its earliest incarnation as “Decoration Day” to its modern-day observances, check out some surprising facts about the history of Memorial Day."
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Forgetting Why We Remember:

NY Times
"MOST Americans know that Memorial Day is about honoring the nation’s war dead. It is also a holiday devoted to department store sales, half-marathons, picnics, baseball and auto racing. But where did it begin, who created it, and why?"
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Tech:

Finding Military Records:

Ancestry
"The first step in research is to gather the information you already have. The following records tend to be most useful:"

• Service records
• Journals, diaries, and letters
• Photographs
• Obituaries and newspaper clippings"

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Editor's Note: This site includes a 38 second video that teaches a nice ancestry.com trick on finding military records.

Military Records:

Ancestry
"When researching in military records, it is helpful to determine when and where in the armed service a soldier served, and whether he or she was in the enlisted ranks or an officer. Clues may be found in family stories, old newspaper clippings, correspondence, scrapbooks, journals or diaries, service medals and memorabilia, and photographs of the soldier in uniform."
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Education:

Military Records and the Fire of 1973:

Ancestral Findings
"The National Personnel Records Center suffered a fire in 1973 that destroyed millions of military service records from 1916 to 1964. Here's what happened."
Listen now... 7.02 minutes