Military Records--Revolutionary Pension and Fold3 Database

The August meeting of the Windham County Genealogy Interest Group was held as a hybrid meeting: in person at the Rockingham Free Public Library Meeting Room, 2nd Floor, in Bellows Falls and via Zoom on Saturday, August 6, at 11 AM, EDT.

Using Revolutionary War Pension Applications: This collection at the National Archives includes over 10 million records on about 80,000 veterans. The records include the entire pension files for soldiers and sailors who served in the Revolutionary War. They reveal details about each veteran’s history and service, as well as information about his family, health, and life after the war. A widow’s application can be even more helpful for genealogy, since she also had to provide information about their marriage. We will show how to find the records online, and we will give examples of what kinds of family history information might be found.

Using Fold3, a Military Records Database: a database to find military records, including the stories, photos, and personal documents of the men and women who served. The Fold3 name comes from a traditional flag folding ceremony in which the third fold is made in honor and remembrance of veterans who served in defense of their country and to maintain peace throughout the world. There are more than 590 million images with 2 million added monthly. Records include all military conflicts from the American Revolution through Afghanistan conflicts as well as , but also includes records from Australian, British and Irish, Canadian, and New Zealand Forces.

The Windham County (Vt.) Genealogy Interest Group is an informal organization whose members are dedicated to genealogy education, research, and best practices. Meetings are held every other month on Zoom. Many of these sessions were recorded and are available on the WCGIG YouTube Channel, which cover topics as: improving your search results in FamilySearch.org and Ancestry.com; using family tree software; navigating the crowd sources cemetery database, Find A Grave; using land records for genealogy research; using AmericanAncestors.org, the database of the New England Historic Genealogical Society; finding people in the newly released 1950 U.S. Census.

For more information please contact windhamcountygig@gmail.com. Our next meeting will be Saturday, November 5, at 11 AM, in person at the Brooks Memorial Library in Brattleboro, and via Zoom.