Enlisted

An enlistment was a commitment to serve for a stated period, such as five years or the duration of the war in 1812. Records usually give the date and place of enlistment and the officer who enlisted the man.

For Regular Army soldiers, start with the enlistment papers of 1798 to 1894, which usually show age, birthplace, occupation and a physical description, and the Register of Enlistments, 1798 to 1914. A man who served two or more terms usually has more than one enlistment paper. Volunteers are traced through compiled service records instead.