How to read a 1917 WWI draft card, field by field

A real June 5, 1917 draft registration card, front and back, explained question by question: what each answer tells you and what to search next.

World War I draft registration card of Alvin C. York, Fentress County, Tennessee, June 5, 1917: two National Archives scans joined, the whole front (top) and the upper part of the back (below; the blank lower part is left out). NAID 596217.16 fields

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Field by field

1. 1 1. Name in full and age

   It reads Alvin Cullum York [middle name probably Cullum; the letters are hard to read]; Age, in yrs. 29

   The name as the registrar wrote it, which may not match how the family spelled it. Age 29 fits the first registration, which the National Archives says was for men aged 21 to 31.

   Draft registration card: Card filled in when registering for a 20th-century draft

2. 2 2. Home address

   It reads Pall Mall Tenn

   Here only the community and the state, with no street. Cards are filed by state, then county or local board, then surname, so the county matters more than the street when you search.

3. 3 3. Date of birth

   It reads Dec 13 1887

   A full birth date in the man's own words, useful when no birth certificate exists. Check it against the 1900 census, which asked for the month and year of birth.

4. 4 4. Citizenship

   It reads A Natural Born

   Natural born means born a citizen. For an immigrant this line says naturalized, alien or declared intention, which tells you whether to look for naturalization papers and roughly when.

5. 5 5. Where born

   It reads Pall Mall Tenn U.S.A.

   Town, state and nation. NARA's description of this card notes that he registered in Fentress County, where he was born, so here the home and the birthplace are the same place.

6. 6 7. Present trade, occupation, or office

   It reads Labor on Farm; [a blue 30, probably added later in another hand]

   What he did for a living in June 1917. The blue number at the end is in a different color and was probably added later by someone else; it is not part of his answer.

   Farm laborer: Worked on a farm but did not run it

7. 7 8. By whom employed, where employed

   It reads R. C. Pile; Pall Mall Tenn

   His employer's name. Notice that the registrar who signed the back of this card was also R. C. Pile, so in a small community the man who wrote down the answers could be the registrant's own employer.

8. 8 9. Dependents

   It reads Mother Brother Sister

   Who relied on him for support. This line names family members without their names, so take it to the census: in 1910 look for a household in Pall Mall with his mother and younger siblings.

9. 9 10. Married or single, race

   It reads Single; Race (specify which)? Cauc

   Single, and the race written as Cauc, short for Caucasian. Race on these cards decided which corner was torn off, see the corner below.

10. 10 11. Military service

    It reads Rank None

    Earlier service, if any. None here. Remember that the National Archives says these cards are not military service records: they end when a man reports to the training camp and say nothing about his service in the war.

11. 11 12. Exemption claimed

    It reads Yes. Don't Want To Fight

    A National Archives handout on these cards uses this very answer as its example of an exemption claim. A claim was decided later by the local board, or for some kinds of claims by the district board, so look in the local board's classification lists or docket books for what happened next.

    Local board: Draft board that registered and classified local men

12. 12 Signature of registrant

    It reads Alvin Cullum York [middle name probably Cullum; the letters are unclear] (Signature or mark)

    His own signature, or a mark if he could not write. Compare it with signatures on later papers to be sure you have the right man.

13. 13 Torn corner

    It reads If person is of African descent, tear off this corner

    The printed corner is still there, which matches Cauc in question 10. The printed instruction says to tear it off for a man of African descent, so on other cards a missing corner is itself information.

14. 14 Registrar's report: description

    It reads Tall, medium, or short? Tall; Slender, medium, or stout? Med; Color of eyes? Blue; Color of hair? Red; Bald? No; Has person lost arm, leg, hand, foot, or both eyes, or is he otherwise disabled? No

    The back of the card is the registrar's description of the man: tall, medium build, blue eyes, red hair. For many men it is the only written description of what they looked like.

15. 15 Signature of registrar

    It reads R. C. Pile (Signature of registrar)

    The registrar certified that the man had read his own answers and that he witnessed the signature. The same name appears as his employer on the front.

16. 16 Precinct, county, state and date of registration

    It reads 8 Pre 2 Dist [probably; the precinct entry is hard to read]; City or County Fentress; State Tenn.; June 5 1917 (Date of registration)

    June 5, 1917, the first of the three registration days. Fentress County, Tennessee, is where to look for his local board's other records.

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