Search Instructions

The Civil War Service Database may be searched in several ways:

• The personal name field may be searched by last name, first name, middle initial, or any part thereof. For example, if you enter "bag" in the field labeled Last Name, your search would turn up all of the following:

• Bagby
• Bagget
• Baggett

• Names are often inconsistently spelled so different searches may be required. (i.e. Johnson vs. Johnston)


• When doing a surname search it is best to search by last name only. Remember that any given name can have multiple spellings. The search results will put the names in alphabetical order by first name. When searching for a naval ship, search under the company name. A naval squadron can be searched under regiment. When searching for a slave that participated in the war, search by entering the term "slave" into the surname field.


• The branch field is for the branch of service (i.e. Infantry, Cavalry, Artillery, Navy, Home Guard, Militia).


• The regimental unit field is for the unit designation (i.e. 29th Alabama Regiment, 5th Alabama Battalion, Semple's Battery, fleet assignment).


• The company unit field may be a letter designation or a ship name (i.e. company H or a ship name like the C. S. S. Alabama).


• The company unit name field is for searching for units by their name (i.e. Perote Guards).


• All of these fields may be searched by using any or all of the characters (i.e. to find "Perote Guards" use; per, perote, guard, guards, etc. , as your search term.)

For more information, see About This Database.