Thank you for registering for the online course, Researching Civil War Ancestors!
The American Civil War was a defining moment for our young country, changing its trajectory forever. Nearly 3 million Americans served, resulting in approximately 750,000 casualties: everyone living in America at that time was affected in some way by the events of 1861 to 1865 and its long aftermath. Whether your ancestor wore blue or grey, this three-session online course led by Chief Genealogist and military history expert, David Allen Lambert explores the records, resources, and strategies for tracing Civil War veterans in your family tree.
This course includes three 90-minute lectures and exclusive access to handouts and recordings of each presentation. Original broadcasts occured December 2021.
Class Description
Class 1: Service Records: Union and Confederate
This first class provides a brief history of the Civil War and its impact on each state, communities, and families. David Allen Lambert then discusses how to determine if your ancestor served—looking for clues in the census, gravestones, family heirlooms, and more—and how to discover the details of his service, examining both Army and Navy records for the Union and Confederacy.
Class 2: Filling in the Gaps: Other Records and Resources
Now that you have verified that your ancestor served, it’s time to piece together the story of their service. Using a variety of sources including newspapers, photographs, probate records, and manuscripts, David Allen Lambert demonstrates how to learn of the battles they served in, time spent as a prisoner of war, and the details of injuries they may have suffered.
Class 3: Post-War Records & Strategies
Following the end of the Civil War, several federal initiatives and organizations were created to support Civil War veterans. This final class looks at accessing pension files, Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) and United Confederate Veterans (UCV) records, and demonstrates several research strategies.
Course Handouts
Recorded Presentations
Class 1: Service Records
Live Broadcast: December 1, 2021
Presented by: David Allen Lambert
Runtime: 1:35:46
Class 2: Filling in the Gaps
Live Broadcast: December 8, 2021
Presented by: David Allen Lambert
Runtime: 1:31:29
Class 3: Post-War Records and Research Strategies
Instructor Bio
David Allen Lambert (dalambert@nehgs.org), has been on the staff of American Ancestors since 1993 and is the organization’s Chief Genealogist. David is an internationally recognized speaker on the topics of genealogy and history.
Lambert has published many articles in the New England Historical and Genealogical Register, the New Hampshire Genealogical Record, Rhode Island Roots, Mayflower Descendant, and American Ancestors magazine. He has authored and or co-authored in the published genealogies presented to David McCullough, Ken Burns, Angela Lansbury, Michael and Kitty Dukakis, Nathaniel Philbrick, Doris Kearns Goodwin, and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino. He has also published eleven books including A Guide to Massachusetts Cemeteries (American Ancestors, 2018), and Vital Records of Stoughton, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1850 (Massachusetts Society of Mayflower Descendants, 2008). David received his B.A. in History from Northeastern University. David is an elected Fellow of the Massachusetts Historical Society in Boston, Mass., and a life member of the New Hampshire Society of the Cincinnati and the General Society of the War of 1812. David also serves as the tribal genealogist for the Massachusett Tribe at Punkapoag in Massachusetts.
Areas of expertise: New England and Atlantic Canadian records of the 17th through 21st century; American and international military records; DNA research; and Native American and African American genealogical research in New England.