The Civil War lasted four years, yet events leading to it and repercussions afterward affected lives for decades. This collection gives you access to original images of military records, pension files, little-known government documents, and photographs. Included are first-hand accounts of individuals appealing for war reparations, photographs of soldiers and civilians, and the pension file index of Union soldiers who survived the struggle.

As a whole, it is a unique collection of names and events relating the American experience during a nation-defining period. In its individual parts, the details and stories are captivating and unexpected. Read interviews with Southern civilians relating how the Union army confiscated their goods and property to support its troops. Find an ancestor within a regiment, information on his term of service, then learn how to access his complete pension record. View the fire-scarred ruins of Richmond, portraits of the officers who commanded the troops, battle scenes that riveted northern citizenry.

To learn more about federal records covering the Civil War era, read the online edition of "Civil War and Later Navy Personnel Records at the National Archives, 1861-1924," by Lee D. Bacon, an article originally published in NARA's Prologue magazine, Summer 1995 (Vol. 27, No. 2).

Search for specific individuals or browse the collections below. Encounter the people who made history in small and large ways, and enhance your understanding of America's heritage.

Civil War Collection