To visit the museum, advanced timed tickets are required for all visitors. Popular dates and times may be sold out.
14 Wharfside StreetCharleston, SC 29401
Museum open 10am to 5pm (last entry 4:00 PM) Tuesday-Sunday. Closed Monday.
14 Wharfside Street — Charleston, SC 29401
Jan 11, 2020
Today’s featured FamilySearch collection is United States World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946. This collection was built from a database provided by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and is a name index to Army Serial Number Enlistment Card Records, which covers the years 1938-1946, excluding officers, in the United States Army including the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps and the Enlisted Reserve Corps. This index, which is not complete, covers about nine million men and women. The collection’s Learn More page notes that the collection may contain scanning errors.
Information in the records includes:
If you find an ancestor listed in this collection, add the information to your ancestor’s timeline, then use the information in the index to search for other records for your ancestor. Note that for each ancestor you find in the index, there should be a corresponding World War II Draft Registration record. You can search the FamilySearch collection World War II Draft Registration Cards to find the draft registration for your ancestor.
The FamilySearch Wiki page Finding a World War II (1939-1945) Veteran’s Records provides helpful information for locating other military records relating to your ancestor’s service in World War II.
Let’s look at an example for Asbury Lawton, who enlisted in the Army at Camp Blanding in Jacksonville, Florida in May of 1945.
Name: Asbury LawtonName (Original): LAWTON ASBURYEvent Type: Military ServiceEvent Date: 14 May 1945Term of Enlistment: Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to lawEvent Place: Cp Blanding, Florida, United StatesRace: NegroCitizenship Status: citizenBirth Year: 1915Birthplace: SOUTH CAROLINAEducation Level: Grammar schoolCivilian Occupation: Attendants, hospitals and other institutions, n.e.c.Marital Status: Single, without dependentsMilitary Rank: PrivateArmy Branch: No branch assignmentArmy Component: Selectees (Enlisted Men)Source Reference: Civil LifeSerial Number: 44110777Affiliate ARC Identifier: 1263923Box Film Number: 15523.376
Affiliate Publication Title: Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, ca. 1938-1946
“United States World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946,” database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K8BX-2Y3 : 5 December 2014), Asbury Lawton, enlisted 14 May 1945, Cp Blanding, Florida, United States; citing “Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, ca. 1938-1946,” database, The National Archives: Access to Archival Databases (AAD) (http://aad.archives.gov : National Archives and Records Administration, 2002); NARA NAID 1263923, National Archives at College Park, Maryland.
We searched the FamilySearch collection World War II Draft Registration Cards to find the draft registration for Asbury Lawton. This record reveals more biographical information for Mr. Lawton. Here we learn his address, exact date of birth, occupation and employer’s name.
Asbury Lawton was born 12 Apr 1915 in South Carolina. He was the proprietor of his own business, the DeLuxe Cafe at 821 Kings Road in Jacksonville. To find more information about his business, we can search city directories and historical newspapers to see if he advertised his cafe in either of those publications. We can contact the local libraries and historical societies to see if they have more information about, or even a picture of, the DeLuxe Cafe.
Name: Asbury LawtonEvent Type: Draft RegistrationEvent Date: 16 Oct 1940Event Place: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida, United StatesRace: BlackComplexion: Dark BrownEmployer: De Luxe Cafe Own BusinessBirth Date: 12 Apr 1915Birthplace: Bronson, South CarolinaRelative’s Name: Marie MarshallRelationship to Head of Household: SisterRelationship to Head of Household (Original): Sister
Affiliate Publication Title: World War II Draft Cards for the State of FloridaDigital Folder Number: 102814629Image Number: 01006
“Florida, World War II Draft Registration Cards,1940-1945,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2CP-F38Y : 16 August 2019), Marie Marshall in entry for Asbury Lawton, 16 Oct 1940; records extracted by FamilySearch and images digitized by Ancestry; citing Jacksonville, Duval, Florida, United States, Draft Registration, NARA NAID 7644725. Records of the Selective Service System, 1926 – 1975, RG 147. National Archives at St. Louis, Missouri, n.d.
We see that Asbury Lawton listed his sister Marie Marshall at 132 McDuff Avenue as his next of kin/contact person. We searched for Marie Marshall in World War II Draft Registrations to see if any other relatives my have listed her in their draft registrations. This led us to a draft registration card for Murphy Lawton.
Name: Murphy LawtonEvent Type: Draft RegistrationEvent Date: 14 Feb 1942Event Place: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida, United StatesRace: BlackComplexion: Light BrownEmployer: R F WilsonBirth Date: 28 Mar 1899Birthplace: Allendale, South CarolinaRelative’s Name: Marie Marshall
Other information in the record of Murphy LawtonName: Murphy LawtonEvent Type: Draft RegistrationEvent Date: 14 Feb 1942Event Place: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida, United StatesRace: BlackComplexion: Light BrownEmployer: R F WilsonBirth Date: 28 Mar 1899Birthplace: Allendale, South CarolinaRelative’s Name: Marie Marshall
Affiliate Publication Title: World War II Draft Cards for the State of FloridaDigital Folder Number: 102814629Image Number: 01050
“Florida, World War II Draft Registration Cards,1940-1945,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2CP-FF67 : 16 August 2019), Marie Marshall in entry for Murphy Lawton, 14 Feb 1942; records extracted by FamilySearch and images digitized by Ancestry; citing Jacksonville, Duval, Florida, United States, Draft Registration, NARA NAID 7644725. Records of the Selective Service System, 1926 – 1975, RG 147. National Archives at St. Louis, Missouri, n.d.
His draft registration card reveals his exact place of birth as Allendale, South Carolina. Murphy Lawton’s date of birth is 28 Mar 1899. Could he be Asbury Lawton’s brother? Let’s see what we can learn.
We searched for Murphy Lawton in the U.S. Census for Allendale, South Carolina and found him in the household of his father Donnie Lawton. Here we see that Murphy has two brothers named Angus and Asbury. Further research may reveal records to corroborate our tentative identification of Murphy as Asbury Lawton’s bother.
Year: 1920; Census Place: Allendale, Allendale, South Carolina; Roll: T625_1683; Page: 9B; Enumeration District: 27. Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.
Our search for Marie Marshall in World War II Draft Registration Cards revealed that two other men in Jacksonville named Andrew Jones and Arthur Wallace listed Marie Marshall as the contact person on their draft registrations. If this is your family, you can conduct further research to learn what these men’s relationships with this family were.
Name: Andrew JonesEvent Type: Draft RegistrationEvent Date: 17 Jul 1943Event Place: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida, United StatesRace: BlackComplexion: Dark BrownEmployer: Railway Express AgencyBirth Date: 17 Jul 1925Birthplace: Furman, South CarolinaRelative’s Name: Marie Marshall
Other information in the record of Andrew JonesName: Andrew JonesEvent Type: Draft RegistrationEvent Date: 17 Jul 1943Event Place: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida, United StatesRace: BlackComplexion: Dark BrownEmployer: Railway Express AgencyBirth Date: 17 Jul 1925Birthplace: Furman, South CarolinaRelative’s Name: Marie Marshall
Affiliate Publication Title: World War II Draft Cards for the State of FloridaDigital Folder Number: 102814957Image Number: 00245
“Florida, World War II Draft Registration Cards,1940-1945,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2C5-VZFN : 16 August 2019), Marie Marshall in entry for Andrew Jones, 17 Jul 1943; records extracted by FamilySearch and images digitized by Ancestry; citing Jacksonville, Duval, Florida, United States, Draft Registration, NARA NAID 7644725. Records of the Selective Service System, 1926 – 1975, RG 147. National Archives at St. Louis, Missouri, n.d.
Name: Arthur WallaceEvent Type: Draft RegistrationEvent Date: 02 Dec 1943Event Place: Jacksonville, , Florida, United StatesRace: BlackComplexion: Dark BrownEmployer: Foremost DairiesBirth Date: 01 Dec 1925Birthplace: Furman, South CarolinaRelative’s Name: Marie Marshall
Other information in the record of Arthur WallaceName: Arthur WallaceEvent Type: Draft RegistrationEvent Date: 02 Dec 1943Event Place: Jacksonville, , Florida, United StatesRace: BlackComplexion: Dark BrownEmployer: Foremost DairiesBirth Date: 01 Dec 1925Birthplace: Furman, South CarolinaRelative’s Name: Marie Marshall
Affiliate Publication Title: World War II Draft Cards for the State of FloridaDigital Folder Number: 102815095Image Number: 00005
Working from the World War II enlistment record for Asbury Lawton of Jacksonville, Florida, we searched for, and found, the corresponding draft registration card for Asbury Lawton. In this record, he listed his sister Marie Marshall as next of kin/contact person. Searching for Marie’s name in World War II draft registrations led us to a draft registration card for Murphy Lawton, who also listed Marie Marshall as next of kin/contact person. Using information from all three records, we searched for, and found, Asbury and Murphy in the home of their father in Allendale, South Carolina in the 1920 U.S. Census.
The related FamilySearch collection World War II Draft Registration Cards can help you locate the corresponding World War II draft registration for an ancestor you find in World War II Army Enlistments.
The FamilySearch Wiki pages World War II United States Military Records, 1941 to 1945 and Finding a World War II (1939-1945) Veteran’s Records provide helpful resources and research strategies for finding more records related to your ancestor’s service in World War II.
To learn more about researching African American military records, you can view BlackProGen LIVE Ep30: Rebellion and Resistance: People of Color and the U.S. Military.
Researching African American Genealogy provides step-by-step guidance for beginning your ancestor search, as well as links to online resources.
Quick Guide to African American Records contains information on beginning research tips, links to suggested guides for beginning your search for African American ancestors, overviews of major record sets, tips for finding the slaveholder, links to tutorials for African American genealogy in the FamilySearch Learning Center, and links to other online and offline resources.
Southern States Slavery and Bondage Collections will help you locate digitized searchable collections as well as digitized microfilms in the FamilySearch catalog related to slavery and bondage. The page is arranged by state.
African American Genealogy provides links to Wiki pages for researching African Americans in each U.S. state.
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