Companion website to a 2005 documentary about military families
features stories about one military family's experiences and about the Army
town of Fayetteville, North Carolina.
---Rebecca Hyman
Watch this!
The Guns of August. Documentary film (1964).
"Traces the origins and actions of World War I, from the funeral of Britain's
King Edward VII to the Versailles Treaty." (From imdb.com.)
North Carolina connection: Archival footage of Josephus Daniels, US Secretary of the Navy during the buildup to
WWI (born Washington, NC, 1862)
---Beth Hayden
Did you know?
Official Military Mottos
US Army's 82nd Airborne Division, based at Fort Bragg, North
Carolina:
"In air, on land."
US Marine Corps 2nd Marine Division, based at Camp Lejeune, North
Carolina: "Follow me."
As the library of North Carolina state government, our purpose is to
present factual information about North Carolina's history, culture,
government, and natural resources. We do our best to provide correct and
up-to-date information.
Introduction
As one of the original 13 colonies, North Carolina’s military history is
deep, rich, and complex—and some of the battles fought in the early
days of the United States took place on her soil. North Carolina was one of the last states to join the Confederacy, and
it is during this time that the phrase "Tar Heels" gained popularity. You might still hear some old
timers quote Walter Clark about the Tar Heels: "First at Bethel.
Farthest to the Front at Gettysburg and Chickamauga. Last at Appomattox."
Eighty years later as World War II raged, the first class of African
Americans to serve in the US Marine Corps began their training at the
segregated Montford Point Base adjacent Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
Today, North Carolina's land,air, and
sea help to train
many of the soldiers and sailors currently in active campaigns around the
world. So, as we celebrate the anniversary of our country’s
Independence, take a few moments to learn a little more about the impact of
North Carolina on our country’s military history.
French and Indian War (1754-1763)
FortDobbsHistoric
Site Fort Dobbs is the only North Carolina state historic
site associated with the French and Indian War (1754-1763) or Seven Years
War. Exhibits feature many of the artifacts found at the site and a scaled
replica of the 1756 fort. Reenactments and special programs are scheduled
throughout the year. http://www.fortdobbs.org/index.html
Alamance Battleground Here backcountry
farmers, called Regulators, organized an armed rebellion against royal
governor William Tryon's militia in 1771. Their tactics later became a
model for fighting the British in the Revolutionary War. http://www.nchistoricsites.org/alamance/alamanc.htm
Revolutionary War Army Accounts. MARS Manuscript and Archives/
Reference System,North Carolina State Archives
“Ledgers” used by the NCTreasurer and Comptroller from ca.
1780-1795 to record military payments for service or supplies. Search by
name to retrieve references to volume and page numbers. Records may be
searched onsite or copies requested by mail: http://www.archives.ncdcr.gov/mail.htm.
The related information circular: http://www.archives.ncdcr.gov/FindingAids/Circulars/AIC1.pdf
gives more detail about this record. http://www.archives.ncdcr.gov
Band Music from the Civil War
Era This collection makes available examples of a brilliant
style of brass band music that flourished in the 1850s in the United States
and remained popular through the nineteenth century. (Library of
Congress) http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/cwmhtml/cwmhome.html
Bentonville Battlefield The location of the
Battle of Bentonville, fought March 19-21, 1865, the largest battle ever
fought in North Carolina and the last full-scale action of the Civil War
where a Confederate army was able to mount a tactical offensive against the
Union army of Gen. William T. Sherman. http://www.nchistoricsites.org/bentonvi/bentonvi.htm
- America's Greatest Conflict: Novels of the Civil War
- Beyond the Battlefield: Alternative Views of War
- Rebirth of a Nation: Nationalism and the Civil War
For information about organizing a book discussion series in your area,
contact the Center for the
Book.
Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System – National Park Service Computerized database containing very basic facts about servicemen
who served on both sides during the Civil War. This project is a cooperative
effort by the National Park Service (NPS) and several other public and private partners. http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/index.html
CSS Neuse & Gov. Caswell Memorial View the
remnants of the ironclad gunboat CSS Neuse, a product of the Confederate
navy's ill-fated attempt to regain control of the lower Neuse River and
retake the city of New Bern during the Civil War. http://www.nchistoricsites.org/neuse/neuse.htm
Gilmer Civil War Maps UNC-Chapel Hill,Wilson Library Manuscripts Department
Digitized extensive collection of Civil War maps with large groupings for
North Carolina and Virginia. Most of the maps are dated 1861-1865 and
indicate waterways, roads, places, churches, landowners, and distances.
http://www.lib.unc.edu/dc/gilmer/
Hotchkiss Map Collection: Confederate Army maps
The Hotchkiss Map Collection contains cartographic items made by Major
Jedediah Hotchkiss (1828-1899), a topographic engineer in the Confederate
Army. http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/collections/maps/hotchkiss/
North Carolina Civil War Sesquicentennial
NC Department of Cultural Resesources commeration of the sesquicentennial of the Civil War. Includes event listings, digtial resources and other materials. http://nccivilwar150.com
Robert C.Caldwell
Collection.East Carolina University, Joyner
Library
Digital collection of 57 letters and other documents from Cabarrus County
Private Robert C. Caldwell of Company C, Young’s 10th Battalion, NC
Heavy Artillery. These Civil War letters provide information about family,
camp and homefront experiences, and activities of the military unit.
http://digital.lib.ecu.edu/collection/caldwell.aspx
Wildcats Never Quit Online exhibit of World War
I materials from the NC State Archives, State Library of NC, and the NC
Museum of History, including printed books and documents, letters, diaries,
photographs, and artifacts. http://www.archives.ncdcr.gov/wwI/
America’s Secret Warriors: The OSS and the George Watts
Hill Collection This exhibit from the North Carolina Museum
of History features objects used by the Office of Strategic Services in the
Second World War. Other exhibits containing World War II–related
artifacts include "A Call to Arms" and "David Marshall
“Carbine” Williams."
(summer 2009) http://ncmuseumofhistory.org
After the Day of Infamy: "Man on the street" interviews from
the American Memory Project (Library of Congress)
This collection presents approximately twelve hours of opinions recorded in
the days and months following the bombing of Pearl Harbor from more than
two hundred individuals in cities and towns across the United States.
Includes “Man on the Street” interviews (audio and transcripts)
in Alamance County and Burlington, North Carolina in 1941 and 1942.
Burlington, NC -- December 1941
Alamance County, NC -- January 1942
Military-related items in the Black Mountain College
Collection
This collection covers the experimental school located in Black Mountain,
NC, from 1933 until 1956, its faculty, and students. The newsletters and
bulletins linked below cover topics related to how WWII impacted the school
and its students. http://tinyurl.com/2edzdjx
*Tuskegee Airmen Fight in WWII
Information and photos from the Smithsonian Institution that chronicle the
Tuskegee Institute 99th Fighter Squadron, American’s first black air
unit. http://airandspace.si.edu/blackwings/hstory/story03img.cfm
Film Discussion Series
- World War I Years: America Becomes a World Power
- From Rosie to Roosevelt: A Film History of Americans in World War
II
- Post-War Years, Cold War Fears: American Culture and Politics,
1946-1960
For information about organizing a film discussion series in your area,
contact the Center for the Book.
USS North Carolina This decommissioned
battleship now serves as a living memorial to the conflict in the Pacific
during World War II. http://www.battleshipnc.com
WWII Figures and Facts for North Carolina From
the North Carolina Museum of History, includes a list of books,
documentaries, internet resources, teacher resources and field trip
opportunities. http://www.ncmuseumofhistory.org/workshops/WWII/WWIIFigures.htm
WWIIMountain
Memories: Home Front to the Frontline: Testimonies of WWII Veterans and
Civilians from Western North Carolina. UNC-Asheville, Ramsey
Library
Digital collection of over 100 interviews and about 200 photographs
relating the experiences of Asheville and Buncombe County soldiers who
fought in World War II. http://toto.lib.unca.edu/findingaids/oralhistory/WWII_/Default_revised.htm
Korea (1950-1953), Vietnam (1959-1975), and
the Middle East (1991, 2003-)
Department of Defense Personnel and
Military Casualty Statistics
Numbers and distribution of military and civilian personnel back to 1996,
also has medical care at military facilities from 1978-1996. http://siadapp.dmdc.osd.mil/personnel/MMIDHOME.HTM
Military Casualty Information
Reports are broken down by state for Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation
Enduring Freedom, Persian Gulf War, Vietnam Conflict, Korean War. DoD
Principal Wars has figures back to the Revolutionary War and War of
1812. http://siadapp.dmdc.osd.mil/personnel/CASUALTY/castop.htm
Vietnam War Protests
Ffrom the UNC exhibit, I raised my hand to volunteer: Student protests
in 1960s Chapel Hill. Includes documents and photographs from Vietnam
War protests on the UNC-Chapel Hill campus. http://www.lib.unc.edu/mss/exhibits/protests/nam.html
General Family History Resources Related to
Military History
Family historians searching for military records of their ancestors will
find a variety of online resources ranging from subscription databases with
large military collections to websites of NC institutions which feature
online finding aids and digital collections of private manuscript papers,
oral histories, photographs, and maps.
Fold3.com (formerly Footnote.com)
Many federal military records: Revolutionary War Rolls, Service
Records, and Pensions; Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers;
Union Soldier Service Records with US Colored Troops; Civil War Union Army
and Navy pensions; Pearl Harbor Muster Rolls.
http://www.fold3.com (Available by personal subscription or
onsite at subscribing libraries)
Ancestry
Over 900 databases in its Military Collection, including US Army Register
of Enlistments 1798-1914; US Pensioners 1818-1872; Indexes to War of 1812
Service Records and pension applications; Civil War Prisoner of War Records
(Federal and Confederate); Confederate Service Records [men serving in
organizations raised directly by the Confederate Government]; NC
Volunteers, Spanish-American War; World Wars I and II Draft Registration
Cards.
http://www.ancestry.com (Available by personal subscription or onsite
at subscribing libraries in Ancestry Library Edition)
HeritageQuest
Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land-Warrant Application Files -
selected genealogical records from about 80,000 pension and
bounty-land-warrant applications from National Archives microfilm series
M805. http://www.heritagequestonline.com
(Remote access available to North Carolina residents via NC LIVE through
their local libraries. Other states offer similar accessibility.)
General Military History & Resources for
Kids*
East Carolina University, Joyner
Library
Digital collection devoted to Military History featuring letters,
photographs, diaries and scrapbooks.
http://digital.lib.ecu.edu
*Fun games and info about veterans, Old Glory, and volunteer
and scholarship information From the US Veterans
Administration http://www.va.gov/kids/6-12/index.asp
Genealogy Microfilm Collection The Government
and Heritage Library’s genealogy microfilm collection contains North
Carolina military service records such as the complete Revolutionary War
Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, Revolutionary War
records (federal), and North Carolina Confederate Pension
Applications. http://statelibrary.ncdcr.gov/ghl/resources/genealogy.html#microfilm
Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum The
“Piracy and Warfare” area of the Museum includes displays of
shipwrecks related to warfare off the North Carolina coast during the
Revolutionary War, the Civil War and World Wars I & II.
http://www.graveyardoftheatlantic.com/Piracy_Warfare.htm
NC Highway Marker Program
Started in 1935 the North Carolina Highway Historical Marker Program is one
of the oldest such programs in continuous operation in the United States
recognizing significant events, people and sites across the state of North
Carolina. You can search by keyword, county or predefined searches such as
a specific war or battle. http://www.ncmarkers.com/Home.aspx
NC Military History Society
Organization dedicated to promoting and preserving the study of the
state’s military history. http://www.ncmhs.net
NC State Archives Military Collection
North Carolina State Archives possesses a sizeable collection of records
related to the military affairs of the State of North Carolina and the
military service of her citizens dating from the 1740s to the
present. http://www.archives.ncdcr.gov/military.htm
UNC-Greensboro, Jackson Library
Women Veterans Historical Collection which contains letters, papers,
photographs, published materials, uniforms, artifacts and oral
histories. http://library.uncg.edu/dp/wv/
US Department of Defense
The US dept of defense’s military history page links to Army, Navy,
Air Force, Marine Corps History pages.
US Department of Veteran Affairs, National Center for Veterans
Analysis and Statistics
Data Tables searchable by Region State, MSA, age, race and sex http://www1.va.gov/vetdata/page.cfm?pg=1
Veterans History
Project The American Folklife Center collects, preserves,
and makes accessible the personal accounts of American war veterans so that
future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand
the realities of war. http://www.loc.gov/vets/
Page header image:History of the 105th Regiment of
Engineers divisional engineers of the "Old Hickory" (30th) Division, p.
449. URL:
http://digital.ncdcr.gov/u?/p249901coll37,1603
French and Indian War Image: Fort Dobbs, NC
Civil War image 1: Zebulon Baird Vance, North
Carolina's Civil War governor, 1870. (N.93.8.43) General Negative
Collection, North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC
Civil War image 2:Kepi of John Lane. "North
Carolina and the Civil War," North Carolina Museum of History.
WWI image:Josephus Daniels, half-length portrait,
facing right. Photograph by Harris & Ewing, c1920. Library of
Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. Reproduction Number:
LC-USZ62-36747.
WWII image 1:Get war information material at your
public library. Poster Collection. Series VII, Service and Relief
Organizations Posters. US Works Projects Administration North Carolina
Library Project, North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC
WWII image 2:USS North Carolina, docked.
(N-85-5-15) General Negative Collection, North Carolina State Archives,
Raleigh, NC
Vietnam War image:Photograph, anti-war
demonstrations on Franklin Street (detail). 1969. From the North
Carolina Collection Photographic Archives, Wilson Library, UNC at Chapel
Hill.
Family History image:Information at your public
library: an American privilege. Poster Collection. Series VII, Service
and Relief Organizations Posters. US Works Projects Administration North
Carolina Library Project, North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC
Band Music from the Civil War
Era
Fold3.com (formerly Footnote.com)
