4/4 Order your ancestor's military records today and discover what remarkable documents might be waiting in their service files. Every search has the potential to reveal extraordinary pieces of your family's story. civilwarrecords.com

3/4 That's the story of a document carried by a soldier through his post-war life before being carefully preserved in pension files. Most soldiers carried these precious papers with them, as they were often their only proof of honorable service.
Ready to uncover your own family's military legacy? /

2/4 The only reason we have Henry Johnson's certificate today is because he submitted it as part of his pension application process, likely to prove his military service when other documentation wasn't sufficient.
Notice the worn, weathered condition?

Sorry about that, please try this one. content.lib.auburn.edu/digital/coll...

4/4 But the letter remains a rare and powerful reminder that even denied applications can hold priceless pieces of a soldier’s story.
Research Tip: Don’t skip over denied pension files. You never know what you’ll find.

3/4 Parents weren’t automatically eligible. They had to prove they were financially dependent on their son, a hard thing to document. This letter was likely submitted to support their appeal.
Sadly, the pension was never granted.

2/4 That letter, filled with sympathy and solemn duty, is still preserved today, not in a family scrapbook, but tucked inside his denied pension application.
Henry’s parents applied for benefits after his death, but their application was rejected. Why?

4/4 What stories are waiting in your ancestor’s pension file? Order your ancestor’s Civil War pension file today and start making new discoveries. civilwarrecords.com #genealogy

3/4 This file was more than just military paperwork; it’s a window into identity, history, and legacy.

That is why requesting your ancestor’s pension file can be so important; it may hold the only written link to your family's past.

2/4 Alongside his portrait was a small, easily overlooked scrap of paper, no bigger than a postcard. That piece of paper named his enslaver, his parents, and his exact date of birth.

For descendants of those once enslaved, records like this are worth more than gold.

drowned in the moat outside the guardhouse on 11/7/1862.
A sobering reminder of the real lives and difficult decisions that shaped the Civil War era.
Curious what might be hiding in your ancestor’s Civil War pension file? Order it today, you never know what you’ll uncover. www.civilwarrecords.com

2/3 Buel had deserted, was captured, court-martialed, and sentenced to death. The final decision rested with President Lincoln, who signed off on the execution order.
But history took a different turn. Before the sentence could be carried out, Buel attempted to escape confinement and tragically

@storied-official.bsky.social

2/2 YouTube: youtu.be/afPu-Ffrsq0

Spotify: creators.spotify.com/pod/show/hh3...

#genealogy

You're very welcome! It's amazing how someone else's letters can connect us to our ancestors' experiences.