14 November 2007

Comparing Civil War Pension Index Cards


Ancestry.com has a Civil War Penions index. So does Footnote.com. There is a difference.




The Ancestry.com index comes from the National Archives and Records Administration. Civil War Pension Index: General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934. We've posted a sample card in this post. It is the card for George Rothweiler that lists his widow's name (note that not all cards list the name of the widow, even if there was one who received a pension).






The Footnote.com index comes from National Archives and Records Administration Publication Number: T289 Organization Index to Pension Files of Veterans Who Served Between 1861 and 1900. The sample card from that database is for George Rothweiler as well...the card that does not list a widow's name.





Many of the same men are listed in each index, but each index served a different purpose. There is another finding aid for pension records in this era which is also on microfilm, but has not yet been digitized. That index consists of the pension payment cards from 1907-1933. These cards have been microfilmed and are at some larger genealogical libraries, including the Allen County Public Library (website) and the Family History Library (website).




The card for Nancy Rampley is one of the payment cards. It is a PARTIAL scan of her card.