ACCIDENTAL GENEALOGY DAY TWO Ray Bottorff Jr Archivist, Textual Processing National Archives at College Park (Archives II) SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM*

The Know Your Records program consists of free events with up-to-date information about our holdings. Events offer opportunities for you to learn about the National Archives’ records through ongoing lectures, monthly genealogy programs, and the annual genealogy fair. Additional resources include online reference reports for genealogical research, and the newsletter Researcher News.

www.archives.gov/calendar/know-your-records The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is the nation's record keeper. Of all the documents and materials created in the course of business conducted by the United States Federal government, only 1%–3% are determined permanently valuable. Those valuable records are preserved and are available to you, whether you want to see if they contain clues about your family’s history, need to prove a veteran’s military service, or are researching an historical topic that interests you.

www.archives.gov/calendar/know-your-records January 11, 2017

Ray Bottorff Jr Learn about various genealogy sources from Ray Bottorff Jr as he describes valuable information accidentally found in our records. This part two of a two-part series. Part 1 Part 2 Mr. Bottorff describes sources for Hear about records from the family history research found in Selective Service System, an our records including military independent agency of the United permissions to marry, deceased States government that maintains military personnel, and military information on those potentially personnel passenger lists. subject to military conscription.

www.archives.gov/calendar/know-your-records Ray joined the National Archives in 2010 as an Archives Technician and worked in the Research and Microfilm rooms at the National Archives in Washington, DC. In 2013, he transferred to the Textual Processing Section at our building in College Park, MD and later became an Archivist in 2014. Ray's hometown is Detroit where he spent 20 years in various customer service roles for Guardian Alarm and Chrysler Financial. He graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drawing in 1990, and earned a Master of Arts in History along with a Certificate of Archival Administration in 2009 from Ray Bottorff Jr Wayne State University in Detroit.

www.archives.gov/calendar/know-your-records ACCIDENTAL GENEALOGY DAY TWO Ray Bottorff Jr Archivist, Textual Processing National Archives at College Park (Archives II) SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM*

*Or how I learned how to stop worrying and love the draft (genealogist remix) SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

• Record Group 147, Records of the Selective Service System.

• "Draft Registration Cards" for the First World War.

• Civil War Draft Lists.

• Most genealogists have only seen the Fourth Draft Registration, also known as "The Old Man's Draft" done during April 1942. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

• Rest of the Draft Registration Cards from World War II. • Regionalized. • Long held back due to privacy concerns until recently. • Not microfilmed. • Size: approximately 35 million men registered for the draft from 1940 to 1946. • Current efforts are underway to digitize these records. It will take time to digitize and then index.

• Alternate set of records is available, Draft Registration Lists. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

• Draft Registration Lists. • In 1945, the Selective Service System found itself with several warehouses full of records that needed to be taken care of. • Purged records deemed no longer necessary. • Major microfilming effort began.

• In 1947, the Selective Service System became the Office of the Selective Service. It began the final processing and storage of the remaining records.

• By 1948, the Cold War brought back the Selective Service System known today. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

• The microfilming and reorganizing of their records created a series that might be of interest to genealogists.

• First, Second, and Third National Draft Lotteries covering 1940 to 1942. On microfilm: entries A1 17, A1 18, A1 21, and A1 24, Original textual documents: entries PI-27 8, PI-27 11, and PI-27 13, National Archives Identifiers: 1184723, 1184724, and 1184725.

• Conscientious Objectors. • "Case Files for Registrants Appealing to the President, 10/1940–03/1947," entry A1 43, National Archives Identifier: 23888895. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

• Conscientious Objectors

• "Docket Books of the Presidential Appeal Board, 10/1940–03/1947," entry A1 45, National Archives Identifier: 23889062.

• "Records of Amnesty Board Cases, 1946–1947," entry # A1 46, National Archives Identifier: 23889063. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

• "Records Related to Local Board and Overseas Registration Lists, Registration Delinquencies, Appeals, Canadian Students, Foreign Nationals, Historical Files, Policy Files, and Americans Serving with Co-Belligerents, 1940–1947," entry UD WW 2, National Archives Identifier: 25777965.

• Title is a result of series not fully processed yet .

• Consists of approximately one thousand 16 and 35 millimeter microfilms that were originally photographed during the 1945 to 1947 microfilming effort.

• Boxed and sent to the Federal Records Center by the Selective Service in 1971.

• Accessioned to the National Archives during the 1990s. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

• Why has it been ignored since being transferred to the National Archives?

• Series is a currently disorganized . • Boxes are dusty and dirty. • No duplicate copies of the reels as of yet. • Most reels are found on old 70-year-old metal microfilm reels that are very difficult to use on modern microfilm readers.

• But maybe it was due to how the series was originally titled for the years it sat on the shelves… SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

"Microfilm 16MM and 35MM."

• Twenty boxes, 1cubic foot sized, within this series title would probably disinterest and scare anybody away .

• Diamond in the rough? Could a National Archives partner someday digitize these records? SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

• Vast bulk of the microfilm covers DSS Forms 3, 3A, and 3B.

• Draft registration lists from thousands of local draft boards across the United States.

• Forms 3 and 3B are the "List of Registrants" to the local draft board. Form 3A is entitled, "Duplicate List of Registrants.“

• DSS Form 3 lists the draft order and serial numbers, full name of registrant, registrant's permanent mailing address, and their race.

• DSS Form 3A and 3B includes the same information as Form 3, and adds the registrant's date of birth. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

DSS Form 3, from the Summit County, Akron, Ohio Local Board Number 3, and dated October 24, 1940. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

From the same local board, this time dated October 30, 1940. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

This DSS Form 3A comes from Placer County, Auburn, California Local Board Number 30, and dated April 1, 1942. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

Towards the end of the Second World War, a variant of Forms 3 and 3A was also used, called DSS Form 3B. Form 3B had the exact same contents as 3A except it was entitled, "List of Registrants." This example, dated September 30, 1944, is from the local board of La Salle County, Cotulla, Texas. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM Local draft boards were also responsible for keeping the draft classification status updated. Status updated using DSS Form 100, "Local Board Action Report." Form 100 listed the order and serial number of the registrant, full name and mailing address, race, date of birth, and the change in the registrant's Selective Service Class.

A local board for Fargo, North Dakota put together this action report dated January 29, 1947. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM U.S. citizens working, or vacationing aboard, had to register with the Selective Service. Two examples of draft registration cards filled out at the U.S. Embassy in Geneva, Switzerland from November 1943. George Templeton Strong Jr., is the son of American composer George Templeton Strong Sr. He is also the namesake to his grandfather, George Templeton Strong, the diarist whose work was quoted in the Ken Burns documentary "The Civil War“. Tracy Strong Jr. went to Switzerland in 1940 to join the European Student Relief Fund. With the aid of the group, Strong worked out a plan to help students displaced by the war in France to continue their studies in Switzerland. This resulted in saving dozens of Jewish children and teenagers from French concentration camps (and their eventual transportation to German extermination camps) during the early days of the Vichy French government. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM The reach of the Selective Service spanned the world as illustrated by this Registration Card DSS Form I-F. It is from December 29, 1943, and filled out at the U.S. Legation in Beirut, Lebanon. This is the front page. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM Back side of the DSS Form I-F from December 29, 1943, filled out at the U.S. Legation in Beirut, Lebanon. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM Those working in the Panama Canal Zone also registered with the Selective Service. They were tracked separately, with their own set of index cards, with information culled from their original DSS Form I-F. When the work in the zone was completed, these registrants' local draft boards would be notified of their eligibility. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM Those considered "Foreign Nationals" also registered with the Selective Service via DSS Form I-F. These men were born in the United States but were currently living in another country. Maintaining a separate card index, the Selective Service recorded the full name, date and place of birth, where they currently lived, and the location that they registered. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM Even in prison you did not escape the notice of the Selective Service. From the Special Panel of Local Board Number 2, Washtenaw County, in Milan, Michigan, dated July 9, 1945. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM The Selective Service tracked those who engaged in other non- combat services, including the American Field Service. The American Field Service operated war zone ambulance services for the evacuation of wounded individuals to hospitals. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM “Canadian Students.” Categorized as "Canadian Students" (whether they were students or not), the Selective Service maintained a summary of all such Canadians in the U.S. on cards. Included in this example (at the bottom) is the card for Canadian Composer, Louis Applebaum, who created the musical score to the movie "G.I. Joe" (misidentified on his card as "PI Joe"). SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM Resident Aliens. The Selective Service kept a running index of correspondence concerning “Resident Aliens” with other Federal agencies, like the State Department or Immigration and Naturalization. This example involves those of Japanese ancestry. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM Resident Aliens. Resident alien Vladimir A. Posner of New York City. Father of Russian-American journalist Vladimir Vladimirovich Posner, who is best known for his television appearances during the 1980s representing and explaining the Soviet Union to audiences in the United States. Vladimir A. Posner left New York in 1946 to begin his journey to Soviet Union about the same time that the Federal Bureau of Investigations started to investigate him. Much later, in the 1990s, Vladimir A. Posner ‘s connections with Soviet intelligence services were discovered. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

• U.S. Citizens who Served with “Co-Belligerents.“

• DSS Form 500, "Certificate of Enrollment" and DSS Form 501, "Certificate of Separation" chronicled U.S. citizens serving in and discharge from allied forces.

• Majority served in the Canadian Armed Forces.

• Certification dates start in 1942, sometimes up to 2 years after their service ended.

• The "Certificate of Separation" also includes the date that the local draft board was notified of their availability. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM These two examples of both forms 500 and 501 come from those who were discharged from the Canadian Army due to misconduct and desertion. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM Members of Local Boards. Selective Service also tracked those who worked on the local draft boards. DSS Form 23 "Appointment Orders and Acceptances" chronicles the Presidential appointments to local boards. Jose D. Rodriguez accepts the appointment to Local Board number 1 as a Government Appeal Agent in Lares, Puerto Rico, dated February 26, 1942. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM Members of Local Boards. DSS Form 7, "Recommendation for Uncompensated Personnel Action," was used to either recommend an appointment or termination of an unpaid local board volunteer. This is a recommendation for James G. MacLeod of Grafton County, Littleton, New Hampshire, working Local Board number 5, to replace a member of Local Board number 3 in nearby Woodsville, August 12, 1946. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM Members of Local Boards. Uncompensated personnel. Volunteers doing many types of needed jobs for the local board. DSS Form AD-8 tracked the personnel actions of these volunteers, their full names along with the time period they served. Local Board number 19 of Jefferson County, Alabama. One form covers Examining Physicians, and the other form covers reemployment committeemen, last updated in 1947. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

• Selective Service microfilmed the Local Board Case Files for New York City.

• Case files were for those who failed to report for examinations or inductions.

• Not all would actually be prosecuted.

• Some portions of these records may contain 70-year-old Social Security numbers, so may require screening before being viewed by researchers. THE CASE OF WALTER ALFRED GOLDSTEIN SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

Case File Cover Sheet. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM On March 23, 1942, Mr. Goldstein fills out his original supplemental questionnaire for his local draft board. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM In a “Statements of the Registrant,” Mr. Goldstein informs the Board of his current occupation, merchant seaman oiler. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM The troubles begin… On January 24, 1943, a "Notice of Delinquency" is sent out to Mr. Goldstein for failure to show at a physical inspection for potential induction. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM By October 5, 1943, a "Report of Delinquents to United States District Attorney" is sent out to the local prosecutors for possible legal action. Notice that the form reports Mr. Goldstein received his notice of delinquency on May 11, 1942 originally. It appears that the 1943 notice was not the first one. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM On December 15, 1943, an "Order to Report for Induction" is sent out. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM But Wait! From Wilmington, California comes a telegram and later correspondence dated December 18, 1943 by the Recruitment and Manning Organization of the War Shipping Administration, confirming Mr. Goldstein remains a merchant seaman. The Central Office in Washington, D.C. will send the correct form to the local board. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM The letter.

Referred to as Walter H. Goldstein though… SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM Where did the confusion come from? Mr. Goldstein forgot to notify his New York local board of his and his family’s change of address. On January 11, 1944, the form "Request for Transfer for Delivery" was submitted, confirming Mr. Goldstein and his family called Los Angeles home. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM It’s not over until it is over! On August 10, 1944, New York Local Board number 20 sends a letter to the Merchant Marine Deferment Section advising that Mr. Goldstein is overdue for refiling his deferment paper work. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM An "Affidavit—Occupational Classification (General)“ from the Merchant Marine Deferment Section of the War Shipping Administration in Washington D.C., arrived at the local board on February 5, 1945, and confirmed Mr. Goldstein's occupation and importance to the war effort. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

Finally, it is over. On February 6, 1945, Mr. Goldstein's file effectively comes to an end as Local Board number 20, of New York City, advises that he is now classified 2B. MEET MR. GOLDSTEIN From “Applications for Seamen's Protection Certificates and Related Records 1916–1940,” entry UD 159, National Archives Identifier: 2788575. Currently at Archives I and digitized on Ancestry.com. This shows how records at Archives II can supplement genealogical information found at Archives I and online. SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM

• The Selective Service records, especially the draft registration list records, are arguably the best untapped source of genealogical information currently in the National Archives at College Park, Maryland.

• I encourage those in the genealogy community, and digital partners with the National Archives, to consider these records for both future research and digitalization.

• There is a wealth of information and insight about the lives of men draft age in and outside of the United States during the Second World War. ACCIDENTAL GENEALOGY

• This is only the tip of an iceberg.

• We often say that the more you know about your ancestor's past, the greater chance that it will lead you to other records at the National Archives. You just might find answers to your questions.

• This is what my colleagues and I accidentally discovered. What accidental genealogy will you find?

Thank you for attending!