Do you have ancestors’ from New Jersey who served in the military? Explore this collection of military records from 1791 to 1865. These records may reveal your ancestors rank, the regiment they served in, and information relating to their service.
Do you have ancestors’ from New Jersey who served in the military? Explore this collection of military records from 1791 to 1865. These records may reveal your ancestors rank, the regiment they served in, and information relating to their service.
Each record is available in a PDF format. Use the previous and next buttons at the top of the page to browse through the publication. The PDF search experience can be different from searching transcribed records. Use our search tips below to get the most out of this collection.
To the left of the PDF, you will find the Transcription Box, which includes:
Title – the title of the publication
Author
Country
Image number
Image Count
Image number and image count – this will tell you where you are in the publication and help you to explore the publication further.
The United States, New Jersey, Military Records collection includes the following publications:
Brief Sketches of the New Jersey Chaplains in the Continental Army, and in the State Militia during the War of Independence written by the Rev. F.R. Brace and published in 1909. As quoted in the opening of the publication ‘The principal sources of information from which these sketches of the chaplains from New Jersey in the Ear of Independence have been drawn, are from Stryker’s “Officers and Men in the Army of the Revolution”, “New Jersey Archives”, Sprague’s “Annals of the American Pulpit”, Hall’s “History of the Presbyterian Church in Trenton”, Minutes of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States, Dubbs’, also Good’s “History of the Reformed Church in the United States”, Griffith’s “History of the Baptists in New Jersey” and Fenwick’s “History of Salem”.
Records of Officers and Men of New Jersey in Wars 1791-1815 written by The Office of the Adjutant General and published in 1909. The publication covers the Expedition against the Indians in 1791, the Pennsylvania Insurrection in 1794, the Naval War with France, 1798-1801, the Naval War with Tripoli, Africa, 1801-1805. The War with Great Britain, 1812-1815 and the Naval War with Algiers, Africa in 1815.
Official Register of the Officers and Men of New Jersey in the Revolutionary War written by William S. Stryker, Adjutant General and published in 1872. The Governor of New Jersey, Theodore F. Randolph begins the book with the quote “A record of Jerseymen who took part in the military service of this country during the Revolutionary War has never been compiled. Having been informed that you have collected certain lists of the heroic men of that period, you are hereby directed to prosecute, as far as possible, your researches, with the clerical force of your office, and report the result to me.”
Record of Officers and Men of New Jersey in the Civil War 1861-1865, volume 1 published in 1876 and written by The Office of the Adjutant General. As quoted in the report “I have the honor to submit a special report accompanying the published Official Register of Officers and Men of New Jersey in the War of the Rebellion”.
Register of the Commissioned Officers and Privates of the New Jersey Volunteers in the Service of the United States published in 1863 and written by The Office of the Adjutant General. The publication is a list of names of Commissioned Officers and Privates of the New Jersey Volunteers. The records include the Rank, date of commission and former Rank.
Roster of the 12th Regiment, New Jersey Volunteers written by Co. William E. Potter and published in 1875. The roster includes the names of those who served in the 12th Regiment of the New Jersey Volunteers.
Searching through a PDF (Portable document format) is different from searching through fully transcribed record sets. Here are some tips to keep in mind while you search for your ancestors:
Direct Search
Name searches
A name search will return results which have the search terms on the same page within the document. This means that searching for John Smith will return pages where the names 'John' and 'Smith' occur. For this reason your search may return the name William Smith or John Brown. By inserting quotations around the full name the search function will locate the terms together; for example, “John Smith.”
To search for your ancestor by their name, write it as it would appear on the document. For example, if your relative was known as ‘Will’ it is likely that the name used for official records was ‘William.’
If you are unable to find your relative on your first search you can try different name variations. A number of register books only use abbreviations for first names. For example, if your search is unsuccessful for William Smith, try W Smith or Wm Smith.
Perusing the PDF
If you wish to read through the whole document you are searching, then order the results by page number. You can start from the beginning of the document and read through to the end using the next button above the image.
Page numbers often correlate with the individual images of the documents rather than the page numbers used within the publication. Therefore page 1 starts with the cover page.