Horse Soldier Military Research

The Horse Soldier Research Service offers a Standard Research Package for individual soldiers. For soldiers who served anytime from the Revolutionary War to the Spanish/American War &/or Philippine Insurrection, the package includes a copy of a Volunteer Soldier's Compiled Military Service Record (CMSR), Federal Pension File and if available, several brief regimental histories of the unit(s) they served in. For Confederate Soldiers the package includes a copy of their CMSR, the “Record of Events” for their Company, taken from the original muster rolls and several regimental histories. ALL records are scanned/copied or photographed at the National Archives in Washington, DC.

The Compiled Military Service Record includes information taken from the original muster rolls on the soldier’s enlistment, time & duration of service, along with a record of any wounds, POW experience or fatality. The Federal Pension File is a copy of the original documents including details of the soldier’s life both during and after the war. It includes descriptions of battles fought, injuries received and hardships endured along with family information of marriages, children, occupations, residences and death. It follows the soldier’s life right to his dying day and if his widow or children qualified for a pension it continues with details on their lives.

High-quality color scans of the records will be sent in pdf files. The research fee is $110.00 per Union soldier, $85.00 per Confederate soldier. If the soldier served in more than one unit an additional charge of $20.00 per Unit is added. If the pension file is more than 70 pages, an additional charge is added. Unfortunately, Military Service records for soldiers in the U.S. Regular Army, Navy or Marine Corps were not compiled or consolidated. However, these soldiers may have Enlistment Papers and Federal Pension Files at the National Archives.

To Order a Research Package on an Individual Soldier, click here.

Other Military Research

In addition to individual soldier’s records the National Archives also houses all the records of the US military establishment from 1775 until approximately 1910.  Vonnie has over 20 years experience navigating these record groups.  She is an expert on a wide variety of Officer’s Files including the Appointment, Commission & Personnel (ACP) files, the “Letters to the Commission Branch" (CB) files, the Adjutant General's Office Document Files and the General’s Papers files. She is an authority on Court Martial Case Files, Ordnance Records for Civil War and Spanish American War Units, Medal of Honor and other citations files, Regimental Books, Unit Returns, Regimental Papers, Carded Medical Files and Correspondence Files.

Bounty Land

Bounty land warrant application files relate to claims based on wartime service between 1775 and March 3, 1855. If your soldier served in the Revolutionary War, War of 1812, early Indian Wars, or the Mexican War, a search of these records may be worthwhile. Many of the bounty land application files relating to Revolutionary War and War of 1812 service have been combined with the pension files.

Contact Vonnie for information on researching these additional military and land records.

Library of Congress

Vonnie also has over 20 years experience researching historic documents, newspapers and books at the Library of Congress. She has worked extensively for historians, authors, museums, historic societies and the hit TV show "Who Do You Think You Are?". Contact her to discuss your research needs.

Clients Say…

Extensive archival research through the Library of Congress and other governmental and private institutions undertaken by Vonnie Zullo of Fairfax, VA was essential to the completion of many chapters in this work.  I will be ever grateful for her constant willingness to accept and fulfill all those many assignments, especially those at the eleventh hour! …her patience and tenacity were beyond the call of duty!”

Norm Flayderman
The Bowie Knife,
Unsheathing an America Legend

recent projects

C.S. 3" Bourreleted Read Common Shell

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Here is a very good Confederate 3" 'Virginia pattern', bourreleted Read common percussion shell with its intact sabot. This specimen was found on the Gettysburg battlefield near the Loop south of the High Water Mark sometime after the fighting. Learn More »

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