News

Collection Information

Newspapers and other forms of media have recorded everything from political arguments to world wars. News coverage of war and conflict can cover large issues like battle descriptions, to personal issues like the struggles of a single soldier.

Wars and political conflict have always held people's interest, even those not directly linked to them. Ancestry has an impressive collection of military newspapers and newsreel videos that will help you understand the issues your ancestor may have dealt with.

Newsreels give you a look at the conflicts as they were seen by Americans on the home front, and Stars and Stripes newspapers kept soldiers informed of military news, and included other historical items.

Sample Images

Search Tips

  • The best way to find a military record is to enter as much information as you can into your search. The more you tell us about your ancestor, the easier it will be to find good matches about him or her.
  • In your searching, remember to allow for name spelling variations and that sometimes records only used one or more initials for the given names.
  • Since each collection includes different information, it is valuable to search collections that apply to your ancestor individually. Once you see the results for some individuals you can see what terms might be useful in the Keyword field to refine your search.
  • With some record collections, the description provides instruction for how to receive additional information.
  • Once you find a matching military record, save it to your family tree – that way you can provide evidence to back up the info in your family tree, easily share your discovery with your family, and quickly find the historical record again later.