I speak to many people on a daily basis about Army and Air Force research in the U.S. and Europe. Everyone is asking the same question. How can I find out where my soldier or Airman was every day? His OMPF (service file) burned in 1973.
The answer is simple. You start with Company Morning Reports. Here are 5 reasons you need these records.
- Company Morning Reports will help you reconstruct a soldier’s service, allowing you to document where he was every day he was in a company in a particular unit. You will also know when he changed units so you can continue tracing his service.
- Morning Reports document illness and wounds and if the clerk documented things, what field hospital or other hospital he was sent to.
- You’ll see changes in rank, MOS (job), transfers to temporary duty assignments so you know where he was at all times. Often, men were sent to DS (detached service) to help another unit. In those moments you also want to consult the other unit’s records to learn what was happening. This changes the soldier’s war experience.
- Changes in status to MIA, POW, KIA are also listed.
- Awards may be listed in Morning Reports if the clerk added that information. Many people want to know when or why a soldier received a specific award or decoration. This is one resource to help you discover that information and the often elusive General Order (GO) number.
Important! In a recent conversation on Facebook, someone posted they couldn’t trace their soldier every day, I suggested Morning Reports. Their response was they were working with DPAA because their soldier was still MIA and DPAA had provided unit level records and told them the OMPF burned. I responded that DPAA didn’t provide all the information possible and Morning Reports are the answer.
DPAA hardly uses Morning Reports or OMPFs in their research, from conversations I’ve had with them. It is not their job to reconstruct your soldier’s entire service history. Their job is to find details that document his MIA status in the hopes of locating the individual. They will not then provide you with the Morning Reports and details on service. If you want this information, you have to find it yourself or work with a researcher to locate this information. If they tell you it is impossible because the OMPF burned, they are wrong. You can retrace service without the OMPF.
Want to learn more about Morning Reports, how they can help your research, and how to obtain them? Read my articles:
More on Company Morning Reports
You can also watch the NARA Genealogy Fair session on Morning Reports from October 2016. Download the slides/handouts.
What clues and information have you discovered in Morning Reports? Please share with us in the comments.
Can I help you with your research?
Are you ready to learn the bigger picture of your family member’s military service? Email us at info@wwiirwc.com to set up your free phone consultation today to discuss project options, fees, and time. You can also sign-up for our free newsletter.
Want More Resources?
Visit the WWII Education Website and explore my military research webinars. This pack comes with 14 pages of questions, checklists, and resources to help you start your military research (WWI – Vietnam).
Also explore my military research books.
© 2016 World War II Research and Writing Center
I was told my Grandfather’s records burned also and no other information was available. He was injured in a Stateside Paratrooper accident and I would love to learn more about this accident and what really happened. He never served overseas because of this. But, after he recovered he became a mechanic in the Army. I have some of his Army records that he kept.
Would Morning Reports be of use to me since he did not serve overseas?
The first place to start is with Morning Reports to verify what units he was in and when. Then once you have a timeline of service, move into Unit Records to learn more. If you need to get the records, I am taking new clients right now. Please email me at info@wwiirwc.com
Jennifer
How do we track down the morning reports? Both of my Grandfathers were in WWII and my Wife’s Grandfather was in WWII. I went to the National Archives in St. Louis.
J.R.
There are two other articles in the blog post that tell you how and what else the records contain. You can go to St. Louis and pull them yourself or hire a researcher. If you need a researcher, I am taking new clients right now. Email me at info@wwiirwc.com
Jennifer
What if we’re told the records burned in the St. Louis fire? How do we know what unit they were in?