Does anyone do Pension File research?

[Poorlaggedman]

I really don't want to travel to D.C. and deal with the National Archives myself. I've never done so before. I mailed them two pension requests last Spring. My checks were never cashed and they never responded in any fashion. Their online Pension request systems were non-functioning and I tried with several different internet browsers over a few months. I was pretty sure I filled the paper requests out and referenced the pensions correctly. The ones I'm working on are not digitized that I could find.

Does anyone know why there's such a delay? I'm still working and I expect the Federal government to at least marginally still function. I had a handful I wanted to pull. I can proceed with my project without them but I'd rather not if there's an alternative.

 

[lupaglupa]

I know a lot of people are in the same boat - the National Archives is terribly backed up due to perennially low staffing combined with covid. Some months ago they did a limited reopening but with the recent surge I'm not sure where that stands.

 

[Gary Morgan]

The National Archives closed its doors in March, 2020 and was shut down for about a year. By my best estimates, they are now 2 years behind in fulfilling orders (they were already several months behind when covid hit). They briefly reopened to professional researchers but not the general public in October, but closed down again, even to them, after a couple of weeks when the number of covid cases went up. They do have an onsite staff that is still pulling and sending requested files, but like I said, they are years behind. In early 2021, I got a letter from them asking if I still wanted/needed a file I'd requested in November of 2019, which I eventually DID get, but like I said, they are a couple of years behind in filling requests.

I feel your pain. I've got a book that is essentially completely researched, except that I need some information that I can only find in pension records and compiled military service records, so I'm stalled on it indefinitely. Your best bet may be to hire a professional researcher to get the records for you, since it looks like those are the first people they will let in if/when they DO reopen. I have several requests in with Bob Velke of Gopher Records. He hasn't been able to pull any of the records I need yet, but he's been great in terms of communication and telling me what information he thinks might and might not be available. Surprisingly, he charges less than the NARA for copies of files.

 

[John Winn]

What a mess. I can say that even before Covid they were really slow and the on-line system often malfunctioned (at least for me but I rather doubt I was the only unlucky one). On two occasions I know for certain they also didn't send me all of the pension records I ordered. I know that because I later hired a pro to go the the Archives and, because I had strong suspicions, paid him to retrieve the two records and, sure enough, there was more than the Archives sent me. I had notified them previously and they just sent a canned message saying they send all of the file.

Were I in need of anything these days I'd hire someone. Oh, and you get better (and color) copies from a pro.

Good luck guys.

 

[lupaglupa]

We as a nation spend far too little to preserve our precious history and heritage. The National Archives, the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian, the National parks - all scramble for enough money to provide basic services, much less expansion into new areas and functions. It's very sad.

 

[John Winn]

We as a nation spend far too little to preserve our precious history and heritage. The National Archives, the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian, the National parks - all scramble for enough money to provide basic services, much less expansion into new areas and functions. It's very sad.

Yep and it's been that way for decades. I worked for a federal natural resources agency for 30+ years and I learned that despite all the chatter about "the environment" voters and elected officials weren't really willing to pay for managing such. We're seeing that these days out west with the lack of resources to fight wild fire. And meanwhile we can just print worthless currency and take on trillions of debt so as to give people "free" stuff but the Archives will remain closed or understaffed (sorry if I stepped over the no politics line).

 

[Bob Velke]

I was one of those that got in briefly in October and scanned a few pension files for clients - but then they cancelled all future appointments because of a spike in COVID in DC. I don't know what the threshold is but if they base it on cases (instead of deaths) then I don't expect them to reopen in the next few months. I hope that I'm wrong.

 

[lupaglupa]

I was one of those that got in briefly in October and scanned a few pension files for clients - but then they cancelled all future appointments because of a spike in COVID in DC. I don't know what the threshold is but if they base it on cases (instead of deaths) then I don't expect them to reopen in the next few months. I hope that I'm wrong.

These days it feels like none of us know what's next!

 

[Gary Morgan]

I don't know what the threshold is but if they base it on cases (instead of deaths) then I don't expect them to reopen in the next few months. I hope that I'm wrong.

This is going to sound harsh and judgmental, but my older daughter is a grocery store clerk and worked throughout the pandemic, exposing herself to literally thousands of strangers to get the job done. My younger daughter was a nurse, who quit nursing a year into the pandemic because she was getting so overwhelmed (she's now a real estate agent, despite having a Masters in Nursing that she worked 6 years for). I am a teacher who voluntarily went back into the building to work with special ed teenagers who couldn't hack remote learning, even though at the time there was no vaccination available for any of us. This year I switched to elementary, where kids don't always cover their mouths when they talk and where the youngest kids in the building (Preschool) don't have an option to get vaccinated yet. Then I look at the NARA, closed for almost a year and a half, and all I can think is

"Pansies!"

 

[Bob Velke]

"Pansies!"

To be clear, I think that it's just one person who makes the decision. Everybody else says, "Yes, sir."

 

[Gary Morgan]

To be clear, I think that it's just one person who makes the decision. Everybody else says, "Yes, sir."

Or "Ma'am"...!

My best guess is that they are worried that there won't be sufficient staff to protect the documents from possible theft or damage, so they shut it down. Even so, I don't know of any other government organization that's been shut down pretty much for a year and a half, do you?

 

[lupaglupa]

Or "Ma'am"...!

My best guess is that they are worried that there won't be sufficient staff to protect the documents from possible theft or damage, so they shut it down. Even so, I don't know of any other government organization that's been shut down pretty much for a year and a half, do you?

Lots, actually. Anybody that doesn't absolutely require public interface has avoided it. Many archives have been shut down straight through. They have few staff and, as you pointed out, valuable resources to protect. I know an archivist at the local university and they are just making copies and sending them out - no on site research.

 

[Poorlaggedman]

I've been working this whole time in manufacturing without an extra day off work. We're all still walking around like clowns working at separate stations with masks on our faces thanks to OSHA. Many of my co-workers have gotten sick (and one died on a ventilator). I don't consider the junk we make to be so essential but society still continues to function to some extent. It seems to me that many private institutions have gotten better and more willing to send digital copies amid these hardships while the Federal ones have not. The Pandemic doesn't explain why Gettysburg's research room never got a replacement when the previous librarian retired the same month the pandemic started. Normal organizations don't plan to retire a guy and then never plan to have a replacement. At some point the dysfunction needs to be dealt with, whether its truly a funding issue or something else. Otherwise these national resources need to be entrusted to organizations that can function and fundraise on their own.

 

[rbortega]

When ordering copies of Civil War pension records, do you get paper or digital copies? I usually ordered paper copies, but decided to try a digital copy for my most recent order. The digital pension file arrived in the mail on a compact disc that contained the full record in PDF format. Also, when ordering paper copies, I have had rare occasions where the file was mailed in installments if the order exceeded 100 pages.

 

[Bob Velke]

When ordering copies of Civil War pension records, do you get paper or digital copies? I usually ordered paper copies, but decided to try a digital copy for my most recent order. The digital pension file arrived in the mail on a compact disc that contained the full record in PDF format. Also, when ordering paper copies, I have had rare occasions where the file was mailed in installments if the order exceeded 100 pages.

It depends on who you order it from, I guess. I deliver a PDF file. You can print it at home, of course, if you really want to kill the trees.

 

[A. Roy]

Just thought I would inject a bit of sunshine and light into this thread, in my usual perky, positive fashion!

I recently got some great help from UNC's Wilson Library, which scanned a very large memoir from the Southern Historical Collection and transmitted it to me through my online account. This allowed me to clear up a historical mystery related to the Civil War writings of Bruce Catton and Shelby Foote. (These two worthies quoted the same passage from Berry Benson's reminiscences, but were maddeningly non-specific about citations, so I needed to search the original documents, without knowing which one contained the quote I was looking for.)

Not to minimize the sad situation at NARA, but this was an encouraging result!

Roy B.

 

[John Winn]

When ordering copies of Civil War pension records, do you get paper or digital copies? I usually ordered paper copies, but decided to try a digital copy for my most recent order. The digital pension file arrived in the mail on a compact disc that contained the full record in PDF format. Also, when ordering paper copies, I have had rare occasions where the file was mailed in installments if the order exceeded 100 pages.

I always got a digital copy (no longer mailed on CD but, rather, downloaded via a link provided by NARA). That makes printing just what I really need easy and eliminates storage of paper. Often there are many pages that don't contain any useful information so printing those is just a waste of paper. As stated above, pros will provide digital copy (in my experience also better image quality than NARA files).