Fold3 records: Tips for using

[Stoney Dee]

Using fold3 I've been able to obtain a good compilation of most of my ancestors related to ACW and continue to use that source in my research, it seems the same with many other members of this forum. My understanding of search techniques is rather basic, so I am wondering if there are any members who have discovered some effective methods of gleaning information from fold3. I've used the help section from that site and haven't been able to accomplish what I am wanting to do yet, perhaps there are some online videos or tutorials somewhere that dig deeper into that subject? For example, I would like to be able to download all of the CMSR records for one particular company. "Company B, Walkers Battalion, Thomas Legion, NC". Right now, I am having to obtain a soldier name list of that battalion and then do individual searches for that particular name and then download the records individually.

 

[Bob Velke]

That's correct. There is no way to download all of the CMSRs for a company at once.

What else would you like to do?

 

[Gary Morgan]

Try searching for one member of the company by putting in their name, then select the state. Add the regiment and company number separately to the search box, then click on the X next to the individual's name in the search box. I think that will bring up whatever they have for every member of the company. At least, it did for me when I tried it just now. You'll still have to download what you want individually, but it will save you having to look up the names on a list.

 

[DixieRifles]

It seems to me that FOLD3 has changed their program and I have difficulty performing any search.

BEFORE--- I would want to search for a soldier by Name for any Mississippi Regiment. I would open in BROWSE mode and select the Filters on the left margin for Civil War and then Confederate and then Service Records.
Then the 2nd "box" would have a list of all the Confederate States. I would click on Mississippi and a 3rd "box" would open with all the regiments of Mississippi.
Next there was a Blank box above this window where you could enter a name. You hit search and it would only search for that name in Mississippi regiments.

That extra box is missing now.

Now I use the Search option and enter a name. Their Help video says to go to the Filters on the Left and select options for Civil War, Confederate, etc. BUT every time I do this, I get searches for everywhere.

If I start by selecting the filters first and then try to enter a Name in the top box with the Magnifying Glass, I still get thousands of hits.

FOLD3 doesn't seem as user friendly as it was. I have to know exactly what regiment to go look at.
Can anyone recommend any good videos??

 

[Missouri Swampfox]

It seems to me that FOLD3 has changed their program and I have difficulty performing any search.

BEFORE--- I would want to search for a soldier by Name for any Mississippi Regiment. I would open in BROWSE mode and select the Filters on the left margin for Civil War and then Confederate and then Service Records.
Then the 2nd "box" would have a list of all the Confederate States. I would click on Mississippi and a 3rd "box" would open with all the regiments of Mississippi.
Next there was a Blank box above this window where you could enter a name. You hit search and it would only search for that name in Mississippi regiments.

That extra box is missing now.
View attachment 467257

Now I use the Search option and enter a name. Their Help video says to go to the Filters on the Left and select options for Civil War, Confederate, etc. BUT every time I do this, I get searches for everywhere.

If I start by selecting the filters first and then try to enter a Name in the top box with the Magnifying Glass, I still get thousands of hits.

FOLD3 doesn't seem as user friendly as it was. I have to know exactly what regiment to go look at.
Can anyone recommend any good videos??

Agree. I've contacted them several times to no avail. I've asked to make the old Browser option available as well as the new. Seems like programmerss and site designers just can't leave things alone. I guess it's job protection. "If it ain't broken, leave it alone."

 

[DixieRifles]

Agree. I've contacted them several times to no avail.

A few years ago, I donated WW2 unit histories and photo albums for them to scan. I had a good contact for awhile. I made a few suggestions about how the Regiments were not listed in proper order and I think they fixed them. I tried to find that guy's email but he probably isn't working there now.

 

[Gary Morgan]

It seems to me that FOLD3 has changed their program and I have difficulty performing any search.

BEFORE--- I would want to search for a soldier by Name for any Mississippi Regiment. I would open in BROWSE mode and select the Filters on the left margin for Civil War and then Confederate and then Service Records.
Then the 2nd "box" would have a list of all the Confederate States. I would click on Mississippi and a 3rd "box" would open with all the regiments of Mississippi.
Next there was a Blank box above this window where you could enter a name. You hit search and it would only search for that name in Mississippi re

I've always found Fold3 to be very unwieldy.

Have you tried putting your cursor on top of the words that are just under the filters? Where it says "People, Records, Places, Dates, Service Number...?" Once the cursor is there, click on it, and then just type what you are looking for, and it will add that filter to your search.

At least it does for me.

 

[lupaglupa]

I've gotten a lot faster at using Fold3 since I started taking advantage of their filing structure. All CSMR records are contained in files within files. You can move between individual, regiment, and state records by using the drop down boxes at the top of the records and paging left or right with the arrow keys. This really helps me a lot.

 

[danny]

I've gotten a lot faster at using Fold3 since I started taking advantage of their filing structure. All CSMR records are contained in files within files. You can move between individual, regiment, and state records by using the drop down boxes at the top of the records and paging left or right with the arrow keys. This really helps me a lot.

Their recent changes have frustrated me. I appreciate your advice but can you please be more specific. [Pretty please]

I am Neanderthalic with a computer

 

[lupaglupa]

So here's a screen shot of Fold3 - I'm looking at a record for Thomas Jones of Virginia

 

[lupaglupa]

If you look at the top of the image you can see (in the oval search bar space) a series of words and letters separated by arrows - in this case "Civil War Servic... > J > Jo > Jones, Tho...." Each bit of text represents a folder. These folders are 1. the Civil War Services Records for Virginia, 2. All records beginning with J, 3. All records beginning with Jo (since all the Js together would be too large a file to be manageable), 4. All records for Jones, Thomas

If you click in that search bar the record will open up in a pop-up box on your screen, like this

The arrow on the left can be used to navigate up the folder system. Right now it is showing me the results for everything in the Jones, Thomas file. If I hit the arrow on the left again it will go the the file above it in the hierarchy

 

[lupaglupa]

That looks like this

 

[Bob Velke]

It seems to me that FOLD3 has changed their program and I have difficulty performing any search.

Don't even get me started! I use Fold3 about 8 hours a week and they've made it much more difficult. If you use Browse, then you navigate through multiple columns - but if only lists 500 records in each column. If the choice that you want is beyond that, then you have to TYPE IN what you want anyway.

So if you want the service record for Samuel Taylor in Illinois, then in Publications you have to find "Civil War Service Index - Union - Illinois". Then in the next column you navigate to T for Taylor. Then in the next column you navigate to TA for Taylor. Then you scroll down looking for TAYLOR and see that it isn't there so in the search box at the top you have to type in TAYLOR! Then you scroll down looking for SAMUEL and see that it isn't there so in the search box at the top you have to type ", SAMUEL"! What the h**l is the point of having scrolling lists if, in the end, you have to type the whole name anyway!

Having said that, the solution to your problem is to click on "Select All" at the top of the "Military Unit" column. Then in the next column, it will find the name that you specify regardless of the unit.

Unfortunately, the same thing doesn't work if you want to find a pension for a specific soldier within a regiment but you don't know what company he is in. You can click on "Select All" for the company and it lists all of the names in the next column ... but not alphabetically! It will list all of the names in Company A (surname=A-Z), then it will list all of the names in Company B (A-Z again), then everyone in Company C (A-Z again) and so on! What the frickin' use is that ?!?

 

[lupaglupa]

This system makes it really easy to look at everyone in a particular unit. Here's what that looks like -

Do you see how the search bar now has Second Cav in it?

 

[lupaglupa]

By hitting the left arrow key I went back from the particular Thomas I started with to seeing both of the Thomas Jones in the 2nd Cav. I can now choose either one of them.

 

[lupaglupa]

I'm not sure I'm making this clear!

 

[Bob Velke]

This system makes it really easy to look at everyone in a particular unit. Here's what that looks like -

Yes, but his point (I think) was that you still have to download each CMSR separately.

But at least you can download all of the pages for a single CMSR at once. For many other collections, there is no option to download the entire file.

I found a guy in "Letters Received by the Commission Branch, 1863-1870" whose record has 1221 pages. I have to download them one page at a time!

 

[lupaglupa]

Yes, but his point (I think) was that you still have to download each CMSR separately.

But at least you can download all of the pages for a single CMSR at once. For many other collections, there is no option to download the entire file.

I found a guy in "Letters Received by the Commission Branch, 1863-1870" whose record has 1221 pages. I have to download them one page at a time!

Lucky for me I've never tried to get that many records at once.

 

[Gary Morgan]

Their recent changes have frustrated me. I appreciate your advice but can you please be more specific. [Pretty please]

I am Neanderthalic with a computer

My father always said that he would be willing to pay extra for a computer system that never did "updates" to "improve" things. Whenever they would update things, it was never an improvement and the changes always left him baffled.

 

[Gary Morgan]

Hey, Lupaglupa,

You should be an online speaker some Wednesday night and walk people through how to use Fold3! (I would even try to stay up late to watch!)