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State archivists around the country have been using the sesquicentennial of the Civil War to gather memorabilia from that war. Many families that have Civil War veterans in their family have such items as diaries and/or letters in attics and basements. Such objects really ought to be in state archives, where they can be preserved/digitized and subsequently studied by genealogists, historians and scholars.

Virginia is one state that has been sending archivists around the state asking families to share such mementos so that they can be scanned and added to the state’s collection at the Library of Virginia. This endeavor, called the Civil War 150 Legacy Project, was started in September 2010 and has collected 25,000 images so far. To search the collection visit http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/cw150.

The Pennsylvania Archives’ emphasis on the Civil War includes a traveling exhibit called The Pennsylvania Civil War Road Show. The museum on wheels encourages visitors to share their ancestors’ Civil War stories and artifacts to be uploaded on http://pacivilwar150.com/roadshow.

Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio and many other states are focusing on gathering Civil War materials as well.

Georgia’s Virtual Vault, at http://cdm.sos.state.ga.us, “provides virtual access to historic Georgia manuscripts, photographs, maps, and government records housed in the state archives.” The archives collections include the Carnegie family collection, colonial will books and wills, confederate enlistment oaths, discharges and pension applications, county maps, death certificates, a photograph collection, Headright and bounty plats, historic maps, and a postcard collection.

Some items in the Georgia collections date from 1733 and one can type a keyword in the search box or select one of the collections mentioned above. For example, a search for the surname Wadsworth resulted in 70 “hits.”

The Illinois State Archives has a great deal of helpful Civil War information for researchers.

At http://cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/datcivil.html, one can search the Illinois Civil War Muster and Descriptive Rolls database. The state’s website also provides a link to the Civil War Soldiers’ and Sailors’ System (CWSS), as well as a link to histories of Illinois Civil War regiments and units.

(“The CWSS is a computerized database compiled by the National Park Service containing very basic facts about servicemen who served on both sides during the Civil War. The initial focus of the CWSS was the Names Index Project, an effort to enter names and other basic information from 6.3 million soldier records maintained by the National Archives and Records Administration.”)

Information is also provided on how to obtain copies of original Illinois Civil War records.

Have you checked the archives of the state in which your ancestor(s) served (or lived) to determine what special collections are now available for your own research?

Queries, as well as a general exchange of genealogical material that readers would like to share, will be printed in the column for free. Contact Joan Griffis by e-mailing JBGriffis@aol.com