Hi Shannon, I don't know if this will work for you, but it did for me. I got my father's military records from St. Louis .. but they stopped at 1941. He was killed in WWII in 1944, so I knew there was more info. In 2000 my sister, Mom, Aunt and I went on a big genealogy trek across 19 states, and we wound up in the National Archives in MD ... not the one in Washington, DC, but the auxilliary branch in MD. We didn't go there specifically for my father's records, in fact we wound up there by accident (wrong NARA). But while there, I enquired what WAS available .. and it turned out that their War Department Archives is there. Naturally, I thought about my father! The accidental trip to MD turned into a gold mine. I was able to get ALL of his records, ship's logs, captain's reviews of the incident, a copy of the telegram they sent, and even including two photos of his plane as it crashed into the Pacific Ocean. (I can't describe what those pictures did to me) The reason St. Louis didn't send me all of his records, is because they were stamped CONFIDENTIAL. So for all those 56 years, nobody knew what exactly happened to my father; it was kept a secret. But they are in NARA, and that is how I got them. I don't know if the records you seek are at NARA or not, but perhaps there are more than just war records. It's worth a shot? As for being a "non-direct-descendent", did you bring any verifying documents, such as your mother's uncle's death certificate, etc? also any documents that can verify that your mother is, indeed, the next of kin. Maybe if you got a notarized statement attesting to the fact that she is next of kin? I hope this helps you. Phyllis > >I'm hoping SKS on this list might have some insight on obtaining military >records from St. Louis. > >My mother has tried to obtain her maternal uncle's military records from the >National Records Center in St. Louis, but has only received "releasable >military information" based on restrictions imposed by Dept. of Defense regulations. > According to the powers that be in St. Louis, my mother is not allowed to >receive any additional information (ie. the full military file) because she does >not fall within the DOD's definition of "next of kin": unremarried widow or >widower, son, daughter, father, mother, brother or sister. > >Her uncle died in 1934. He never had children and his widow remarried a few >years after his death. She has since passed away. His parents and siblings >passed away several years ago, so there is no living "next of kin" per DOD's >definition. > >Has anyone on this list encountered this problem? If so, how was it >resolved? It doesn't make sense to me that since my mother is the closest living >relative, she would not be considered next of kin. Does this mean her uncle's >full military file is inaccessible forever? > >I'd appreciate any tips and advice on how she might be able to overcome this >problem. Thanks! >Shannon > >