Hi Sharon, As a military brat and former federal employee I can tell you that most military records and federal employee records are in reverse chronological order. The reason for this is that the "papers" are placed in the file in the order that the record keeper received the paper. Ann Gilchrest In a message dated 29-Dec-12 16:18:56 US Mountain Standard Time, sharon@sharonwhitney.com writes: Hi, I have acquired as a private holding photocopies of four record groups pertaining to the complicated Navy service of my grandfather. In conjunction with his legacy writings, which I also hold privately, I am writing up my analysis--for my own edification and possible dissemination. Within each record group, am I wiser to leave the photocopied documents as I received them (not in a strict chronological order), or to rearrange them so that they make more sense, chronologically? What do you all do in such circumstances? Sharon Whitney