Someone asked about Revolutionary War records. The films of both service records and the 1832 pension records are at the National Archives and its branches and also at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. How does one know what material is contained on those films? Your best bet is to TRY to find indexes to both these sets of filmed records. These indexes in book form (four big volumes of each set) have been compiled by Virgil D. White and published, I believe by National Historical Press of Tennessee. The volumes, particularly the pension abstracts, are quite costly, and therefore are available at only those libraries which can afford them. Seek out the largest genealogical library in your state and request the URL for their catalog. (Or, use google.com) There are nearly 3,000 reels of film for the pension records, which are full of genealogical information. I don't know how many reels of film for the service records. However, do not be discouraged if you cannot find your ancestor in the NARA films. In reading county COURT records for various counties in the South, which were in existence during the Revolution, I have found entries for individuals--some requesting county aid because of severe wounds which the person has suffered in the service of his country; one woman binding out her son because his father is in the Continental Army; another is a widow whose husband was killed in the Revolution and she is having to ask for county welfare (but phrased differently, of course). Also, for Virginia, there were "Publick Claims" which persons filed after the Revolution. This frequently included widows who provided goods for the troops. I believe Iberian Press published an index to these "county booklets" of Publick Claims. When I don't know the exact title of a book but know the author or a keyword, I research the Family History Library Catalog on <A HREF="www.familysearch.org">www.familysearch.org</A> Frequently, you can get an ISBN and then request your public librarian to interlibrary loan the book for you. Doesn't always work, but with the computer network, libraries are increasingly able to do this. To seek the cataloging on the LDS website for each state, type in the State (one which probably had been one of the 13 colonies) and then seek the topic Military. However, other states have compiled records of Revolutionary persons buried in ... [whatever state, say Indiana]. Don't overlook those. In all probablity, you cannot borrow Virgil D. White's volumes, however. They probably are called Reference Books and do not circulate. Not everyone who qualifies for Rev War service for DAR and SAR served in the military, however. The military consisted of younger men in the Continental Line (under Gen. Washington and his subordinates) and the older men probably served in the state or county militia. Each colony had different qualifications. For instance, if one got land grant from the State of North Carolina, he/she qualified for patriotic service. And so on. Each state has different qualifications. People who served with George Rogers Clark in Illinois qualify for patriotic service. A payroll has been published. Be especially careful about claiming anyone from Georgia. Some of the older compiled lists have been ruled out by DAR. Hope this gives you some ideas. E.W.Wallace