WWII registrations on Ancestry.com

[CountAllVotes]

Last edited Sun Apr 8, 2012, 03:45 PM - Edit history (3)

I was absolutely shocked to find my grandfather had to register for WWII in 1942.

I'm thinking these records were recently released because 70 years have passed since he had to register.

It said at the top of the registration form that all men born after 1877 must register.

This is ironic as can be as my grandfather was in WWI and was discharged at "totally disabled". What exactly happened to him I do not know, but I think he was hit with gas in Germany.

In any event, he had to register for WWII in 1942.

I had to laugh really, ashe described himself physically and stated that he had a scar on his right hand on his middle and third finger.

Grandpa for telling them to F off as I think you'd had more than enough already.

He popped up under "historical records". This must be a new addition to ancestry.com I'm thinking.

******

On edit (more here):

More re: this database:

About U.S. World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942

The U.S. officially entered World War II on 8 December 1941 following an attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Just about a year before that, in October 1940, President Roosevelt had signed into law the first peacetime selective service draft in U.S. history, due to rising world conflicts. After the U.S. entered WWII a new selective service act required that all men between ages 18 and 65 register for the draft. Between November 1940 and October 1946, over 10 million American men were registered. This database is an indexed collection of the draft cards from the Fourth Registration, the only registration currently available to the public (the other registrations are not available due to privacy laws). The Fourth Registration, often referred to as the "old man's registration", was conducted on 27 April 1942 and registered men who born on or between 28 April 1877 and 16 February 1897 - men who were between 45 and 64 years old - and who were not already in the military. Information available on the draft cards includes:

* Name of registrant
* Age
* Birth date
* Birthplace
* Residence
* Employer information
* Name and address of person who would always know the registrant's whereabouts
* Physical description of registrant (race, height, weight, eye and hair colors, complexion)

Additional information such as mailing address (if different from residence address), serial number, order number, and board registration information may also be available.

[Waiting For Everyman]

1. I found out my grandpa was missing 3 fingers on his left hand and

1 finger on the other. He died the year before I was born so I never knew that and no one had spoken of it. I felt doubly bad for him, not only because that had to hurt! but also because he was a musician - a local band leader and music teacher (among other things - he was also a farmer and rural letter carrier). I knew he played the clarinet, trumpet, sax, french horn, and piano, but now I know why he took up the trombone... it's probably the only instrument left that he could play. By all accounts, he was good at all of them. He was sort of like a local Glenn Miller, by all reports he was somebody who everybody loved.

I'm sure it was a farming accident of some kind, or several of them.

Anyway, that wasn't as dull and predictable as I expected a short little form to be.


edit: Oh, and yes he was well into his 40's when WW2 started. I was really surprised that he had to register.

[CountAllVotes]

2. yes, I felt sad too

I found a letter that was sent to my late father during WWII from his cousin, my grandfather's first cousin she was.

In this letter she wrote to, "They are going after the fathers next!".

You could feel her anger reading that note to him.

So, his own father, my grandfather that died in 1957 had to register and possibly serve again even though totally disabled?

as all hell really