Researching World War I (WWI) Veterans Using Memorials and Cemeteries

In the past week, many researchers and historians across the globe observed a day of remembrance for veterans who served in the military for their countries. Especially memorable was the U.K.’s Remembrance Day, the U.S.A.’s Veteran’s Day, and other observances by the Allied Powers, like France, Canada, Belgium and more. See this article for details by country.

Spanning from 1914-1918, WWI was also known as the First World War and the Great War. The conflict started with the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, the Archduke of Austria-Hungary, by a Serbian nationalist while the Archduke and his wife were visiting Bosnia, Sarajevo. Within the month, Austria declared war against Serbia and World War I began.

The U.S. National Archives’ (NARA) WWI page has an interactive timeline where you select and scroll forward through significant events of the war. This page also links to genealogy records, educator resources, and magazine articles, as well as photographs and videos. There is a listing of military records held at the NARA St. Louis facility, along with other interesting links. The war ended in 1918 at the eleventh hour on the eleventh day of the eleventh month (November 11, 1918) when the treaty agreement was signed by both sides (the Central Powers and the Allied Powers) to end fighting; an armistice instead of a surrender. This event on 11 November is recognized worldwide every year, with the U.S. remembering soldiers on Veterans Day and the U.K. defining the day as Remembrance Day.

My daughter and I have traveled throughout the U.K. and were in London on November 11, 2018, the 100th anniversary of the treaty signing. We stood on the Millennium Bridge in London, facing Big Ben at the eleventh hour on the eleventh day of eleventh month, when silence was observed. We watched parades, wore our poppies as remembrance and thought about my own maternal grandfather who served during the Argonne-Meuse conflict in France, at the end of the war. See the top section of this blog which provided pictures and videos from November 11, 2018. The middle of the blog contains links to resources about 20th century conflicts.

As we traveled in the U.K., we noticed memorials honoring the many soldiers who fought and did not return home. Counties (or parishes), cities, and cemeteries erected “crosses of sacrifice” to honor the millions of service members who were killed during the conflict. Many of these soldiers were not transported back to their home country; buried close to where they fell, mainly in France and Belgium. The “cross of sacrifice” was designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield in 1917. Most of these crosses were carved from white stone from the local area. The design include the elongated cross (reflecting the Christian faith) with a bronze longsword (downwards-facing sword, symbolizing war), as described here. 

How does this information help with genealogy research? Many of the memorials and statues contain the names of service-members from that place who were missing or killed in action, a useful piece of information when documenting an ancestor’s military service. An example is the War Memorial in Canterbury, England (see photo above). The Imperial War Museum has information about this statue and the 531 service-members who died in WWI (as well as other conflicts). Search this site for others who died during WWI.

Walking through the cemeteries in the U.K. revealed many crosses, some of which honor WWI veterans. We walked through Brompton Cemetery in London (see photos below) and were awestruck at the beauty and peacefulness of it. The Royal Parks system manages this cemetery, and one can search their Burials Database. A last name is required for the search. After you conduct the search, you can return to the search results (top right of that window) and modify the requested search. Most of the burials in Brompton are of local residents, some who probably died during the raids on London.