Genealogy: Don't bypass records for Civil War pensions

How strange to discover affidavits on Henrietta Silver's marital history tucked away in Christopher Grimm's Civil War pension file. Neither was a blood relative to the Eicher family we were researching. We simply checked Grimm out because he had married Peter Eicher's widow, Magdalena. As to Henrietta, well, we had no clue. Ah, sweet mystery. Curiosity piqued, we pressed on.

The saga began when Henrietta Case married Allen Bennett on Nov. 24, 1857, in Crawford County, Ohio. Bennett died March 3, 1858. Evidently not one to waste much time on the dating scene, Henrietta wed Frederick Silver on January 18, 1859. Silver, who served in the Civil War, received a pension. Upon his death on April 24, 1889, Henrietta began receiving widow's benefits. "So what?" we wondered.

Meanwhile, in Pennsylvania, Peter Eicher married Magdalena Ridenour on Jan. 12, 1857. The couple moved to Crawford County in the summer of 1862. Eicher was killed in the Civil War in 1863, and his widow married Christopher "Christian" Grimm on Sept. 15, 1864. Magdalena "Laney" Ridenour Eicher Grimm died on April 8, 1891.

Now here comes the tie that binds. Grimm married Henrietta Case Bennett Silver on Jan. 5, 1892. Ta da! Cue drum roll. When Grimm died on Aug. 3, 1904, Henrietta collected benefits based on his pension.

The point of relating this anecdote is to illustrate the abundance of information contained in many Civil War pension files and to reinforce the importance of investigating collateral relatives.

You can get copies of military pension files from the National Archives and Records Administration simply by requesting them and paying the sky-high fees NARA now charges.

Been a while since you ordered files from NARA? Be prepared for sticker shock. You now have two options when ordering pension files. The "pension-lite" packet costs $14.75 and contains a selection of documents such as a declaration of pension and marriage and death certificates. No two files are alike. Pay $37 and you'll get every scrap of paper in the file, which ranges from 10 to 100 pages. There's no charge if NARA doesn't find the file.

The old forms were canned when the fee hike went into effect. Further, you must complete a separate form for each request. Forms are carbonized. They can't be downloaded, and you can't complete them online. You may order them by e-mailing inquire@nara.gov, or write to NARA at 700 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20408. For details, go to www.nara.gov/genealogy. Mail going to NARA is backed up as a result of Sept. 11. It may take as long as three months before NARA even gets your request. Expect to wait an additional eight to 12 weeks for a response. Be patient! Or if you lack patience, pay a visit to Washington, D.C., and make your own copies. You'll pay a nominal fee per page.

NARA keeps pension files only for Union soldiers. Confederate soldiers weren't granted federal pensions until 1959, a little late for most of them. However, 14 states awarded pensions. If your ancestor fought for the South, check out the pertinent state archives.

Some Civil War pension files ended up in Suitland, Md., because of a quirk in the system. Determining which ones were sent there requires psychic ability. No matter whom I asked for clarification, I got a different answer.

One NARA source said that all pension records with file numbers beginning with C or XC wound up in Maryland because the designation indicates the file was active after 1900. That's not entirely true. I've obtained C and XC files from the Washington archives. In one case, the widow was still getting benefits in 1921. Other NARA sources give 1930 or 1934 as the cutoff dates.

Theoretically, if the file was still active in 1930 (or 1934), the Veterans Administration has custody of it, and you must make a request through your local VA office to view the records.

-- Donna Murray Allen welcomes your questions about genealogy and will respond to those of general interest in future columns. Sorry, she can't take phone calls, but you can write to her c/o Floridian, St. Petersburg Times, P.O. Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731, or e-mail her at rootscolumn@aol.com. You can read her column online at www.sptimes.com. Type Donna Murray Allen in the search box.

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