United States Occupation Records at the National Archives and Records Administration (National Institute)

National Archives, Records Administration and the Regional Branches
This is a massive source with the majority of the records not microfilmed. Records that have been microfilmed may be purchased or rented. The Family History Library purchased a portion of these microfilmed records and has made them available at the FHL and the FSC. Check the FamilySearch Catalog for availability.

Learning the intricacies of this repository is not the purpose of this course. I would recommend that an individual attend the National Institute of Genealogical Research held at the National Archives in Washington DC each July or one of the seminars offered by RIGS Alliance held at Regional Branches if your research interest is in this area.

The National Archives maintains a very extensive Internet site and has two publications that are necessary for researching in this facility.

Guide to Genealogical Research in the National Archives of the United States, Third Edition. Anne Bruner Eales and Robert M. Kvasnicka, editors. Washington DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 2000.

Guide to Federal Records in the National Archives of the United States, 3 volumes. Washington DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1995.

The National Archives also provides Preliminary Inventories and Descriptive Pamphlets as aids to accessing the different Record Groups. They also have published many books to assist the researcher in using the archive records with more understanding.

Check the website for publications. Or if you have the opportunity to attend a national genealogy conference they will usually have a booth and publications available for review before purchasing.

The records available for research about an individual’s occupation range from the familiar such as the census, immigration, naturalization, and military records to the less familiar records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Lighthouse Bureau and Postmasters, to name just a few.

I can not repeat this often enough; you are researching a person’s “life’s work.” It must be more than just the family lore “that he worked for the Bureau of Indian Affairs at a trading post.”

Always ask:


 * What do I want to know about his/her occupation?
 * What records are available to answer my question?
 * Where are these records housed?
 * How do I access these records?

The following is a listing for the National Archives and its branches. This information was taken from the website. For further information on each facility and a more detailed listing of the branch facility check out the above address.


 * National Archives and Records Administration 700 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20408


 * National Archives at College Park 8601 Adelphi Road College Park, MD 20740-6001


 * Pacific Alaska Region (Anchorage)
 * 654 West Third Avenue
 * Anchorage, Alaska 99501-2145
 * Telephone: 907-261-7820
 * Email:[mailto:alaska.archives@nara.gov alaska.archives@nara.gov]
 * This facility maintains records retired from Federal agencies and courts in Alaska.


 * Pacific Alaska Region (Seattle)
 * 6125 Sand Point Way NE
 * Seattle, Washington 98115-7999
 * Telephone: 206-526-6507
 * Maintains retired records from Federal agencies and courts in Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.


 * Pacific Region (Laguna Niguel)
 * 23123 Cajalco Road
 * Perris, CA 92570
 * Telephone: 951-956-2000
 * Maintains retired records from Federal agencies and courts in Arizona, southern California, and Clark County, Nevada.


 * Pacific Region (San Francisco)
 * 1000 Commodore Drive
 * San Bruno, California 94066-2350
 * Telephone: 650-238-3510
 * Maintains retired records from Federal agencies and courts in northern California, Hawaii, Nevada except Clark County, the Pacific Trust Territories, and American Samoa.


 * Rocky Mountain Region (Denver)
 * P.O. Box 25307
 * Denver, CO 80225
 * Telephone: 303- 407-5740
 * Email:[mailto:denver.archives@nara.gov denver.archives@nara.gov]
 * Maintains retired records from Federal agencies and courts in, Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming.


 * Southeast Region (Atlanta)
 * 5780 Jonesboro Road
 * Morrow, Georgia 30260
 * Telephone: 707-968-2100
 * Serves Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee.


 * Great Lakes Region (Chicago)
 * 7358 South Pulaski Road
 * Chicago, Illinois 60629-5898
 * Telephone: 773-948-9001
 * Maintains retired records from Federal agencies and courts in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin.


 * National Archives - Central Plains Region
 * 400 West Pershing Road
 * Kansas City, MO 64108
 * Telephone: 816- 268-8000
 * Serves: Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska


 * Northeast Region, Pittsfield
 * 10 Conte Drive
 * Pittsfield, Massachusetts 01201-8230
 * Telephone: 413-236-3600
 * Maintains microfilm holdings for genealogy and other research and retired Federal records from agencies nationwide.


 * Northeast Region (Boston)
 * Frederick C. Murphy Federal Center
 * 380 Trapelo Road
 * Waltham, Massachusetts 02452-6399
 * Telephone: 781-663-0130
 * Serves Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont.


 * Northeast Region New York City
 * 201 Varick Street
 * 12th Floor
 * New York, New York 10014-4811
 * Telephone: 1-866-840-1752
 * Email:[mailto:newyork.archives@nara.gov newyork.archives@nara.gov]
 * Maintains archival records from Federal agencies and courts in New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.


 * Central Plains Region Kansas City
 * 400 West Pershing Road
 * Kansas City, Missouri 64108-3011
 * Maintains retired records from Federal agencies and courts in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska.


 * National Archives at Philadelphia
 * 14700 Townsend Road
 * Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19154-1096
 * Telephone: 215-305-2044
 * Fax: 215-305-2052
 * Email:[mailto:philadelphia.archives@nara.gov philadelphia.archives@nara.gov]


 * Southwest Region
 * 1400 John Burgess Drive
 * Fort Worth, TX 76140
 * Telephone: 817- 551-2051
 * Maintains retired records from Federal agencies and courts in Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas.

___________________________________________________________________ Information in this Wiki page is excerpted from the online course US: Occupational Records offered by The National Institute for Genealogical Studies. To learn more about this course or other courses available from the Institute, see our website. We can be contacted at [mailto:wiki@genealogicalstudies.com wiki@genealogicalstudies.com]

We welcome updates and additions to this Wiki page.