Tracking military records

January 26, 2011 10:43 AM

I have information on where and when a certain (now deceased) man was in a displaced persons camp (WWII). Can I use this to find other information on the man?

Vague because this is work-related.

I have some limited information on a man, let's call him Bob, who was in the military in Europe (unsure which military) during WWII. The sole record I do have is a signed course completion certificate that he earned while at a displaced persons camp in Germany. I know what year Bob was born, and when he came to Canada. Is there any way to use the displaced person camp record to find out which military Bob was in?

Because this is work-related, I would appreciate links/phone numbers that I can use to follow up myself. As much as I would love the MeFi detective squad to work on things, I'm really just looking for resources I can use to work with the family.

posted by arcticwoman to Grab Bag (3 answers total)

Contact the Holocaust Survivors and Victims Resource Center here at the Holocaust Museum in Washington. They have access to lots of records from DP camps and might be able to help you, although the records mostly concern the displaced persons themselves and not (to my knowledge) the military. Their direct phone number is [phone].

You can also email me if you want: rcoleman ushmm.org. If I can't help, I can forward you to someone who can.
posted by arco at 11:23 AM on January 26, 2011

Because you mention Canada, I immediately thought you should start with the resources available at the Library and Archives of Canada and more specifically start with their What to Search page. Good luck, sounds like a fascinating research project!
posted by kuppajava at 9:45 AM on January 27, 2011

Thank you. I will pass these resources along to the family and work with them to see how they want to proceed.
posted by arcticwoman at 9:27 AM on February 7, 2011