Researching a deceased soldier

[Carl W.]

When you are researching a soldier/ familymember who was Killed in Action during WWII there is another interesting initiative you might like to take under consideration.
For every soldier who was killed during his service, the US Government has created a so-called “Individual Deceased Personnel File” or “IDPF”.

This file contains various information such as a Report of Burial (when the individual was buried on a US military cemetery overseas), various letters from the War Department and other info concerning the cause of death, unit information and possible reburial in the US.

All you need to do to request this information is send a letter to the following address:

Dept. of the Army
US Army Human Resources Command
ATTN FOIA
1600 Spearhead Division Avenue
Fort Knox, KY 42701
USA

New address updated 19 November 2010
Always mention the following information (when available):

- your name and address
- the reason for your request
- full name, rank and ASN of the deceased soldier
- his unit organization (company, battalion, division)
- date of death
- your relation to the deceased

TIP!

When researching a deceased soldier who is not a relative, always mention the Freedom of Information Act. Otherwise your request may be turned down.

[connie]

Carl,

Is there any on line way to submit such a request or is the mailed request the only way to do this?

Have you had any experience with getting a name when you know other details? There was an episode on may 13 in France where an ammunition truck hit a couple of land mines. Several people were helped to to safety. One man, pinned under the wheel of the truck, could not be freed before the truck exploded. I have details on date and location and unit involved as well as some names involved in the rescue. I do not have the name of the man killed. I suppose it's worth a try to see if I can find out who was lost, but I'm wondering if records are accessible only with a name. Have you had experience with finding an unknown name from an incident? (Or has anyone else tried this?)

Connie

[Carl W.]

Hi Connie,

So far I have only used the mailed request and I assume that is the only way to file one of these. I've had a reply every single time but it usually takes several weeks/months to receive. I must admit that every time it was worth the wait.

To find out the name of the soldier you are referring to, I suppose there was mention of the incident in the company morning reports. I haven't tried to request similar files yet. It's maybe a good idea to have a look at the abmc website to see if the soldier was permanently interred overseas. If so, you should be able to find his name by doing a search on his unit.
Sometimes it can be like finding a needle in a haystack, but luck can be on one's side!

Greetings
Carl

[connie]

Thanks, Carl,

I will probably have to try the written submission. I checked the American Battle Monuments Commission site through the unit list, but was not able to access anything through that avenue. And apparently they don't have anything you can access by date. There were a number of injuries and one death in this episode. It also produced two soldier's medals to those involved in the rescue. I know the names of the award recipients. I have enough that someone may be able to track this down...

Thanks for the help.

Connie

[Carl W.]

Update 19 November 2010

NEW ADDRESS FOR REQUESTING IDPF:

Dept. of the Army
US Army Human Resources Command
ATTN FOIA
1600 Spearhead Division Avenue
Fort Knox, KY 42701
USA