NJDARM: Archives Collection Guides, Department of Defense, Adjutant General's Office (Spanish-American War), Muster-Out Rolls (New Jersey National Guard), May 1898

Content Note

This series consists of muster-out rolls covering the period May 1898 - April 1899 for the four New Jersey National Guard regiments formed at the outbreak of the Spanish-American War. The rolls are arranged by regiment and thereunder by company. Each regiment begins with the field and staff (including quarter-masters, surgeons, and musicians) listed by rank and then alphabetically. This is followed by the rolls of officers and men for each company within the regiment (also arranged by rank and then alphabetically).

The rolls were made using pre-printed forms which include preparation instructions. They record the following for each man: name; rank; enrollment data (when, where and by whom); enrollment period; muster data (when, where and by whom); pay information (by whom and up to what date); place of residence; place of discharge; days of subsistence and forage; valuation of horses and equipment; money due the United States and/or the soldier for clothing; money due the United States for arms, equipment and quartermaster's stores; and remarks, which could include commission date, leave of absence dates, promotions, disciplinary actions, and cause and date of death.

The form also includes a pay account section (not used consistently by all regiments) which allows for the recording of the following: date of payment; pay per month; amount of pay; cost for clothing, subsistence, forage, traveling, horses, and equipment; amount of pay due; amount of pay stoppages; balance paid; and the signature of the soldier and a witness verifying payment. Each roll ends with the total number of men by rank, signatures of the commanding and mustering officers certifying the roll's accuracy, and a "Record of Events" which includes a chronology of the company's activities.

After the rolls were completed, a copy was retained by the company commander, two copies were sent to the paymaster, one was sent to the Adjutant General of the United States, and another was sent to the Adjutant General of New Jersey. The New Jersey Adjutant General's copies were subsequentlly bound into volumes. Several years prior to receipt of these records by the State Archives, however, they were disbound and microfilmed. For preservation purposes, the loose pages are now stored in folders.

The Adjutant General's Office prepared a card-file index to the muster-out rolls, available in the Archives on microfilm only. This index provides the regiment and page number reference for each soldier. Researchers should note that there may be more than one entry for a soldier if he transferred from one company to another. Once the regiment and page number are known, use the microfilm copy of the muster-out rolls to locate the record.

NOTE: The original muster-out rolls for the first regiment were missing when these records were transferred to the Archives in 1976. The original rolls will be pulled only in cases where the microfilm is illegible.