Discovering Hidden Family Ties: What a Military Service Record Revealed About My Grandparents
I’m not sure how it happened so fast. It seems only a short time ago that my mother and grandmother were telling family stories…for the hundredth time. But now I have a question and need the wisdom of the eldest members of the family. Wait, I’m the oldest generation now? But I don’t have the answers.
In a recent storytelling workshop, I felt as if I was decades too late to tell any of the stories about how my parents or grandparents met. Indulging my regret at missed opportunities, I put my notebook aside and carried on with my summer research project to document and cite primary documents featuring my immediate family.
Next on my list? Henry Wagstaff Ryan, Sr., my paternal grandfather. About all I know for sure is that he was a lawyer and an officer in the Army. The first document I found was an Abstract of World War I Military Service - full of, as you can imagine, cryptic acronyms and disconnected terms.
Compiled service record, Henry Wagstaff Ryan, Second Lieutenant, Student Army Training Corps, SATC, World War I, RG New York, U.S., Abstracts of World War I Military Service, NA - Washington.
2 Lt Inf
Fr CL; Plattsburg Bks
SATC
No problem, I’ll cite it and decipher it later. Except this record turns out to be a square peg that doesn’t fit any citation template. OK, focus, what is this service record trying to tell me? My first clue is “Plattsburg Bks” along with the dates Sept 16, 1918 - Dec 16, 1918. Not the career-long document I was expecting. Watch your step, we are now headed down a rabbit hole…The Plattsburg Movement.
Beginning in 1913, the war department established several civilian training camps borne out of the increased threat of a war in Europe. By 1918, with glimmers of hope for an armistice, the Plattsburg camp pivoted to become an officer candidate program known briefly as the Student Army Training Corps (SATC). Armed with a little more understanding, I then performed a Google search using this query:
“Henry Wagstaff Ryan” “Plattsburg”
Bingo! The results include a 1918 New York Times article listing a few of the 400 New York young men, recents graduates of the program each earning the rank of Second Lieutenant. Remembering the importance of FAN (friends, associates, neighbors) in genealogy research, I carefully scanned the list of names and then gasped.
Garvey, Michael Joseph - Highbridge, NY
And several lines down
Ryan, Henry Wagstaff - 2593 Grant Ave, New York
Could this be how my grandparents meet? If this is the right Michael Joseph Garvey, he is my grandmother’s older brother. The next logical step is to find Michael’s service records. There it is - the same obscure record documenting participation in the same program, on the same dates.
While I never knew either of them, I can imagine two 18 year olds talking in the barracks about their lives and families. Michael mentions his younger sister, Dorothy, and maybe writes to her about this tall, good looking guy with striking blue eyes. Henry’s military career took him around the world for the next several years. Dorothy and Henry married at the consulate in Rio de Janeiro in 1930.
How can this tale finding stories in unexpected places help your research?
Always perform lateral research. Open another tab and follow where the sources lead. Without that, I never would have found the Times article listing my grandfather and his future brother-in-law.
Remember that Google is a valuable tool. Use the advanced search strategies to your advantage.
Just like when you misplace your keys, sometimes you have to stop looking to find what you need.
Most importantly, research and documentation can indeed tell stories when your family is no longer here to ask. I now feel a bit closer to these two men I never knew.
How did your parents or grandparents meet?