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If your male ancestor was born within the following time frames, chances are he could have served (and left records) in the military during the specified war.  In addition there were other, more localized wars with the Indians, such as the Black Hawk War in Illinois in 1832 which may also have created records.

Although this is not a complete listing of all wars and conflicts Americans have been involved in, it is meant to aid the genealogist in determining which wars their ancestors may have fought in. This listing is not meant to give a full explanation of each event, it is simply meant to be used as a reminder. Included in this list are: the name of the war or conflict, date, place, and other facts.

1622, 22 March --Jamestown Massacres. Jamestown, Virginia. Indians surprised and massacred 347 settlers. Despite English counter-attacks, Indian forays continued until the 1630’s. After Powhatan’s death, Opechancaough struck the colonies.

1644--Second Indian Massacre. Virginia. Led by Opechancaough. He was captured and killed by settlers ordered to guard him. Five hundred Colonists were killed.

1655--Dutch occupy Swedish Colony. Delaware. Fort Christina (present-day Wilmington) was established in 1638. The colony was called New Sweden. Governor Peter Stuyvesant of New Netherland occupied New Sweden in 1655 and renamed it New Amstel. English seized the settlements in 1664.

1673-1674--Dutch occupy New York. New York. The colony was called New Netherland under Peter Stuyvesant from 1647-64. It was known as New Amsterdam, and was seized by the British in 1664, and renamed New York. Dutch reoccupied 1673-74, when it was retaken by the Crown of England.

1675-1676--King Philip's War. New England. Indians vs. settlers of Plymouth. Philip, whose Indian name was Metacomet was the chief of the Wampanoag tribe. He formed a confederation of tribes in 1675 and led uprisings against the settlers of Plymouth. Colonists retaliated and in December 1675, and won a major victory. August 1676, Philip was killed, as a result the Indians left southern New England.

1676-1676--Bacon's Rebellion. Virginia. Virginia farmers led by Nathaniel Bacon against colonial authorities headed by Sir William Berkeley, Governor of Virginia. Among the grievances of the colonists were the Navigation Acts of 1651-60, which forced them to trade only with English firms with the prices being established in England. Intolerably high export duties were levied by colonial officials. Near the end of 1675, Indians began a series of raids on the frontier plantations of Virginia. Governor Berkeley made only a half-hearted attempt to repel the attacks. The colonists formed an army of their own led by Nathaniel Bacon, a plantation owner and member of the governor’s Council. Bacon’s army marched against the Indians, defeated them and then occupied Jamestown., the capitol of the colony. Berkeley raised a force to fight Bacon. Bacon marched against Jamestown a second time, captured the city and burned it in September 1676. Bacon died of malaria in October 1676 while marching to meet a hostile force sent against him by Governor Berkeley. The Governor took revenge on Bacon’s followers, executing some and confiscating the property of others.

1689--Revolutions erupt. Virginia, Maryland, Massachusetts.

1689-1697--King William's War. Canada-New England. First of four North American wars waged by the English and French from 1689-97, and part of a larger European war fought by the Grand Alliance against France over the succession of the throne of England. French and English colonists, aided by the Indians, raided each others settlements. Skirmishes in Canada, New York, New Hampshire, and Maine. New England shipping was disturbed. Resumed 1702 as Queen Anne’s war.

1689-1691--Leisler Rebellion. New York. Jacob Leisler proclaimed himself Governor of New York. He attempted to raise an expedition against French Canada. He was arrested, tried for treason and hanged.

1702-1713--Queen Anne's War. Canada, New England, Florida, Massachusetts, Connecticut. Second of four wars between the French and British for control of North America.

1711-1712--Tuscarora War. North Carolina. The Tuscarora Indian tribe began a war against British settlers of North Carolina, the Indians were defeated in 1713. Remnants of the tribe fled north and settled mainly in present-day New York.

1715-1728--Yamassee Wars. Southeast borders of North and South Carolina. There were incursions of Spanish, French and Indians on the borders of North Carolina, South Carolina. The settlement of Georgia was established as a buffer zone in 1732.

1718--Blackbeard the Pirate killed. Ocracoke Island, North Carolina.

1739-1742--War of Jenkin's Ear. On the seas. England vs. Spain. Trade war began in 1739 between Great Britain and Spain. British trade with Spanish colonies was permitted on a limited basis. Many British merchants were dissatisfied with this and resorted to smuggling. In 1731, Robert Jenkins, a British smuggler was seized by a Spanish coast guard vessel who compelled him to surrender his cargo then cut off his ears. The subsequent outrages against British seamen caused hostilities.

1744-1748--King George's War. Canada-New England. Third of four wars with the French for control of North America. Conflicts arose between French and British for control of North America. Canada, Massachusetts, and Maine.

1754-1763--French and Indian War. North America. Last of four wars between the French and British which affected the colonists. French and Indians vs. England and Colonists.

1763-1764--Paxton Boys Uprising. Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania frontiersmen angered by Eastern dominated Colonial Assembly's unwillingness to help defend against Indians marched to Philadelphia. 1763-1764--Pontiac War. Great lakes. Indians tried to drive out British and to check the influx of white settlers.

1766--British destroy Liberty Pole. New York. Stamp Act revolt.

1766--Sons of Liberty vs. Redcoats. Stamp Act Revolt. The Sons of Liberty was a secret intercolonial organization founded in November 1765 to oppose the Stamp Act. Local members in many cities and larger towns resisted the implementation of the Stamp Act by persuasion, pressure, or violence. They disbanded after the repeal of the Stamp Act in March 1766. Thereafter sons of liberty was used to describe persons or groups who supported the independence movement.

1768--British arrive in Boston. Massachusetts. Stamp Act revolt.

1769-1771--Regulator War. North Carolina. East-West conflict triggered by dominance in eastern colonies. Battle of Alamance, 1,000 government troops beat Regulator force twice the size.

1770, 5 March --Boston Massacre. Massachusetts. British soldiers killed five townsmen. A trial was held, two British soldiers were found guilty of manslaughter and five were acquitted. The two guilty men were branded on the hand and released.

1771--Regulators, Battle of Alamance. North Carolina. Small farmers in the backcountry of North Carolina protested against the eastern planter dominated government system. At the battle of Alamance Creek on 16 May 1771, one of the Regulator leaders was executed on the battlefield and six Regulators were hanged for treason following a court martial. Governor William Tryon led the eastern forces against the Regulators (western forces).

1772, 10 June --Gaspee Schooner burned. Rhode Island. The HMS Gaspee was a British revenue cutter that ran aground at Warwick, Rhode Island. Local smugglers resented the cutter’s interference and burned the ship and wounded its Captain.

1773, 16 December-- Boston Tea Party. Massachusetts Stamp Act revolt. Colonists disguised as Indians opposed the Tea Act of May 1773. They boarded three ships in Boston harbor and dumped 342 chests into the water. Similar tea parties occurred elsewhere in America.

1774--Dunmore’s War. Virginia, now West Virginia. Virginians vs. Shawnee.

1776-1781--Revolution. America. Americans vs. British. Read Revolutionary War stories!

1786-1787--Shays Rebellio. Massachusetts. Debt-ridden Massachusetts farmers led by Daniel Shays marched on Springfield hoping to seize the arsenal. Government militia defeated them.

1794-1794--Whiskey Insurrection. Western Pennsylvania. Congress enacted a stiff tax on Whiskey in 1791, farmers refused to pay. The farmers submitted to the militia. Repealed in 1801.

1801-1805--Tripoli. Between United States and Tripoli. The United States made an effort to end extortion payments to Barbary Coast pirates. Tripoli was bombarded and blockaded because they had declared war and would not allow American ships safe passage through the Mediterranean. An overland attack was made in 1805.

1812-1814--War of 1812. Mostly on the seas and lakes around eastern US. Indians sided with British. Battle of New Orleans was fought 8 Jan 1815, after a Peace Treaty had been signed.

1813--Peoria Indian War (IL). During the War of 1812, the Shawnees sided with the British. Tecumseh led his forces against the American Army until his death 5 October 1813.

1813-1814--Creek Indian War. Alabama, Georgia. During the War of 1812, some of the Creeks sided with the British. They surprised the militia garrisoned in a fort and massacred all but thirty-six of the 500 people within. Andrew Jackson led forces against them and the battles continued until their defeat 27 March 1814.

1817-1818, 1835-42, 1856-58--Seminole or Florida Wars.

1827--Winnebago War.

1831--and Fox War. (See Black Hawk War.)

1832--Black Hawk War. The last major Indian-white conflict east of the Mississippi River. Sauk-Fox tribes had signed a treaty in 1802 abandoning all claims to lands in Illinois. Black Hawk opposed the treaty and in 1828 when the Indians were ordered to move to Iowa, he began to seek alliances with other tribes. He crossed back to the east side of the Mississippi and scared the settlers. He was pursued for 15 weeks into Wisconsin and westward toward the Mississippi River. On 3 August 1832, his band was wiped out but he escaped. (see also Sauk-Fox War).

1832--Osage War.

1835-1836--Texan Revolution.

1835-1841--Indian Removal.

1836-1836--Heatherly War.

1836-1837--Creek War.

1836-1842--Second Seminole War. Florida. The Seminoles hated the whites, clashes continued over the years. They resisted the removal treaties of 1832. Their leader Osceola died 30 January 1838 in a prison at Charleston, SC. By 1841, most of the Seminoles had surrendered.

1838-1839--Patriot and Aroostock War.

1839-1846--Antirent War. Hudson Valley. Ancient Land-lord law prevailed, tenants uprose, State Militia were called. An 1846 law was repealed and farmers received title to their land.

1841-1842--Dorr's Rebellion. Rhode Island. Suffrage in Rhode Island was limited to substantial landowners, Thomas Dorr drafted a constitution. He was convicted of treason, but later released from prison.

1846-1848--Mexican War. Mexico-Texas.

1848--Cayuse War.

1849-1851--Indian Wars in Texas. Texas

1854-1856--Crimean War.

1861-1865--Civil War. America.

1868--Sheridan's Winter Campaign. Kansas.

1873--Yellowstone Expedition. North Dakota and western states

1876--Sioux Campaigns. Montana and other western states.

1877--Nez Perc'es.

1879--Utes.

1890-1891--Sioux War. South Dakota.

1893--Hawaiian Revolution.

1898--Leech Lake. Minnesota.

1898--Spanish American War.

1899-1902--Philippine Insurrection.

1914-1918--World War I. Europe, Middle-East, Northern Africa. More than 25 nations were involved. First War in which airplanes were used. Last War in which the US used horses in their Cavalry.

1939-1945--World War II. Europe, northern Africa, Asia and Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Only War in which the US used Atom Bombs.

1950-1953--Korean Conflict. Korea.

1957-1973--Vietnam Conflict. Vietnam. First non-combat U.S. Troops arrived in 1961, U. S. troops began increased military involvement in August 1964. U. S. planes began regular bombing raids in February 1965, Marines landed in March 1965.

1991--War with Iraq (Desert Storm). Iraq-Saudia Arabia.