In 1917 and 1918, approximately 24 million men, (98 percent of men present in America), born between 1873 and 1900 completed draft registration cards. During these two years, three registration days were held in each district where the registrant completed the registration card. Information found on these cards generally included, among other information, birth date, birth location, father's birthplace, and the address of next of kin. This civilian registration is often confused with induction into the military; however, only a small percentage of these men were actually called up for military service.

It should be noted that aliens were required to register but were not subject to induction into the American military. Persons already in the military did not register. Recent Italian emigrants wrote their last names first, resulting in some cards being filed under first names. Cards of Hispanics may be filed under their mother's maiden name surname if the registrant gave both parents' surnames. Also, men who resided in British territories sometimes listed themselves simply as British citizens without noting their origin in Canada, Australia, Ireland, Jamaica, etc. Illiterate men were unable to spell their names and birth location, so researchers should be quite flexible in searching for the spelling of names of illiterate men.

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