Malcolm H. Stern-NARA Gift Fund

The Stern-NARA Gift Fund is a nationally supported program to finance preservation and imaging of valuable research materials now preserved in the National Archives and Records Administration in Washington, D.C. These materials consist of microfilm and digitized images of important genealogical records and indexes. These materials are produced without government funding, and are then distributed to the 13 National Archives Regional Archives for use by researchers or placed online for access. FGS administers this fund and conducts fund raising campaigns to support records preservation of and access to these records.

War of 1812 Pensions NEW
FGS and NARA, with the help of the genealogical community, have begun an exciting project to digitize the War of 1812 pension files. There are 7.2 million pages in 180,000 pension files that have never been available in any other form before. The Preserve the Pensions Project is in progress to digitize and make every page of these information-rich files available as part of a bicentennial commemoration of this historic conflict.

Learn more about this important preservation and digitization project at the Preserve the Pensions page and get involved by making a donation today.

How to Donate

Donations may also be sent to:
FGS
Attn: Stern-NARA Gift Fund
PO Box 200940
Austin, TX 78720-0940

Census Records:

M1283: Cross Index to Selected City Street and Enumeration Districts, 1910 census. Microfiche of Street Indexes to the 39 larger cities for the 1910 census. (Record Group 29: Records of the Bureau of the Census).

T1224: 1920 Census Enumeration Districts, 1830-1950. The Gift Fund provided the rolls for the 1920 Census Enumeration Districts for placement in the 12 regional archives.

Immigration Records:

M1359: Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at Galveston, Texas, 1896-1948 (Record Group 85: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1891-1957).

Canadian Border Crossings (1895-1954) indexes allocated to the six northern NARA regional archives. (Record Group 85: Records of the Immigration and Naturalizations Service, 1891-1957. Note: $14,000 allocated to 5 regional archives, with residual funds applied to "wish list" of southern tier regional archives).

Military Records:

M1747: Index to Records Relating to War of 1812, Prisoners of War, 1812 (Record Group 94: Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1780s to 1917).

M1878: Records of the Sultana Disaster, April 27, 1865 (Compiled from several record groups--Record Group 92: Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General; Record Group 94: Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1780Õs to 1917; Record Group 153: Records of the Office of the Judge Advocate General (Army); Record Group 233: Records of the U.S. House of Representatives; and Record Group 249: Records of the Commissary General of Prisoners.) This project was financed by The Abrams Foundation of Michigan through the Stern-NARA Gift Fund and the National Archives Trust Fund.

M2019: Records Relating to War of 1812 Prisoners of War. The Prisoner of War lists are indexed by M1747. (Record Group 94: Records of the Adjutant General's Office).

M2014: Burial Registers for Posts, Camps and Stations, 1768-1921. (Record Group 92: Records of the Quartermaster General).

M1845: Card Records of Headstones Provided for Deceased Union Civil War Veterans, ca 1879-ca1903. (Record Group 92: Records of the Quartermaster General).

M2025: Registers of Applications for the Release of Impressed Seaman, 1793-1802, and Related Indexes. (Record Group 59: Records of the Department of State).

M1826: Proofs of Citizenship Used to Apply for Seamen's Protection Certificates for the Port of New Orleans, Louisiana, 1800, 1802, 1804-07, 1809-12, 1814-16, 1818-19, 1850-51, 1855-57. (Record Group 36: Records of the U.S. Customs Office).

Post Office Records:

M2075: Record of Appointment of Substitute Clerks in First-and Second-Class Post Offices, 1899-1905. (Record Group 28: Records of the Post Office).

M2076: Index and Registers of Substitute Mail Carriers in First-and Second-Class Post Offices, 1885-1903. (Record Group 28: Records of the Post Office).

M1846: Record Cards of Carriers Separated from the Postal Service, 1863-1899.

Other Records:

M1085: Investigative Case Files of the Bureau of Investigation, 1908-1922. (Record Group 65, Records of the Federal Bureau of Investigation).

About Rabbi Malcolm L. Stern
Rabbi Malcolm H. Stern (1915-1994) was the founder and first president of the Genealogical Coordinating Committee, and the creator of the Gift Fund. Rabbi Stern's contributions to genealogy over a 44-year period are monumental. He wrote many articles for genealogical and historical publications. He was best known for Americans of Jewish Descent: 600 Genealogies (1654-1838), which documents the genealogies of Jewish families that arrived during the American colonial and f ederal periods. He held Fellowships in the National Genealogical Society, the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, and the American Society of Genealogists. He was the 1988 recipient of the Federation of Genealogical Societies' George Williams Award "for outstanding contributions to the FGS and to the genealogical community."

The Fund, originally called the GCC-NARA Gift Fund was started by the Genealogical Coordinating Committee. When GCC disbanded in 1995, FGS assumed responsibility for this important activity. The Fund was renamed to honor Rabbi Stern.