Source Information

Kansas Historical Society
Ancestry.com. Kansas, U.S., United Spanish War Veterans Reports of Deaths, 1945-1970 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. This collection was indexed by Ancestry World Archives Project contributors.
Original data:

United Spanish War Veterans. Department of Kansas. Taps. Microfilm, 3 rolls. Kansas Historical Society, Topeka, Kansas.

About Kansas, U.S., United Spanish War Veterans Reports of Deaths, 1945-1970

This database contains death notices (called Taps) for members of United Spanish War Veterans camps in Kansas.

Historical Background

The United Spanish War Veterans became the largest of many fraternal organizations that formed after the Spanish-American War as various veterans groups merged with one another. Members had served in the Spanish-American War, the Philippine-American War, or the Chinese Relief Expedition (Boxer Rebellion) and received an honorable discharge from the U.S. military. Non-military personnel who had served were also eligible for membership. The organization sought to preserve the memory of those who had served and offer assistance to fellow comrades. Local organizations were called camps.

What’s in the Records

These are death notices (called Taps) for members who belonged to camps in Kansas. These are veterans who did not die in the war, so the death dates can be decades later. Members were not necessarily born in—and did not always die in—Kansas. Most of the records are on a standard form that can include

  • name
  • office/rank in USWV
  • military rank
  • ship or regiment
  • marital status
  • name and address of widow
  • birth date
  • birthplace
  • death date
  • place of death
  • place of burial
  • cemetery (location)