The Spanish-American War in 1898 was brief, yet historically significant: it ended Spanish colonial rule in the Western Hemisphere, it marked the first time U.S. troops fought overseas, and it resulted in the United States becoming a global power.

More specifically, it led to U.S. troops’ involvement in the Cuban War of Independence, as well as wresting Puerto Rico, the Philippines, and Guam from Spanish control. The conclusion of the Spanish-American War then set the stage for the Philippine-American War (1899-1902).

But given the reduced number of U.S. military troops after the Civil War, this new conflict required more soldiers immediately. President William McKinley asked the nation for volunteers, and people across the country stepped up to serve.

Was someone in your family tree among the more than 300,000 volunteer or regular U.S. service members who took part in the Spanish-American War? If you’re not sure or if you’d like to learn more, then you might just rediscover a forgotten family story.

What Happened During the Spanish-American War?

While the U.S. had been monitoring the Cuban people’s decades-long battle for independence from Spain, once President McKinley learned of the explosion of the USS Maine in Havana Harbor, Cuba, on February 18, 1898, the situation escalated. Prompted in part by the deaths of the 260 American sailors, the presence of U.S. citizens and property in Cuba, and the American people’s support for the Cuban cause, U.S. Congress formally intervened and declared war on Spain on April 25, 1898.

The Spanish-American War saw U.S. troops engage with Spanish troops on multiple fronts—in locations thousands of miles apart:

• Philippines: On May 1, 1898 , the first major action between Spanish and American forces took place at Manila Bay. The U.S. Navy, under Commodore George Dewey, quickly defeated the Spanish naval forces. By the end of July, more than 15,000 additional U.S. troops arrived to mount a campaign for control of the capital of Manila. Many volunteer units—from places like Washington, Tennessee, Iowa, and Kansas—departed from the military base at San Francisco’s Presidio.
• Cuba: On June 10, 1898, U.S. Marines arrived in Guantanamo Bay, with U.S. Army Infantry, Cavalry, Artillery, and Engineer regiments landing June 22nd. Throughout the next month, battles took place at sea and on land. The famous Battle of San Juan Hill saw the defeat of Spanish soldiers on July 1st. Among the 8,000 U.S. troops involved in that conflict were Theodore Roosevelt’s volunteer Rough Riders and 1,250 African American soldiers from Buffalo Soldiers’ regiments. Two days later, on July 3rd, American troops fought the Spanish Fleet in a conclusive naval battle off Santiago Bay. July 17th saw the Spanish surrender at Santiago, the capital city.
• Puerto Rico: On July 25, 1898, U.S. volunteer and regular troops attacked Spanish soldiers in the area around San Juan, Puerto Rico. But in general, U.S. troops met little resistance on this island and suffered few casualties.
• Guam: U.S. seizure of the island took place without incident on June 20, 1889. Spanish officials there weren’t aware that war was underway, but within 30 minutes they agreed to surrender to U.S. control.

The United States and Spain signed a preliminary peace treaty on August 12, 1898, and the formal Treaty of Paris on December 10, 1898, which officially ended the Spanish-American War. After ratification on February 6, 1899, Spanish handed control of Cuba, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines, to the United States.

The Philippine-American War

While U.S. involvement quickly ended Spanish rule in the Philippines, two days before the Treaty of Paris was ratified, Philippine nationals began their fight against rule by a different colonial power—the United States. Filipino insurgents took actions to establish self-rule rather than become a U.S. territory. Unlike the quickly resolved Spanish-American War, the Philippine Insurrection lasted three years. More than 120,000 U.S. troops served in this conflict. Casualties were significantly higher among U.S. troops than in the Spanish-American War.

The Spanish-American War’s Impact on People in the Newly Acquired Territories

People who lived in these new U.S. territories were affected differently by the political shift in control:

• Cuba, technically ceded to the United States, became an independent country in 1902.
• U.S. citizenship was eventually granted to Puerto Ricans in 1917.
• The Philippine islands remained a U.S. territory until 1946, when it became an independent nation.
• Through the Guam Organic Act of 1950, Guamanians became U.S. citizens. Guam is currently the westernmost U.S. military base on American soil.

Who Served in the Spanish-American War?

There wasn't a draft during the Spanish-American War, but volunteers for service enlisted in droves after President McKinley called for 200,000 volunteers. In the decades after the U.S. Civil War, regular U.S. Army troops had shrunk from about 3 million soldiers to roughly 26,000 just before the Spanish-American War, so additional troops were needed for this new conflict. Spanish-American soldiers, marines, sailors, and auxiliary forces consisted of:

• Regular military units in the U.S. Army, U.S. Marine Corps, and U.S. Navy, who were active in locations from Cuba and Puerto Rico in the Caribbean to the Philippines and Guam in the Pacific.
• National guard units and state militias, which were mobilized by almost every U.S. state. These were the main source of volunteer soldiers during the Spanish-American War.
• Other volunteers from all walks of life, who were inspired to serve by a range of motives. U.S. newspapers’ focus on the Cuban’s fight for independence prompted patriotic fervor among U.S. readers, while others felt called by the sinking of USS Maine. A notable contribution came from Native American fighters, especially from Southwestern territories such as Arizona, New Mexico, and Oklahoma.

Tip: One way to potentially identify a veteran of the Spanish-American War or Philippine Insurrection is to see what’s recorded for them in the 1930 U.S. Census. That year includes a column for veteran status and conflict.

Who Were the Rough Riders?

Theodore Roosevelt was so inspired to participate in the Spanish-American War that he resigned his position as Assistant Secretary of the Navy in order to create a volunteer regiment. More than 20,000 applied to become part of the First U.S. Volunteer Cavalry. This regiment of 1,000 men, came to be known as "Roosevelt's Rough Riders" as one of the requirements for acceptance was that they be "a rough and ready fighter."

Native American Volunteers in the Spanish-American War

Although the exact number of fighters isn’t known, Native Americans from tribes like the Cherokee, Chickasaw, and Pawnee served in Arizona’s First Volunteer Cavalry (the Rough Riders) and New Mexico’s First Territorial Infantry. Native American troops saw action as Rough Riders in Cuba’s Battle of Las Guasimas and Battle of San Juan Hill.

Motives for Native American participation are elusive, but William Pollock, a Pawnee Rough Rider, said "[I]n the memory of our brave fathers I will try and be like one of them, who used to stand single-handed against the foes."

Buffalo Soldiers in the Spanish-American War

Regular U.S. Army troops of all-Black regiments, posted to Cuba, served with distinction in the battles of Las Guasimas, El Caney, and San Juan Hill. The 9th and 10th Cavalry units and 24th and 25th Infantry units were known as the Buffalo Soldiers—a name said to be bestowed on them out of respect by Native Americans. In April 1898, Buffalo Soldiers represented approximately 3,000 members of the regular army’s expeditionary force.

Considering the discrimination and hostility faced by these soldiers—from the people they fought with—their acts of bravery and courage were even more commendable. In fact, five Black soldiers from the 10th Cavalry were awarded the highly coveted Medal of Honor for their bravery.

The Biggest Cause of Casualties During the Spanish-American War

Diseases like typhoid fever, yellow fever, malaria, and dysentery were epidemic among U.S. and Spanish troops during this conflict, as well as civilian populations. For example, while almost 400 U.S. service members died in battles during the Spanish-American War, more than 2,000 U.S. soldiers, sailors, and marines died from disease. U.S. military encampments experienced more than 20,000 cases of typhoid fever.

In researching your ancestor’s experience during the Spanish-American War, you may discover that they were hospitalized due to one of the epidemics. Learning this fact from a military record could explain why they later spent time in one of the National Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers.

Women Who Served in the Spanish-American War

Soon after war was declared, the Surgeon General received approval to hire women nurses under contract to the army. These contract military nurses received $30 per month and daily rations.

Nurses accepted for contracts had to be graduates of nursing schools or otherwise highly trained. The American Red Cross headquarters, established in Florida during this time by famed nurse Clara Barton, was designed specifically to prepare nurses for service in Cuba.

In July, large outbreaks of yellow fever among the soldiers in Cuba required additional contract nursing services. Black women from the South were recruited because they were mistakenly believed to be immune from tropical diseases. But in fact, several Black nurses were among the 153 nurses who died during the Spanish-American War due to these diseases.

Also part of the temporary nursing corps were highly trained nurses from religious orders who volunteered their services. Several Lakota nuns, members of the Congregation of American Sisters on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation in North Dakota, were the first Native American women known to have served as skilled sister nurses.

Between 1898 and 1901, more than 1,500 women worked as military contract nurses. A permanent U.S. Army Nurse Corps wasn’t officially established until 1901.

What Can You Learn From Spanish-American War Service Rosters?

Whether members of your family tree served as regular or volunteer soldiers, sailors or marines, or as contract nurses, Spanish-American War personnel records on Ancestry^® can provide details about their service.

From transcribed indexes of service rosters to digitized images of pension records, you may discover enlistment dates, muster-out dates, the branch of service, the unit they served with, and emergency contact information. Records may also include physical descriptions, pension information, and how a service member died (if they died during their service).

Uncovering details like dates and locations regarding your family member’s military service could also help solve some family mysteries or give context to family stories. For instance:

• You might learn that your great-grandfather shipped out to the Philippines only a few months after his marriage.
• Your ancestor’s future wife could turn out to be a nurse who cared for him while he was suffering from yellow fever in Cuba.
• A pension received for service may have helped purchase a house that’s still in the family.

Spanish-American War Records on Ancestry^®

Most official documents related to the Spanish-American War are part of state record collections. But if you aren’t sure which state might have your ancestor’s records, then the Spanish-American War Volunteers Index is a good place to start your search.

Examples of state-based collections include:

• New York, U.S., Spanish-American War Military and Naval Service Records, 1898-1902
• Pennsylvania Spanish War compensation records
• Minnesota Volunteers in the Spanish American War and the Philippine Insurrection

How General Military Record Collections May Help

If you’ve heard that a family member served with the U.S. Army during the time of the Spanish-American War, but you can't find anything in conflict-specific records, then it’s time to dive into broader U.S. military record collections.

Here are examples to explore. Each collection covers a long date span, so consider narrowing your search to posts based in Cuba or the Philippines, and then set a target event date of 1898, for example.

• U.S. Army Register of Enlistments (1798-1914): Included are detailed physical descriptions, the city and state (or country!) where the enlistee was born, and their pre-military profession.
• U.S., Returns from Military Posts (1806-1916): These contain detailed day-by-descriptions of events, giving you a sense of your ancestor’s experience while serving at a specific post.
• U.S., Buffalo Soldiers, Returns From Regular Army Cavalry Regiments, 1866-1916: Discover whether your ancestor was "in duty with troops" on the day of a key battle.
• U.S., National Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, 1866-1938: Use "1898" and the keyword "nurse" as search parameters to see if your ancestor was one of the contract nurses during the Spanish-American War.

Bonus: For information about specific battles as well as a day-by-day summary of events, check out the chapter on Spanish-American War and Philippine Insurrection in the Alphabetical list of battles, 1754-1900.

Explore Your Family's Connection to the Spanish-American War

While the Spanish-American War only lasted a short time, its impact on several countries around the world can still be felt today. Start your research on Ancestry to explore your family's connection to the Spanish-American War and Philippine Insurrection.

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