Kansas, U.S., Camp Funston Military Records, 1914-1919

Camp Funston was established at Fort Riley in Kansas as a World War I training center for recruits from Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, and South Dakota. This collection includes personnel records from the 89th Division, 353rd Infantry, and the 314th Engineers. Personnel forms vary but may contain a variety of details, such as the following:

• name
• enlistment date
• next of kin
• home address
• education level
• occupation
• rank and serial number
• posts held
• promotions
• record of injuries

You will also find some casualty records (some with burial information) and rosters of officers and enlisted men among the records.

Historical Background

Camp Funston is thought to have suffered the first major outbreak of the influenza epidemic of 1918. Recruits arrived there in early March from Haskell County, Kansas, where influenza was known to be. Within a few days, soldiers at the camp began falling ill, and some infected soldiers had already been deployed, thus spreading it to Europe. The first wave of influenza was serious but not nearly as virulent and deadly as the wave that struck in the fall of that year.