I hope this is allowed but I have always wanted to know more about my grandpa's time as a Marine in WW2. I know he signed up and was in the Battle of Tarawa, getting "lucky" and drawing 5th wave but that's about it. He didn't talk about it too much when I was a kid and he developed Alzheimer's when I was around 13. Can anybody lead me to a specific site that will show me some really precise details of his service in particular? Thank you very much in advance.
Hello there! As your question is related to looking for identification/information regarding military personnel, our Guide on Military Identification may be of use to you. It provides a number of different resources, including how to request service records from a number of national agencies around the world, as well as graphical aids to assist in deciphering rank, unit, and other forms of badges or insignia. While the users here may still be able to lend you more assistance, hopefully this will provide a good place to start!
I checked the rules and I believe this question is fine.
My suggestion, at least for a place to start, is the national archives. They keep veterans records and while it isn't all available online, they do have some databases. I don't know how in-depth the database information is, but it may be a good starting point.
Right now it looks like they have limited staffing because of covid and won't send records for non-emergencies. That said, once they have more employees back, it may be possible for a family member to request his military records. Keep in mind that there might be restrictions for who can request these things.
Thank you. I followed the link and browsed around. I didnt get anywhere on my own so I'll have to contact them some time. I'll check back in with y'all if I get anywhere in case anybody is curious as to what I learned about my grandpa and his fellow Marines.