Speaker Profile-Daria Labinsky

Daria Labinsky

Daria Labinsky is an archivist at the National Archives at St. Louis, where she has worked since 2010. She has a master’s in library science from Emporia State University and bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Northwestern University. She is a Certified Archivist.

Friday, 11:00 a.m., F324–“The Sick and the Dead: Veterans Administration Claim Files and Burial Case Files.”

The records she will discuss are in the custody of the National Archives at St. Louis.

Burial Case Files
The Quartermaster General’s office created Burial Case Files between 1915 and 1939 to keep track of domestic and overseas military burials. Many of the records belong to veterans who died in Europe during World War I. They can provide details of their death and burial and often include letters from family members. If a deceased veteran’s mother or widow participated in a Gold Star Mothers pilgrimage, details about their trips may be included as well.

Deceased Veterans Claim Files
The Veterans Administration compiled Deceased Veterans Claim Files to track the benefits veterans received after death or discharge from service, including pensions, disability payments, life insurance, and bonus pay. NARA–St. Louis holds claim files closed from 1917 to 1945. While most date to the WWI era, many are for veterans of the Civil War and other pre-WWI service. The files may include pension applications, lists of beneficiaries, correspondence, affidavits, medical records, and death certificates. Many files contain documents in languages other than English.

Speaker Profile-Daria Labinsky