Introduction to Advanced Searches

The Advanced Search on the Veterans Legacy Memorial Website

To find a WWII Veteran interred in a cemetery that you have identified, you will perform an advanced search on the Veterans Legacy Memorial (VLM) website. Browse the images below to familiarize yourself with the advanced search on the VLM website. 

What Is an Advanced Search?

To understand what an advanced search is, it helps to first define some vocabulary. Click the annotations on the image to learn some key words.

Annotation Key

Additional Information

Audio

Image

Related Resource

Video

Keyword vs. Advanced Search

Keyword Search

What is searched? This looks for potential matches in all fields.

Example: Searching for “Wilson” would return anybody with that first, middle, or last name. In the diagram, this keyword search would return all three records.

Example

Diagram showing the difference in where a keyword vs. advanced search look

Advanced Search

What is searched? An advanced search looks for matches based on the data in a specific field.

Example: Searching the first name field for Wilson would return anybody with that first name. In the diagram, this advanced search would return just the top record.

Test Your Understanding

Here are the first five results from an advanced search on the Veterans Legacy Memorial website.

First Name Last Name DOB DOD Cemetery War Period Service Branch Decorations
Wilhelm Smith Apr-10-1870 Oct-30-1925 Cypress Hills National Cemetery, NY   US Navy Medal of Honor
Thomas Smith Not Available Oct-22-1905 Mountain Home National Cemetery, TN Civil War US Navy Medal of Honor
John Smith Not Available Dec-31-1907 Mount Moriah Cemetery Naval Plot, PA Civil War US Navy Medal of Honor
Frank Smith Aug-22-1864 Mar-10-1943 Mount Hope Cemetery, MA   US Navy Medal of Honor
William Smith May-11-1838 Jan-12-1902 Blossom Hill Cemetery, NH Civil War US Navy Medal of Honor