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title="Maps, aerial photos, and other data for this location">38.68513°N 90.37065°W</span><span style="display:none"> / <span class="geo">38.68513; -90.37065</span></span></span></a></span></span></div></div> </div> <div id="siteSub" class="noprint">From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</div> </div> <div id="contentSub"><div id="mw-content-subtitle"></div></div> <div id="mw-content-text" class="mw-body-content"><div class="mw-content-ltr mw-parser-output" lang="en" dir="ltr"><div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none">1973 fire at St. Louis, MO archives facility storing veterans records</div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1251242444">.mw-parser-output .ambox{border:1px solid #a2a9b1;border-left:10px solid #36c;background-color:#fbfbfb;box-sizing:border-box}.mw-parser-output .ambox+link+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+link+style+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+link+link+.ambox,.mw-parser-output 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Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.<br /><small><span class="plainlinks"><i>Find sources:</i> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.google.com/search?as_eq=wikipedia&q=%22National+Personnel+Records+Center+fire%22">"National Personnel Records Center fire"</a> – <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.google.com/search?tbm=nws&q=%22National+Personnel+Records+Center+fire%22+-wikipedia&tbs=ar:1">news</a> <b>·</b> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.google.com/search?&q=%22National+Personnel+Records+Center+fire%22&tbs=bkt:s&tbm=bks">newspapers</a> <b>·</b> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.google.com/search?tbs=bks:1&q=%22National+Personnel+Records+Center+fire%22+-wikipedia">books</a> <b>·</b> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=%22National+Personnel+Records+Center+fire%22">scholar</a> <b>·</b> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.jstor.org/action/doBasicSearch?Query=%22National+Personnel+Records+Center+fire%22&acc=on&wc=on">JSTOR</a></span></small></span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">June 2020</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1257001546">.mw-parser-output .infobox-subbox{padding:0;border:none;margin:-3px;width:auto;min-width:100%;font-size:100%;clear:none;float:none;background-color:transparent}.mw-parser-output .infobox-3cols-child{margin:auto}.mw-parser-output .infobox .navbar{font-size:100%}@media screen{html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data:not(.notheme)>div:not(.notheme)[style]{background:#1f1f23!important;color:#f8f9fa}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data:not(.notheme) div:not(.notheme){background:#1f1f23!important;color:#f8f9fa}}@media(min-width:640px){body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table{display:table!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table>caption{display:table-caption!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table>tbody{display:table-row-group}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table tr{display:table-row!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table th,body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table td{padding-left:inherit;padding-right:inherit}}</style><table class="infobox vevent"><caption class="infobox-title summary">National Personnel Records Center fire</caption><tbody><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-image" style="border-bottom:#aaa solid 1px"><span class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Frameless"><a href="/wiki/File:NARAfire.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/78/NARAfire.jpg/240px-NARAfire.jpg" decoding="async" width="240" height="173" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/NARAfire.jpg 1.5x" data-file-width="250" data-file-height="180" /></a></span><div class="infobox-caption">Fire underway, 1973, Aerial View of MILPERCEN, National Archives.</div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Date</th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align: left;">July 12–16, 1973</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Venue</th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align: left;"><a href="/wiki/National_Personnel_Records_Center" title="National Personnel Records Center">National Personnel Records Center</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Location</th><td class="infobox-data location" style="text-align: left;"><a href="/wiki/Overland,_Missouri" title="Overland, Missouri">Overland, Missouri</a>, United States</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/wiki/Geographic_coordinate_system" title="Geographic coordinate system">Coordinates</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align: left;"><span class="geo-inline"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1156832818">.mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct,.mw-parser-output .geo-inline-hidden{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}</style><span class="plainlinks nourlexpansion"><a class="external text" href="https://geohack.toolforge.org/geohack.php?pagename=National_Personnel_Records_Center_fire&params=38.68513_N_90.37065_W_type:landmark_region:US-MO"><span class="geo-default"><span class="geo-dms" title="Maps, aerial photos, and other data for this location"><span class="latitude">38°41′06″N</span> <span class="longitude">90°22′14″W</span></span></span><span class="geo-multi-punct"> / </span><span class="geo-nondefault"><span class="geo-dec" title="Maps, aerial photos, and other data for this location">38.68513°N 90.37065°W</span><span style="display:none"> / <span class="geo">38.68513; -90.37065</span></span></span></a></span></span></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Type</th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align: left;">Fire</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Cause</th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align: left;">Unknown</td></tr></tbody></table> <p>The <b>National Personnel Records Center fire</b> of 1973,<sup id="cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-AmericanArchivist-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> also known as the <b>1973 National Archives fire</b>, was a <a href="/wiki/Fire" title="Fire">fire</a> that occurred at the <a href="/wiki/Military_Personnel_Records_Center" title="Military Personnel Records Center">Military Personnel Records Center</a> (MPRC) in the <a href="/wiki/St._Louis" title="St. Louis">St. Louis</a> suburb of <a href="/wiki/Overland,_Missouri" title="Overland, Missouri">Overland, Missouri</a>, from July 12–16, 1973. </p><p>The fire destroyed some 16 million to 18 million official <a href="/wiki/United_States_Armed_Forces" title="United States Armed Forces">U.S. military</a> personnel records. The MPRC, the custodian of U.S. military service records, is part of the <a href="/wiki/National_Personnel_Records_Center" title="National Personnel Records Center">National Personnel Records Center</a>, an agency of the <a href="/wiki/National_Archives_and_Records_Administration" title="National Archives and Records Administration">National Archives and Records Administration</a> of the <a href="/wiki/General_Services_Administration" title="General Services Administration">General Services Administration</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-Archives_2-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Archives-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <meta property="mw:PageProp/toc" /> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Background">Background</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=National_Personnel_Records_Center_fire&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: Background"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The NPRC was created in 1956 through the mergers of predecessor agencies after <a href="/wiki/Military_history_of_the_United_States_during_World_War_II" title="Military history of the United States during World War II">World War II</a>, including the <a href="/wiki/Demobilized_Personnel_Records_Center" title="Demobilized Personnel Records Center">Demobilized Personnel Records Center</a> (DPRC) and the <a href="/wiki/Military_Personnel_Records_Center" title="Military Personnel Records Center">Military Personnel Records Center</a> (MILPERCEN) of the <a href="/wiki/United_States_Department_of_Defense" title="United States Department of Defense">Department of Defense</a>, along with the <a href="/wiki/National_Personnel_Records_Center#Civilian_Personnel_Records_Center" title="National Personnel Records Center">St. Louis Federal Records Center</a> of the <a href="/wiki/General_Services_Administration" title="General Services Administration">General Services Administration</a>. In final form, the NPRC handled the service records of people in <a href="/wiki/United_States_federal_civil_service" title="United States federal civil service">federal civil service</a> or American military service, overseen by the <a href="/wiki/National_Archives_and_Records_Administration" title="National Archives and Records Administration">National Archives and Records Administration</a> of the General Services Administration.<sup id="cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-AmericanArchivist-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>In 1951, the Department of Defense hired the Detroit firm of <a href="/wiki/Minoru_Yamasaki" title="Minoru Yamasaki">Hellmuth, Yamasaki, and Leinweber</a>, architects, to design a facility for its Demobilized Personnel Records Center. The firm visited several similar operations, including a <a href="/wiki/United_States_Navy" title="United States Navy">U.S. Navy</a> records center at <a href="/wiki/Garden_City,_New_York" title="Garden City, New York">Garden City, New York</a>, and a Department of Defense facility in <a href="/wiki/Alexandria,_Virginia" title="Alexandria, Virginia">Alexandria, Virginia</a>, to study their functions and storage systems. Their February 1952 report detailed different approaches, including <a href="/wiki/Fire_prevention" title="Fire prevention">fire prevention</a>, <a href="/wiki/Fire_detection" title="Fire detection">detection</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Fire_suppression_systems" class="mw-redirect" title="Fire suppression systems">suppression</a> systems. The Naval records center, for example, was outfitted with a full <a href="/wiki/Fire_sprinkler_system" title="Fire sprinkler system">fire sprinkler system</a>, while the Department of Defense facility was not.<sup id="cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-AmericanArchivist-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> This reflected a debate among <a href="/wiki/Archivist" title="Archivist">archivists</a> and <a href="/wiki/Librarian" title="Librarian">librarians</a>: are documents at greater risk in a facility with sprinklers, which could cause <a href="/wiki/Water_damage" title="Water damage">water damage</a>, or in one without sprinklers to guard against <a href="/wiki/Fire_damage" class="mw-redirect" title="Fire damage">fire damage</a>?<sup id="cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-AmericanArchivist-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Department of Defense officials approved a design plan that omitted sprinklers and heat and smoke detectors. Moreover, each floor had large spaces for records storage stretching hundreds of feet and containing no <a href="/wiki/Firewall_(construction)" title="Firewall (construction)">firewalls</a> or <a href="/wiki/Firestop" title="Firestop">other measures</a> to limit the spread of fire.<sup id="cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-AmericanArchivist-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Set on a site of 70 acres (28 ha), the building had six floors, each measuring 728 ft × 282 ft (222 m × 86 m) and encompassing 205,296 sq ft (19,072.6 m<sup>2</sup>) for a total of 1,231,776 sq ft (114,435.7 m<sup>2</sup>). The building was constructed of <a href="/wiki/Prestressed_concrete" title="Prestressed concrete">prestressed concrete</a> floors and roof supported by concrete interior columns and surrounded by a <a href="/wiki/Curtain_wall_(architecture)" title="Curtain wall (architecture)">curtain wall</a> of <a href="/wiki/Aluminum" class="mw-redirect" title="Aluminum">aluminum</a> and <a href="/wiki/Glass" title="Glass">glass</a>. Along the north side of each floor were offices, separated from the records storage area by a <a href="/wiki/Concrete_block" title="Concrete block">concrete block</a> wall.<sup id="cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-5" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-AmericanArchivist-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Construction was completed in 1956 by the <a href="/wiki/United_States_Army_Corps_of_Engineers" title="United States Army Corps of Engineers">United States Army Corps of Engineers</a> at a cost of $12.5 million ($140,086,000 today)<sup id="cite_ref-inflation-US_3-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-inflation-US-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>, an economical $10.15 per square foot ($109.25 per square meter).<sup id="cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-AmericanArchivist-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>When the facility opened in 1956, it housed some 38 million military personnel records. </p><p>By the time of the 1973 fire, it held more than 52 million personnel records plus some 500,000 cubic feet (14,000 cubic metres) of military unit records. The center's staff had grown past 2,200 personnel, including GSA management and staff as well as military and civilian personnel from the <a href="/wiki/United_States_Army" title="United States Army">Army</a>, Navy, <a href="/wiki/United_States_Air_Force" title="United States Air Force">Air Force</a>, <a href="/wiki/United_States_Marine_Corps" title="United States Marine Corps">Marines</a>, the <a href="/wiki/United_States_Army_Reserve" title="United States Army Reserve">Army Reserve</a>, the <a href="/wiki/Federal_Bureau_of_Investigation" title="Federal Bureau of Investigation">FBI</a>, and others.<sup id="cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-7" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-AmericanArchivist-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Fire">Fire</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=National_Personnel_Records_Center_fire&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: Fire"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>At 12:16:15 a.m. on July 12, 1973, the <a href="/wiki/Olivette,_Missouri" title="Olivette, Missouri">Olivette</a> Fire Department reported to its dispatcher that the NPRC building was on fire. At 12:16:35, 20 seconds later, a building <a href="/wiki/Security_guard" title="Security guard">security guard</a> picked up the fire phone and relayed the report of a passing motorcyclist who also observed the fire. By 12:17:25, the first <a href="/wiki/Fire_truck" class="mw-redirect" title="Fire truck">fire trucks</a> were dispatched: three <a href="/wiki/Pumper" class="mw-redirect" title="Pumper">pumpers</a> and two other <a href="/wiki/Emergency_vehicle" title="Emergency vehicle">emergency vehicles</a> from the Community Fire Protection, arriving at 12:20:35. Forty-two fire districts ultimately helped put out the fire. </p><p>Heat and smoke within compelled firefighters to withdraw from the building's interior at 3:15 a.m. </p><p>The fire burned out of control for 22 hours while firefighters fought from the exterior of the building. Insufficient water pressure plagued efforts and a pumper broke down mechanically in its 40th continuous hour of operation. Crews entered the building again on July 14; the fire smoldered for another two days. The fire was declared out on the morning of July 16, but crews continued using spray to suppress rekindling until the end of the month. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Cause">Cause</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=National_Personnel_Records_Center_fire&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: Cause"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The exact cause of the fire was not fully determined. A custodian admitted in October 1973 that he had been smoking in the file room and stubbed out his cigarette on a shelf, and he assumed the fire started because of his actions. The case was presented to a grand jury, but the custodian was not arrested.<sup id="cite_ref-wired_4-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-wired-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Deliberate arson was ruled out as a cause almost immediately by investigators, as interviews of some personnel who had been in the building just 20 minutes before the first fire alarm reported nothing out of the ordinary. In 1974, investigators of the General Services Administration stated that an <a href="/wiki/Short_circuit" title="Short circuit">electrical short</a> was most likely the cause of the fire but that, owing to the near-total destruction of the sixth floor, where the fire had occurred, a specific investigation into the electrical systems was impossible.<sup id="cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-8" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-AmericanArchivist-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Affected_records">Affected records</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=National_Personnel_Records_Center_fire&action=edit&section=4" title="Edit section: Affected records"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Burton_Stephen_Lancaster_(1913-1994)_discharge_certificate_(WD_AGO).jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/Burton_Stephen_Lancaster_%281913-1994%29_discharge_certificate_%28WD_AGO%29.jpg/220px-Burton_Stephen_Lancaster_%281913-1994%29_discharge_certificate_%28WD_AGO%29.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="288" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/Burton_Stephen_Lancaster_%281913-1994%29_discharge_certificate_%28WD_AGO%29.jpg/330px-Burton_Stephen_Lancaster_%281913-1994%29_discharge_certificate_%28WD_AGO%29.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/Burton_Stephen_Lancaster_%281913-1994%29_discharge_certificate_%28WD_AGO%29.jpg/440px-Burton_Stephen_Lancaster_%281913-1994%29_discharge_certificate_%28WD_AGO%29.jpg 2x" data-file-width="2422" data-file-height="3176" /></a><figcaption>The <a href="/wiki/DD_Form_214" title="DD Form 214">separation document</a> of <a href="/wiki/Burt_Lancaster" title="Burt Lancaster">Burt Lancaster</a>, one of the publicly accessible records at the National Archives. The burned edges are the result of the 1973 fire.</figcaption></figure> <p>The losses to federal military records collection included: </p> <ul><li>80% loss to records of U.S. Army personnel discharged November 1, 1912, to January 1, 1960;<sup id="cite_ref-Archives_2-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Archives-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></li> <li>75% loss to records of U.S. Air Force personnel discharged September 25, 1947, to January 1, 1964, with names alphabetically after Hubbard, James E.;<sup id="cite_ref-Archives_2-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Archives-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></li> <li>Some U.S. Army Reserve personnel who performed their initial <a href="/wiki/Active_duty" title="Active duty">active duty</a> for training in the late 1950s but who received final discharge as late as 1964.</li></ul> <p>None of the records that were destroyed in the fire had duplicate copies made, nor had they been copied to <a href="/wiki/Microfilm" class="mw-redirect" title="Microfilm">microfilm</a>. No index of these records was made prior to the fire, and millions of records were on loan to the <a href="/wiki/United_States_Department_of_Veterans_Affairs" title="United States Department of Veterans Affairs">Veterans Administration</a> at the time of the fire. This made it difficult to precisely determine which records were lost.<sup id="cite_ref-Archives_2-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Archives-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Navy_and_Marine_Corps_records">Navy and Marine Corps records</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=National_Personnel_Records_Center_fire&action=edit&section=5" title="Edit section: Navy and Marine Corps records"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>On the morning of the National Archives Fire, a very small number of U.S. Navy, <a href="/wiki/United_States_Coast_Guard" title="United States Coast Guard">Coast Guard</a>, and Marine Corps records were out of their normal file area, being worked on as active requests by employees of the National Archives and Records Administration who maintained their offices on the 6th floor of the building. When the NPRC fire began, these Navy and Marine Corps records were caught in the section of the building which experienced the most damage in the fire. </p><p>The exact number of Navy and Marine Corps records destroyed in the fire is unknown, since such records were being removed only for a few days while information was retrieved from them and were not normally stored in the area of the building that experienced the fire. Estimates indicate that the number of affected records was no more than two to three dozen. Such records are considered "special cases," and no accounting could be made of which records were affected, so the present policy of NPRC is to state that there were no Navy and Marine Corps records destroyed in the fire and to treat these records as records that had been lost in ordinary circumstances. </p><p>The destroyed sixth floor of the NPRC also housed a security vault that contained high-profile and notable records of U.S. Navy and Marine Corps personnel. Known as the "Sixth Floor Vault," confirmed destroyed records included the Navy file of <a href="/wiki/Prime_Minister_of_Greece" title="Prime Minister of Greece">Greek Prime Minister</a> <a href="/wiki/Andreas_Papandreou" title="Andreas Papandreou">Andreas Papandreou</a> as well as the record of <a href="/wiki/Adolf_Hitler" title="Adolf Hitler">Adolf Hitler</a>'s nephew <a href="/wiki/William_Patrick_Hitler" class="mw-redirect" title="William Patrick Hitler">William Patrick Hitler</a>. The sixth-floor security vault also held all the records of current NPRC employees who had their own Navy and Marine Corps records retired at the agency. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Damage_and_reconstruction">Damage and reconstruction</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=National_Personnel_Records_Center_fire&action=edit&section=6" title="Edit section: Damage and reconstruction"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The 1973 fire destroyed the entire sixth floor of the National Personnel Records Center and greatly affected the fifth floor with water damage. As part of the reconstruction, the entire sixth floor was removed owing to the extensive damage, resulting in the current structure's now consisting of five floors. The rehabilitated building has firewalls to divide the large, open records storage areas. Smoke detection and sprinkler systems have also been added to prevent a repetition of the 1973 fire. Signs of the fire can still be seen today.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (October 2022)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup> </p><p>A massive effort to restore destroyed service records began in 1974. In most cases where a military record has been presumed destroyed, NPRC is able to reconstruct basic service information, such as military date of entry, date of discharge, character of service, and final rank. Information is still being recovered from burnt files into the 2020s, especially with the aid of infrared cameras that can read blackened paper.<sup id="cite_ref-wired_4-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-wired-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-5" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="See_also">See also</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=National_Personnel_Records_Center_fire&action=edit&section=7" title="Edit section: See also"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/1836_U.S._Patent_Office_fire" title="1836 U.S. Patent Office fire">1836 U.S. Patent Office fire</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1877_U.S._Patent_Office_fire" title="1877 U.S. Patent Office fire">1877 U.S. Patent Office fire</a></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="References">References</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=National_Personnel_Records_Center_fire&action=edit&section=8" title="Edit section: References"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239543626">.mw-parser-output .reflist{margin-bottom:0.5em;list-style-type:decimal}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .reflist{font-size:90%}}.mw-parser-output .reflist .references{font-size:100%;margin-bottom:0;list-style-type:inherit}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-2{column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-3{column-width:25em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns{margin-top:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns ol{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns li{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-alpha{list-style-type:upper-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-roman{list-style-type:upper-roman}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-alpha{list-style-type:lower-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-greek{list-style-type:lower-greek}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-roman{list-style-type:lower-roman}</style><div class="reflist"> <div class="mw-references-wrap"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-AmericanArchivist-1"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-3"><sup><i><b>d</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-4"><sup><i><b>e</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-5"><sup><i><b>f</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-6"><sup><i><b>g</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-7"><sup><i><b>h</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-AmericanArchivist_1-8"><sup><i><b>i</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1238218222">.mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free.id-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Lock-green.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited.id-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration.id-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription.id-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg")right 0.1em center/12px no-repeat}body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background-size:contain;padding:0 1em 0 0}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#085;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}</style><cite id="CITEREFStenderEvans_Walker1974" class="citation journal cs1">Stender, Walter W.; Evans Walker (October 1974). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.archives.gov/st-louis/military-personnel/nprc-fire.pdf">"The National Personnel Records Center Fire: A Study in Disaster"</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span>. <i><a href="/wiki/American_Archivist" title="American Archivist">The American Archivist</a></i>. <b>37</b> (4). <a href="/wiki/Society_of_American_Archivists" title="Society of American Archivists">Society of American Archivists</a>: 521–549. <a href="/wiki/Doi_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="Doi (identifier)">doi</a>:<span class="id-lock-free" title="Freely accessible"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://doi.org/10.17723%2Faarc.37.4.2881301629107368">10.17723/aarc.37.4.2881301629107368</a></span><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2009-01-31</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=The+American+Archivist&rft.atitle=The+National+Personnel+Records+Center+Fire%3A+A+Study+in+Disaster&rft.volume=37&rft.issue=4&rft.pages=521-549&rft.date=1974-10&rft_id=info%3Adoi%2F10.17723%2Faarc.37.4.2881301629107368&rft.aulast=Stender&rft.aufirst=Walter+W.&rft.au=Evans+Walker&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.archives.gov%2Fst-louis%2Fmilitary-personnel%2Fnprc-fire.pdf&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ANational+Personnel+Records+Center+fire" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Archives-2"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-Archives_2-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Archives_2-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Archives_2-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Archives_2-3"><sup><i><b>d</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.archives.gov/st-louis/military-personnel/fire-1973.html">"The 1973 Fire at the National Personnel Records Center (St. Louis, MO)"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/National_Archives_and_Records_Administration" title="National Archives and Records Administration">Archives.gov</a></i>. College Park, Maryland: <a href="/wiki/National_Personnel_Records_Center" title="National Personnel Records Center">National Personnel Records Center</a>, <a href="/wiki/National_Archives_and_Records_Administration" title="National Archives and Records Administration">National Archives and Records Administration</a>. 2007-06-19<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2009-01-31</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Archives.gov&rft.atitle=The+1973+Fire+at+the+National+Personnel+Records+Center+%28St.+Louis%2C+MO%29&rft.date=2007-06-19&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.archives.gov%2Fst-louis%2Fmilitary-personnel%2Ffire-1973.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ANational+Personnel+Records+Center+fire" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-inflation-US-3"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-inflation-US_3-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">1634–1699: <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFMcCusker1997" class="citation book cs1"><a href="/wiki/John_J._McCusker" title="John J. McCusker">McCusker, J. J.</a> (1997). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.americanantiquarian.org/proceedings/44525121.pdf"><i>How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda</i></a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span>. <a href="/wiki/American_Antiquarian_Society" title="American Antiquarian Society">American Antiquarian Society</a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=How+Much+Is+That+in+Real+Money%3F+A+Historical+Price+Index+for+Use+as+a+Deflator+of+Money+Values+in+the+Economy+of+the+United+States%3A+Addenda+et+Corrigenda&rft.pub=American+Antiquarian+Society&rft.date=1997&rft.aulast=McCusker&rft.aufirst=J.+J.&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.americanantiquarian.org%2Fproceedings%2F44525121.pdf&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ANational+Personnel+Records+Center+fire" class="Z3988"></span> 1700–1799: <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFMcCusker1992" class="citation book cs1"><a href="/wiki/John_J._McCusker" title="John J. McCusker">McCusker, J. J.</a> (1992). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.americanantiquarian.org/proceedings/44517778.pdf"><i>How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States</i></a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span>. <a href="/wiki/American_Antiquarian_Society" title="American Antiquarian Society">American Antiquarian Society</a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=How+Much+Is+That+in+Real+Money%3F+A+Historical+Price+Index+for+Use+as+a+Deflator+of+Money+Values+in+the+Economy+of+the+United+States&rft.pub=American+Antiquarian+Society&rft.date=1992&rft.aulast=McCusker&rft.aufirst=J.+J.&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.americanantiquarian.org%2Fproceedings%2F44517778.pdf&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ANational+Personnel+Records+Center+fire" class="Z3988"></span> 1800–present: <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFFederal_Reserve_Bank_of_Minneapolis" class="citation web cs1">Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.minneapolisfed.org/about-us/monetary-policy/inflation-calculator/consumer-price-index-1800-">"Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–"</a><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">February 29,</span> 2024</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Consumer+Price+Index+%28estimate%29+1800%E2%80%93&rft.au=Federal+Reserve+Bank+of+Minneapolis&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.minneapolisfed.org%2Fabout-us%2Fmonetary-policy%2Finflation-calculator%2Fconsumer-price-index-1800-&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3ANational+Personnel+Records+Center+fire" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-wired-4"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-wired_4-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-wired_4-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text">Greenwell, Megan. "<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.wired.com/story/the-night-17-million-precious-military-records-went-up-in-smoke/">Night 17 Million Precious Military Records Went Up in Smoke</a>." <i>Wired</i>, 27 June 2023.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-5"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-5">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.archives.gov/preservation/about/st-louis-preservation-branch/records-reformatting">Records Reformatting – National Archives</a></span> </li> </ol></div></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Further_reading">Further reading</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=National_Personnel_Records_Center_fire&action=edit&section=9" title="Edit section: Further reading"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li>Case Reference Guide (CRG) of the <a href="/wiki/Military_Personnel_Records_Center" title="Military Personnel Records Center">Military Personnel Records Center</a></li> <li>"The 1973 Fire" – Public information pamphlet published by the <a href="/wiki/National_Personnel_Records_Center" title="National Personnel Records Center">National Personnel Records Center</a></li> <li>"How to obtain Veteran Records" – Instruction sheet from the office of Senator <a href="/wiki/Ted_Kennedy" title="Ted Kennedy">Ted Kennedy</a> which mentions the 1973 fire</li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="External_links">External links</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=National_Personnel_Records_Center_fire&action=edit&section=10" title="Edit section: External links"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.archives.gov/st-louis/military-personnel/fire-1973.html">National Archives 1973 NPRC Fire Information Page</a></li> <li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.archives.gov/st-louis/military-personnel/nprc-fire.pdf">An essay regarding the 1973 NPRC Fire</a></li></ul>    </div><noscript><img src="https://login.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:CentralAutoLogin/start?type=1x1" alt="" width="1" height="1" style="border: none; position: absolute;"></noscript> <div class="printfooter" data-nosnippet="">Retrieved from "<a dir="ltr" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=National_Personnel_Records_Center_fire&oldid=1250437714">https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=National_Personnel_Records_Center_fire&oldid=1250437714</a>"</div></div> <div id="catlinks" class="catlinks" data-mw="interface"><div id="mw-normal-catlinks" class="mw-normal-catlinks"><a href="/wiki/Help:Category" title="Help:Category">Categories</a>: <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:National_Archives_and_Records_Administration" title="Category:National Archives and Records Administration">National Archives and Records Administration</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:1973_fires_in_the_United_States" title="Category:1973 fires in the United States">1973 fires in the United States</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Building_and_structure_fires_in_the_United_States" title="Category:Building and structure fires in the United States">Building and structure fires in the United States</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Fires_in_Missouri" title="Category:Fires in Missouri">Fires in Missouri</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:History_of_St._Louis_County,_Missouri" title="Category:History of St. Louis County, Missouri">History of St. Louis County, Missouri</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:1973_in_Missouri" title="Category:1973 in Missouri">1973 in Missouri</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:July_1973_events_in_the_United_States" title="Category:July 1973 events in the United States">July 1973 events in the United States</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Lost_documents" title="Category:Lost documents">Lost documents</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Archives_in_the_United_States" title="Category:Archives in the United States">Archives in the United States</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Independent_agencies_of_the_United_States_government" title="Category:Independent agencies of the United States government">Independent agencies of the United States government</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:National_archives" title="Category:National archives">National archives</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Records_management" title="Category:Records management">Records management</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:State_archives" title="Category:State archives">State archives</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:World_Digital_Library_partners" title="Category:World Digital Library partners">World Digital Library partners</a></li></ul></div><div id="mw-hidden-catlinks" class="mw-hidden-catlinks mw-hidden-cats-hidden">Hidden categories: <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Pages_using_gadget_WikiMiniAtlas" title="Category:Pages using gadget WikiMiniAtlas">Pages using gadget WikiMiniAtlas</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Articles_with_short_description" title="Category:Articles with short description">Articles with short description</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Short_description_matches_Wikidata" title="Category:Short description matches Wikidata">Short description matches Wikidata</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Articles_needing_additional_references_from_June_2020" title="Category:Articles needing additional references from June 2020">Articles needing additional references from June 2020</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:All_articles_needing_additional_references" title="Category:All articles needing additional references">All articles needing additional references</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Coordinates_on_Wikidata" title="Category:Coordinates on Wikidata">Coordinates on Wikidata</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:All_articles_with_unsourced_statements" title="Category:All articles with unsourced statements">All articles with unsourced statements</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Articles_with_unsourced_statements_from_October_2022" title="Category:Articles with unsourced statements from October 2022">Articles with unsourced statements from October 2022</a></li></ul></div></div> </div> </main> </div> <div class="mw-footer-container"> <footer id="footer" class="mw-footer" > <ul id="footer-info"> <li id="footer-info-lastmod"> This page was last edited on 10 October 2024, at 12:13<span class="anonymous-show"> (UTC)</span>.</li> <li id="footer-info-copyright">Text is available under the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Text_of_the_Creative_Commons_Attribution-ShareAlike_4.0_International_License" title="Wikipedia:Text of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License">Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License</a>; 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