Now that you understand what an advanced search is, we can explore why it is such a useful tool.
The problem: Online databases can hold a large number of records. For example, the Veterans Legacy Memorial website has records relating to nearly ten million Veterans and Service members.
Desired outcome: By searching, we hope to reduce that number to just the most relevant results.
Filtering: Imagine a Venn diagram. Each filter (i.e., field search) yields a set of results represented by a circle. With multiple filters, your results are the area where the circles overlap.
The power of advanced search: Searching multiple fields lets us find the most relevant results.
You may not always find what you are looking for the first time you click “Search.” You may have too many results or too few. Or maybe the results you do have simply do not align with your intent. What might you do in these situations?
Common causes: Not enough filters. Filters that lack specificity or uniqueness.
Narrowing your search: If you examine your results, do some of them seem more relevant than others? What details add to their relevance? Which filters (if added to your search or refined) might speak to those details?
An officer at a periscope in the control room of a submarine, ca. 1942. (National Archives)
Common causes: Too many filters or too much specificity on a single filter. A typo or your term may not match the exact wording in the database.
Refining your search: Review your filters. The wrong selection from a dropdown menu or date picker could be at fault. Open text fields can especially be prone to error. Do you see a logical contradiction in your search? For example, we should expect no results searching for WWII Veterans born after the conflict ended. Removing or broadening a filter can sometimes help you see the cause of the issue.
Women learning “war work” at a vocational school in Daytona Beach, Florida, 1942. (National Archives)
Imagine you want to research a soldier who died in a particular battle but you are not sure how to look for them. After all, there is no specific field on the VLM search for cause of death or the battles in which someone fought.
Is there other information that may relate to your research question? Someone who died in a particular battle, for example, would have a specific date of death. They may have served in a particular branch of the military. They may be more likely to have been buried in certain cemeteries. Searching multiple fields would help filter out many records. Your results will still contain some people who do not fit your criteria but your chances of finding a match vastly improve. Searching can be deeply creative. If you cannot search explicitly for something, you may be able to find an indirect pathway.
We want to find a World War II Veteran buried at the Jefferson Barrack National Cemetery in Missouri. The following search has returned barely any results.
