Scanned records of Ukraine’s partisans from WWII go online

The flow of records from WWII going online seems to have no end.

Now, 28 large books listing the partisans from Ukraine who fought in WWII have been posted on the Memory Book of Ukraine. The website does not require any registration to view its free scans, which can be easily downloaded. Another book also exists for those who served under Major General Mikhail Ivanovich Naumov here.

The information provided on partisans include- full name, data of birth, nationality and date of service. Don’t forget the middle name is patronymic (in honor of the father’s first name).

Here is a description of the books translated into English by Google Translate (not perfect but better than nothing). I have also translated the books’ names into English here for those who know the groups where their relatives had served during WWII.

The books appear to be typed in Russian and so do descriptions of these books. (My deepest apologies if the books are truly in Ukrainian.)  Those who don’t know Russian can continue reading for directions on using these books without knowing the language. Trying to find relatives in these records on your own is better than paying too much to a researcher who will be laughing to the bank. Typed records are so much easier to read than the script ones.

Here’s how to go through these books without knowing Russian:

1. Before going through the books, use Google Translate  or this website to switch full names in this order- last, patronymic and first name. You will need to hand write the names or try to remember how the names appear for looking through the books.
2. Click on the image of the book from here.
3. Click on the work Следующая directly above the top right edge of the book to go to the next page. The word directly above the left edge Предыдущая will allow you to go back.
4. You will know the list has started once you find the page that says СПИСОК in the top middle.
5. Here is the order of the Russian alphabet: А Б В Г Д Е Ё Ж З И Й К Л М Н О П Р С Т У Ф Х Ц Ч Ш Щ Э Ю Я
6. If the surnames being searched are farther into the alphabet, it will get annoying to keep clicking Следующая. To get faster through the books,  go up to the URL in the address line and change the number after ?image= no more than another 10. The change cannot increase or decrease the number of digits. For example, if you are on page 95, just go up to page 99. If you go up to page 100, the scans will disappear.
7. Once you no longer see Следующая in the top right corner of the book, you will know the book has ended.
8. To get back to the other books, scroll down the page and click on Вернуться к альбому on the bottom left of the book’s edge. It will take take you here to the other books.

I highly recommend downloading any page that could have information on potential relatives and saving the file under names that note the source of the scanned pages.

Those who were lucky enough to find relatives in these books should try copying and pasting their relatives’ names and group names into Google. It’s worth a try to see whether other websites have valuable information and photos.

These books are only a portion of the wonderful resources on this website, which also has a sampling of scanned records for prisoners of war here. The records aren’t all typed. The Ukrainian Book of Memory is an incredible resource that could have the records you thought never could be online and these are all FREE.

Follow this blog with the top right button to catch the latest news on resources and databases for genealogy in the former USSR.

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