How do I register a Purple Heart Recipient?
With your help we are building a registry of Purple Heart recipients from all branches of service, all wars for
which the Purple Heart was awarded, and from all across the nation. In order to verify receipt of the medal
we request documentation. This can include a variety of materials including the DD-214 or other discharge
form listing awards, medical forms, a photograph of the back of the medal bearing the recipient's name, or
other supporting materials. We are also looking for photographs, telegrams, letters home, news articles or
other materials that help put a face and a story with each recipient's name. Please complete the enrollment
form and return to the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor with proper documentation.
For Adobe PDF files, download Adobe Reader. 
Enrollment Form (547kb)
As a Purple Heart recipient, do you have to be a member of the Military Order Of The Purple Heart, to be in the Roll of Honor?
No, you do not have to be a member of MOPH to enroll in the Roll of Honor at the Hall. Enrollment is free.
How do I obtain DD-214 or other discharge papers?
To obtain a copy of the necessary documentation, please contact the National Records Center at http://www.archives.gov/veterans/evetrecs/index.html.
If you are not a veteran or the next of kin, you must complete the standard Form 180 (SF180). This form is available at http://www.archives.gov/research/order/standard-form-180.pdf on the National Archvies
and Records Administration (NARA) website.
How many Purple Hearts have been awarded?
We can guess at the exact number because no consistent record was kept since the award was established in 1932,
and we estimate the number at 1.7 million. The award was first retroactive to those who received "wound chevrons"
and "certificates of merit" during World War I and to those from earlier wars who chose to apply for the
award. From 1942 on it was limited to service men and women wounded or killed in combat against the
enemy. Records were sometimes lost during wartime when headquarters were overrun and unfortunately
many were lost during a fire at the National Personnel Records Center in 1973.
Where is the National Purple Heart located?
The New Windsor Cantonment State Historic Site in New York's Hudson River Valley is the setting for the Hall of
Honor. Just sixty miles north of Manhattan and ten miles north of the United States Military Academy at West
Point, the cantonment was an extensive military post housing some 7,500 soldiers and 500 civilian dependents
in the closing years of the Revolutionary War. Officers met here in a chapel and meeting hall called the "Temple
of Virtue" to review candidates for the Badge of Military Merit, the inspiration for today’s Purple Heart. In 1932,
138 veterans of World War I received some of the nation’s first Purple Hearts on Temple Hill near the site of
the "Temple of Virtue."
How do I locate a Purple Heart recipient in the Roll of Honor Online?
First select "Roll of Honor" from the links at the top of the page. Second, type the name of the
individual you are looking for in to the first and last name boxes on the search page. Select the search button.
If you are unable to find the recipient you are looking for try varying your search: Conduct a search using the recipient's last
name leaving out their first name. Then, look through the list of search results. Or, you might want to try alternate spellings of the
name you are using for your search.
If you are still unable to locate the recipient you are looking for, are you certain that this recipient has been registered with
the National purple Heart Hall of Honor? For more information about registering at the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor, please
refer to "How do I register a Purple Heart Recipient?" above.
What is the "Roll of Honor"?
The Roll of Honor is a database created to preserve and present the stories of Purple Heart recipients. It
can be accessed at ten interactive computer kiosks at the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor. Visitors to the Hall of Honor can learn
about individual Purple Heart recipients by reading the stories, and looking at the photographs and other documents that have been
submitted to the Hall of Honor. Registration is voluntary. If you are interested in learning more about the registration process please
refer to "How do I register a Purple Heart Recipient?" above.
What is the "Roll of Honor Online"?
The Roll of Honor Online is an abbreviated online version of the Roll of Honor. You can use it to search for
and learn about the Purple Heart recipients who have been enrolled with the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor.