NOLTE 36Finding records. Preserving stories.Honor their service. Discover their story.
Every Veteran Has a Story.
Every Family Deserves to Discover It.
Nolte 36 helps families locate, request, and understand military service records so they can discover and preserve the untold stories of loved ones who served in the armed forces.
Finding the Records. Understanding the Story.
A military service record can offer a connection to a loved one’s past. But knowing where to look, what to request, and how to interpret what arrives can feel overwhelming.
Nolte 36 helps families navigate that journey.
Locate Surviving Records
Learn where your loved one’s military records may be held and what information may still be available.
Navigate the Request
Understand how to request available records and take the next steps in your search.
Understand What Arrives
Make sense of military documents, terminology, and details that can help reveal your loved one’s service story.
Our Mission
The Nolte 36 helps families find the records of loved ones who served—where those records survive, how to request them, and how to read them once they arrive—so that every veteran’s story can be recovered and told.
The story behind the mission
One Family’s Story Inspired a Broader Mission
Thirty-six cousins served in World War II. Every one came home alive. Their remarkable story inspired a mission to help other families discover and preserve their own military legacies.
Discover the Nolte 36 StoryHelp Preserve the Stories That Remain Untold
Your donation supports Nolte 36’s mission to help families find, understand, and preserve the military service stories of their loved ones.
They All Came Home
An American Family Answers the Call
As America nears its 250th birthday, this story offers a way to remember who we are and the sacrifices that brought us here. Join us in telling this amazing story, now in production.
One Family.
36 Cousins.
Countless Stories.
Carl Fredrick Conrad Nolte
From this man would come the 36 Nolte cousins who answered the call in America’s hour of need.
They All Came Home tells the remarkable true story of the Nolte family, rooted in Fairmont, Minnesota. An ordinary rural family that sent thirty-six cousins to serve in World War II.
They served as soldiers, sailors, pilots, medics, engineers, and support personnel across the Army, Navy, Air Corps, and Marines.
Every one of them came home alive.
Minneapolis Star-Journal, May 21, 1946
"From One Family Tree: 36 Nolte Cousins Served in War; Two Wounded"
What an incredible story this is…And this isn’t just about thirty-six men surviving World War II—it’s about generations connected through faith, family, place, and values passed down without fanfare.
That’s what makes it so remarkable.
- NYT Best Selling Author Don Mann
Martin Louis Nolte - An Army Veteran served from 1942-1945
USS Belleau Wood (CVL-24) - Where V.A. Nolte had served - after being struck by a kamikaze
Vern Nolte - A Navy Pilot in WWII
From the flight decks of Navy carriers to the fields of Europe, from engineering units, intel collection, to medical corps, the 36 cousins served wherever duty called.
A Book That Preserves A Living Legacy
This book preserves one family's story so future generations can understand the meaning of service, citizenship, and sacrifice in a free society.
Preserving the Nolte Legacy
We aim to record, honor, and elevate the Nolte family's contributions at the county, state, and national level. Ensuring their story is not lost to time, but shared as a touchstone of American character.
Reconnecting Younger Generations
Younger Americans are actively searching for identity. They All Came Home offers a pathway back to heritage, showing that patriotism can be rooted in lineage, humanity, and real, lived history rather than slogans.
A Story That Can Grow
The book is the starting point for a broader legacy: potential educational content for America's 250th, museum or installation concepts, streaming series, and materials that civic and military institutions can use to inspire the next generation of American patriots.
Request a Consultation
Tell us what you are looking for. The Nolte 36 Team will follow up to discuss your research needs and arrange a consultation.