I am trying to get information regarding Benjamin Cooper, my great grandfather.(born probably around 1850-1860. I am not sure of his birth location. His children were Arthur (born 1897) and Fannie Cooper(around 1883)of Norfolk, Va. Their mother's name was Abbie Lewis (born around 1861) from Goochland County, Va. Abbie's father was Absalom Lewis. Arthur Cooper is my grandfather. Abbie Lewis and Benjamin Cooper names appear on his marriage records as his parents. Fannie Cooper may have married into the Reid family of Va. My grandfather served in WWI(1917-1919)in the USMC according to cemetery records. I do not understand how an african-american served in the Marines during that time. I am requesting his military records and hoping that they survived the National Archive fire. Thank you for any help.

Karen Mitchell